ANAHEIM — The Ducks took the Honda Center ice with good intentions against the Calgary Flames on Wednesday night. The Ducks were no match for the Flames on paper, trailing the Pacific Division leaders by 23 points in the standings and heading for a fourth consecutive early vacation.

But since they don’t play the games on paper but on ice, the Ducks weren’t exactly pushovers. Playing with nothing to lose, skating purposefully and matching the Flames’ speed and skill, the Ducks stayed within striking distance before falling, 4-2, their 13th loss in 14 games.

“We hate losing here,” Ducks coach Dallas Eakins said. “It doesn’t feel good and it eats you. The ‘but’ for me is that I’m proud of how we played. We played hard. We created enough chances to score more goals. We didn’t get rewarded. (Flames goalie Jacob) Markstrom was excellent.”

Calgary built a two-goal lead by the midway point of the second period thanks to two bolts of lightning that seemed to come out of nowhere and put the Flames into a position to win their second in a row after a three-game winless streak (0-2-1). There wasn’t much the Ducks could do about either.

Johnny Gaudreau set up the Flames’ first goal with a pass into the slot from behind the net, and Elias Lindholm ripped a shot past Ducks goaltender Anthony Stolarz for a 1-0 lead. Then, Tyler Toffoli scored off the rush for a 2-0 lead, after the Ducks generated pressure at the other end.

Then, with the second period winding down, the Ducks cut their deficit in half thanks to Trevor Zegras’ 18th goal of the season and his 51st point. It was nothing fancy, but a simple spin-and-shoot that eluded Markstrom at 18:11 of the second, giving the Ducks a jolt of energy.

From the start, the Ducks were determined to get to the front of the Flames’ net and create havoc in front of Markstrom. Their lack of scoring touch proved to be a fatal flaw, however. They skated into the high-danger areas. They delivered the puck there and even got their shots away.

They scored only twice, however.

Stolarz started in place of John Gibson, who was in goal for all six of the Edmonton Oilers’ goals in a 6-1 loss on Sunday. Stolarz had little chance on either of the first two Calgary goals, then Michael Stone fired a perimeter shot past him for a 3-1 lead at 10:28 of the third.

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Adam Henrique’s power-play goal cut it to 3-2 moments later. Matthew Tkachuk, taking a break from chasing (and cross-checking and holding) Zegras around the ice, sealed the deal with an empty-net goal. Any hopes the Ducks’ had of a comeback attempt ended with 35 seconds to play.

Facing an all-star pest like Tkachuk was a good experience for Zegras, according to Eakins, another learning experience in what’s been a standout rookie season for the 21-year-old center. After all, Zegras wouldn’t warrant such close attention if he wasn’t playing such a strong game.

“Someone talking to you or giving you an extra shot shouldn’t have any effect on your game, but it’s very easy to let it,” Eakins said. “It goes down to choices. Am I going to let this guy – and I’m not talking about Tkachuk, just to be very clear – because there are all kinds of players who talk a lot and they try to get under your skin.

“That’s their game. You have to make a choice. Are you going to let that get you off your game? It should have no effect on your game. Them checking you hard and closing on you hard, them denying you the middle of the ice – that’s what has an effect on your game.”