'The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers' Recap: ‘Lights Out’

Written by Zeke Perez Jr.

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Caution: This article contains spoilers for the season two finale of ‘The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers’. To revisit the previous episode, click here.

​After a long journey with lots of ups and downs, betrayal and friendship, rivalries, realignments, and action, the second season of Game Changers has come to a fitting storybook end. After a lot of back and forth throughout the season, the finale felt somewhat abrupt, but still delivered plenty of emotion and neatly wrapped up loose ends across the cast. 
 
Concluding one of the series' biggest storylines, we see the tension between Coach Cole and Coach Alex continue to dissipate. By this point, Coach Cole is fully ready - if not fully comfortable - to take a step back from his intense ways. He hands over the reins to Alex, placing all of his focus on being a dad first. He even relinquishes his team's name, deciding to use the Ducks moniker for the newly merged super squad (topped off by a cameo from Anaheim Ducks’ Cam Fowler, who hands out the NHL club’s Reverse Retro jerseys to gift the team a sharp new look). Coach Alex thrives in her new role, holding her own against Coach T and Team Canada in the Summer Showcase championship. 
 
The Ducks take a quick lead, playing to a 2-0 lead in the first period. Jace and Evan have seemingly worked through the issues that have plagued them, with Jace scoring both goals and putting his "shot glitch" behind him and with Evan settling into his role with the new team. Unfortunately, this is only fleeting. Jace's early success captures the attention of scouts which threatens to derail the duo. A scout for USA Hockey (questionably) approaches Evan after the first period asking for Jace. This makes Evan question his worth and puts Jace back under the spotlight. 
 
The tone of the second period follows suit. Canada goes on a tear of four unanswered goals to take the lead, even stealing the classic Flying V at one point. Both Jace and Evan let their emotions get the best of them and begin to spiral. Evan considers quitting hockey under the belief that he doesn’t have the potential to ever excel. Jace tries to give up until Sofi calls him out for faking his mid game struggles. Evan and Jace finally, genuinely start to support each other, with the former pushing the latter to strive towards his full potential. 
 
Other characters get happy endings, too. Nick starts off in a bad spot, missing the game with an injury. Seeing him sulk, Marnie decides to put him in a position to follow his true calling: she sets him up to shadow Rich Eisen as he calls the game. (Rich delivers another gem of a line when asking Nick about his injury: "They couldn't shoot you up with cortisone or something?"). Coach Cole does well supporting Jace after taking a step back. AJ softens up and treats his brother and Koob more kindly. And Maya puts a bow on everything by secretly getting everyone to sign what would become the team’s championship banner. 
 
The pace of the finale seems to move a little quickly for all of the slow buildup of the season. The Ducks overcame the threat of Team Canada with relatively little resistance and the game never honestly felt in danger. The episode moves pretty briskly through solving each character’s individual struggles. That being said, the finale perfectly captured the nostalgic and warm, familial feeling of finishing a big bonding experience, like finishing the school year or leaving a summer camp. Everyone is at peace with where they’ve ended up, either embarking on new journeys or taking their foot off of the pedal. The talented cast has taken this series to new heights in this second season. Hopefully we’ll get to see the Ducks fly together again soon!

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