SB Nation - Daniel Winnik

One-Timers: Send Hiller To Pittsburgh, Paging Peter Holland & More...

Jen Neale — Sun, 16 Jun 2013 16:00:01 -0000

Here is the inaugural column of One-Timers, a list of random hockey (and some non-hockey) things that pop into my head each week.

-- The Ducks have given no indication they plan on dealing Jonas Hiller this summer, despite his backup, Viktor Fasth, being signed to a two-year extension after playing 10 games. I am 99.9% sure Bob Murray's goal for next season isn't to have Hiller and Fasth win the Jennings Trophy. One man has to go in order to make room for wunderkind John Gibson (more on him later).

Where have we seen this situation before? Ah yes, J.S. Giguere and Hiller. Well, Hiller is now Jiggy and Fasth is now Jonas (I think I just blew my own mind). We all remember what happened there, Jiggy was traded to Toronto for Jason Blake (shudder) and Veska Toskala. (Side note: just three months later, Toskala, having never played a game in a Ducks uniform was traded to Calgary for ... wait for it ... Curtis McElhinney. Oh Lord. That name still haunts my dreams).

Anyhoo, I have a half-a-trade proposal. In the early part of the 2013-14 season, should the Pittsburgh Penguins goaltending struggles continue, the Ducks should trade Hiller to Pittsburgh. It's a half-a-trade proposal because I don't know what I want in return except for high round draft pick(s). I know for sure I don't want Marc-Andre Fleury.

By making this move, the Ducks put Fasth into the number one position, move Frederik Andersen up from Norfolk to be his backup and that in turn gives John Gibson the minutes he needs in the AHL to acclimate to the professional game. Speaking of John Gibson...

-- ... he's been pretty good for Team USA but we all need to put his current career success into perspective before deciding to dump both Fasth and Hiller for the kid. Playing in World Juniors, he's up against some of the top talent from each country, but how many of those kids are going to make their team's NHL roster out of camp? They're still young players who need to develop more.

Now playing at World Championships is a better - not great - place to judge Gibson's current abilities against NHL players. The best of the best NHL'ers aren't participating in Worlds because they're playing in the Stanley Cup playoffs. His true first test at the pro-level will come in the pre-season when each goalie in the current system are given their chance to play at Honda Center.

No matter what, Gibson needs to develop before he is elevated to the big club full-time. The Ducks are going to use the two years of Fasth's extension to allow Gibson to adjust to the pro-ish game in the AHL and then give the anointed one his shot to become Viktor Fasth and Fasth becomes Hiller.

-- Both Bob Murray and Bruce Boudreau were nominated for GM of the Year and Coach of the Year, respectively. I wasn't surprised they both lost and not just because I do believe Ray Shero and Paul McClean deserved it more.

Bruce's nomination was not surprising. He took a team that finished just short of the playoffs after a franchise record setting run into a second place in the Western Conference team the following season. What Bruce should be appreciated for the most is how he turned around opinions of players we had no idea why he liked them so much. Nick Bonino and Andrew Cogliano had a career rennesance this season thanks to Bruce. Boudreau did some sort of black magic to turn Ryan Getzlaf back into Hulkzlaf. Let's hope they keep it up next year..

Murray's nomination surprised me the most. Bob took a big gamble on Sheldon Souray, giving him a contract most of us disagreed with; however, it worked out well (save his playoff crapfest) due in part to the fantastic season of partner, Francois Beauchemin. Bryan Allen was another gamble and another attempt by Bob to replace the giant hole left by Chris Pronger (see: Foster, Kurtis & Sutton, Andy). After a super rocky first half, Allen played himself into shape and finally looked comfortable in the system. Other gambles that worked: Getting Ben Lovejoy from Pittsburgh (and the GM of the year, Shero) for a late round draft pick and signing Daniel Winnik who helped to get the Ducks off to a great start before melting into a puddle of nothing.

In part, I think Murray's nomination by the other GM's came from the overall feeling of, "Holy shit, I can't believe he re-signed BOTH Getzlaf and Perry." Let's be real here, 80% of us (myself included) thought Perry was walking and had little confidence in the ability to negotiate. No word on whether pro-scout Brian Burke helped talk to both players and their reps.

Had all these things NOT worked out in Murray's favor and Bruce was unable to work his magic with the lineup he was given, we'd be looking for a new GM right now. $50 says it would've been Burke but now we'll never know. At least not this off-season.

-- I don't know why but my gut says the Ducks are going to be active at the draft. They'll keep their picks but player trades could be looming.

The guy with a big target on his back is Peter Holland. We've all been anxiously awaiting Holland's break out year a la Emerson Etem and it feels like we've been waiting a while. Holland has the ability to be a great center on the second or third line, he just can't string together consistent games. He might have a great offensive night but his defense will be weak and vice versa. I am leaning towards changing my fantasy team name from Trade Kyle Palmieri (yes, yes, I was TOTALLY wrong about him) to Trade Peter Holland. Pretty sure the public shame is what gave Palmieri the boost to have a great season.

-- The goal of the Anaheim Ducks franchise is to win a Stanley Cup, not a Calder Cup. The Admirals aren't the Admirals of old (currently the Syracuse Crunch) and that's not the Ducks problem. What I read a lot of were things along the line of 'Player X better not keep playing well in Norfolk because the Ducks will take him and sit him in Anaheim'. Damn right they will. The Ducks have some incredible prospects in the pipeline. If they're playing well in Norfolk against other JV players, Anaheim wants them up to give them a shot with the varsity.

They're also spare parts. Can the Ducks not carry some good backups in case of injury because they take away from what is happening in Norfolk? Do I need to remind people that California is a six hour plane ride away from Virginia? What is more detrimental to a young player's development is being called up and sent down a million times (ex. Kyle Palmieri and Dan Sexton during the Randy Carlyle era) spending all that time on a plane, not on the pro or minor league ice.

The successful players in Norfolk are never going to turn down an opportunity to come to the big club because they're scoring in the AHL. No one loves long bus rides that much. Playing in games does benefit the player more than sitting but practicing with the likes of Getzlaf, Perry, Selanne, Koivu, et. al is going to give the player waaay more in the long run than playing in Norfolk's game.

-- I'm going to go total homer for a second. Brad Marchand of the Boston Bruins is being praised for his success at being such a pest during the playoffs. It's like no one in the hockey media has seen this type of player before. There is even mention of adding him to Team Canada for the playoffs because they might need a player like him.

How short their memories are. I've got a got a 50 goal scorer, former MVP, Stanley Cup Champion, gold medal winning pest that everyone outside of Anaheim loves to hate. Remember that Corey Perry guy? The same guy who will already be on Team Canada. Leave off Marchand for someone with more talent than just pissing people off and streaking at the right time.

Wait. What am I saying? I'm an American. Keep Marchand on the roster, Canada.

-- Some of our regulars may have noticed I haven't been around for the past month. After two-ish years straight of running the blog with the assistance of my amazing staff, I was burned out. I gave Chris the keys to the house and went completely off the AC grid. I'm back now, refreshed and ready to get the season started again...in three-ish months. At least it's only a couple months this time...right?! There is no way they're having another lockout, right?! RIGHT?!

(Thank you times infinity, Chris. Enjoy your blog sabbatical. You earned it!)

2013 Ducks Report Cards At-A-Glance

Chris D-5 — Fri, 14 Jun 2013 19:00:06 -0000

Now that we're all done with grading the players one by one, take a look at how they stacked up against each other. We've also listed the AC writer who reviewed each player's season so that the fluctuations are a little easier to understand. Curious about any of the grades? Click on the letter grade to find out all the details.

Player	Grade	Grader
Saku Koivu	A	Chris
Ben Lovejoy	A	Derek
Radek Dvorak	A	Robby
Ryan Getzlaf	A-	SK
Francois Beauchemin	A-	Daniel
Andrew Cogliano	A-	Kyle
Emerson Etem	A-	SK
David Steckel	A-	Robby
Toni Lydman	A-	Derek
Kyle Palmieri	B+	Chris
Viktor Fasth	B+	Kristen
Jonas Hiller	B+	Robby
Bobby Ryan	B+	Robby
Nick Bonino	B+	Daniel
Sami Vatanen	B+	Derek
Rickard Rakell	B+	Kyle
Jordan Hendry	B+	Chris
Cam Fowler	B	Kristen
Daniel Winnik	B	Kristen
Corey Perry	B-	Kristen
Patrick Maroon	B-	Chris
Matt Beleskey	B-	SK
Sheldon Souray	B-/C+	Daniel
Teemu Selanne	C+	Kyle
Matthew Lombardi	C	Chris
Bryan Allen	D	Chris
Devante Smith-Pelly	D	Chris
Peter Holland	D	Jen
Luca Sbisa	D-	Kristen
Brad Staubitz	D-	Chris

And with that, i think we can finally close the book on the 2013 season. Here's to a better end in 2014!

2013 Ducks Report Cards: Saku Koivu

Chris D-5 — Thu, 13 Jun 2013 17:00:04 -0000

Player Name/position: Saku Koivu, C

Overall Grade: A

Contract Status: UFA, Previous cap hit of $3.8 million

2013 Stats: 47 Games Played, 8G 19A 27P, plus-4, 17:36 TOI/G, Faceoff Percentage 51.4%

Playoff Stats: 7 GP, 1-2-3, minus-4, 17:52 TOI/G, Faceoff Percentage 52.6% (took the most faceoffs of any Duck in both regular season or playoffs)

Offense: Koivu ended up scoring 0.56 points per game this season, the third highest rate of his four years in Anaheim (0.51 in 2012, 0.6 in 2011, 0.73 in 2010). That sounds about right for a 38-year-old center taking on a more defensive role, but after starting with 20 points in his first 20 games he hit a serious offensive drought.

He found great chemistry with Daniel Winnik and Andrew Cogliano, and in my opinion it was Koivu's play that drove the line's offensive explosion in the first half of the season. With Corey Perry struggling to start the season and the second line not coming together, the Winnik-Koivu-Cogliano line not only kept the Ducks afloat but kept them at the top of the league.

Oddly, he also ended up tied with Ryan Getzlaf for second on the team with four PP Goals. I don't think I'll ever understand what Boudreau is thinking with those PP combinations.

Defense: It's a toss up between Koivu and Winnik for who was the Ducks' best defensive forward this season, but I'll go with Koivu. He was one of only five Ducks with a positive corsi on the season (1.06) and played the second highest quality of competition among Anaheim forwards (behind Peter Holland?!?). He also finished second among forwards in shorthanded time on ice (2:05) only behind Winnik (2:32) in the regular season.

Anecdotally, I'd have to say his defensive peak was Game 1 of the playoffs, where Zetterberg and Datsyuk were shut down harshly by his line. Unfortunately, there were six games left in the series and as it wore on the Detroit stars were able to figure it out/get away from those shut down players and make a huge impact.

Highlight of the Season: For the most part, Koivu's game is about subtlety, but this shootout goal against St. Louis (3:30 of the highlight pack below) was SIIIIIIIIICK!

Expectations for Next Year: He's not quite Teemu (who is?) in terms of his age or loyalty to the team, so there is some question of him returning for next year. However, after having such a great 2013, I expect him to be back and I don't see any reason why he would jump ship now, unless salary cap/budgetary concerns come into play because of the Getzlaf/Perry contracts.

As far as his play, this year was so out of this world for Saku, you can't really even expect him to keep this pace up. Coming into the season, I expected him to take a lesser role in the team, but he turned out to be the best player on the ice many nights. Much like other outstanding performances the Ducks have seen in the past couple of years, specifically Lubomir Visnovsky and Perry in 2011 and to a lesser extent Teemu in 2012, he's bound to have a drop off season in 2014, should he return.

2013 Anaheim Ducks Player Report Cards: Andrew Cogliano

Kyle Nicolas — Thu, 30 May 2013 19:00:05 -0000

Player Name: Andrew Cogliano (Left Wing)

Overall Grade: A-

Contract Status: 1 year remaining, $2.39M cap hit; UFA in July 2014.

2013 Stats: 48GP, 13G, 10A, 23P, plus-14; Best single-season +/- of his career; Third amongst Ducks forwards in PK time at 76:34, trailing only linemates Saku Koivu and Daniel Winnik.

Playoff Stats: 7GP, 0G, 1A, 1P, minus-3

Offense: Cogliano came over to the Ducks two summers ago and was not much of an offensive contributor despite his presence as a penalty killer. This season Cogliano came up clutch multiple times, notching a goal when the Ducks really needed one to steal a game. This year was Cogs' best in goal production since he tallied 18 in 82 games in both '07-'08 and '08-'09. That production did tail off in the playoffs however, as he was limited to just one point in seven games vs. Detroit.

Defense: Cogliano's penalty-killing and shut-down game was easily his strong-point this season. Teaming up with either Winnik or young speedster Emerson Etem, Cogliano was relied upon to come up big in critical shorthanded and defensive scenarios. His plus-minus tells the story of how well he did all season.

Highlight of the Season: Without question Andrew Cogliano earned the tag of "The Warrior" for his performance in the season series with the Chicago Blackhawks. On February 12, Cogliano scored with under three minutes remaining in regulation to tie the game, moments after his helmet was removed in a scuffle. The goal instantly became the most old-time hockey goal of the year.

Cogs also showed his gritty toughness later in early March by taking a high-stick to the face from Brandon Bollig. Despite four officials on the ice and Cogliano losing two teeth, there was no penalty on the play. And while it looks like this pissed Cogliano off (which it did), Cogs went back to the locker room, spat out the blood and bits of teeth, and came right back out, not even missing a shift.

Expectations for Next Year: Cogliano has still not missed a single game of his NHL career thus far, and I would expect that streak to continue so long as he doesn't lose a leg (let's be honest... we all know he'd still play if he lost an arm). While I loved the jump in production this season, I feel like his performance in the mid-to-late season is a little more like what we're going to see regularly.

I'd love to see him finally break the 20-goal barrier however. And with the divisional structure changing and multiple games against the Phoenix Coyotes... who's to say he can't do it? Likewise, I'd also expect to see him and Emerson Etem paired together on the penalty kill all next year unless one of their games jumps on the fast-track to hell.

2013 Ducks Report Card: Daniel Winnik

light_the_lamp — Wed, 29 May 2013 19:00:04 -0000

Player Name/position: Daniel Winnik, LW

Overall Grade: B

Contract Status: 2 years, $3,600,000. Winnik made $1,800,000 during the 2013 season, with a cap hit of $1,800,000. He will become a UFA at the end of the 2013-14 season.

2013 Stats: 48 GP, 6 G, 19 A, 16 PIM, plus-13

Playoff Stats: 7 GP, 0 G, 1 A, 7 PIM, minus-4.

Offense: Winnik began the season as an offensive juggernaut, and spent some time among the league's leaders in goals and points. Five of his six goals were scored in his first four games as a Duck, eclipsing his total from 21 games as a Shark last year (3). Although heavily skewed by his unbelievable start, his .39 points per game beat his previous career best of .33 set in his rookie season of 2007-08 with Phoenix. He eventually came back down to earth (as everyone expected), but it was fun while it lasted. Even after his scoring cooled off, Winnik still provided some very effective sandpaper out on the ice.

Defense: This is the real reason why Bob Murray acquired him during the 2012 offseason. In the regular season he trailed only Francois Beauchemin in shorthanded TOI per game (2:32). The beauty of Winnik on the PK doesn't just end at clearing the zone, it's really all about his ability to skate it out and maintain possession in the offensive zone. Though he only scored one assist in seven playoff games, he (along with Andrew Cogliano and Saku Koivu) were very effective in shutting down Henrik Zetterberg and Pavel Datsyuk early in the series against Detroit.

Highlight of the Season: Enjoy this video of Winnik scoring against Vancouver in his Anaheim debut.

Expectations for Next Year: At 28, Winnik has hit his ceiling, and we can't rely on him as a consistent offensive presence. Yet, he is a gritty, veteran defensive presence who is capable of being matched up against the opposition's best offensive players. If we can sign him for a reasonable amount after his current contract expires, I'd like to see him stick around.

Zetterberg, Red Wings Force Game 7 In Anaheim

Jen Neale — Sat, 11 May 2013 06:56:49 -0000

Final Score: Ducks 3, Red Wings 4 (OT)

First Period Recap: Based on the first five seconds of the game, it looked like it was going to be a very, very long night. As soon as Saku Koivu won the face-off, the Ducks went for a change. Gustav Nyquist took advantage of the sloppy change and took the puck into the Ducks zone. Luckily Ben Lovejoy gets back in time to block Nyquist's shot on Jonas Hiller.

It continued to be all Red Wings for a good part of the first period. What seems to be the story of the series, the Ducks just couldn't keep Detroit out of their zone, nor could they keep the puck in the Red Wings zone if they managed to get it out. When Anaheim did control the puck in Detroit's end the Red Wings collapsed around Jimmy Howard protecting him from ... no one! The Ducks just wouldn't go to the front of the net and plant themselves there for any extended period of time.

Nearly six minutes in, the Ducks commit the first penalty of the game. Ryan Getzlaf tripped up Mikael Samuelsson in the neutral zone. Someone should study the Red Wings and how they're able to win any games. They simply fall down so easily. (Sarcasm font needed).

Johan Franzen had his giant ass in front of Hiller all night and Anaheim did nothing to get him out of the way. Throughout the entire penalty kill, Hiller was on his toes looking over or around Franzen. Somehow Hiller manages to stop what felt like a million shots on the successful penalty kill. It looked like the Ducks would be going right back on the PK when Lovejoy tries to send the puck around the glass and it goes into the stands. No surprise, the Red Wings and their fans wanted a delay of game penalty. The officials caucused and decided the puck touched the glass - no penalty.

Anaheim's best scoring chances were coming from the third and fourth lines. Lovejoy - who had another really strong game - intercepts a Detroit pass and sends a stretch pass up to to Andrew Cogliano. Cogs looked like he was wearing Acme rocket skates as he pulled away from the Red Wings. He rips off a quick wrist shot and it goes just wide.

As for the first line, Getzlaf, Corey Perry and Bobby Ryan couldn't connect. Perry was always being shadowed and I'm not really sure what Bobby was doing. He skated aimlessly a lot and he'd commit to taking a run at a player, completely abandoning the play. All of this was happening at the worst time because Pavel Datsyuk was on the ice. Datsyuk fakes around Getzlaf and Francois Beauchemin and sends a backhand through the legs of Sheldon Souray and into the net. Detroit draws first blood with less than a minute to go.

Right before the final whistle, Daniel Winnik bounces the puck off Joakin Andersson and on net. Howard is forced to make a leg save. Collecting his own rebound, Winnik sends his shot up over Howard. The period ends with Detroit leading 1-0.

Second Period Recap: Koivu loses the opening face-off to Andersson but the puck makes its way to Cogliano. Cogs passes to Koivu who is in alone with Howard. Howard comes out to challenge and Saku's shot hits the Detroit goalie in the chest.

The Red Wings nearly go up by another goal when Ryan allows Henrik Zetterberg to out-skate him, throw on the breaks and spin around in order to pass infront of Hiller to an onrushing Justin Abdelkader (back from suspension), who over-skates the pass.

Emerson Etem intercepts the puck in the neutral zone and out-skates the Detroit defense. He's joined in the Red Wings' zone with a flying Teemu Selanne. Etem gets right on net and passes across the crease to Selanne for what looked like a guaranteed goal. Howard, sprawled out on his tummy, makes a miraculous leg/ankle/foot save as Selanne tried to elevate the puck into the goal.

Following the near miss, the Ducks controlled a majority of the offensive zone time but they were gambling when they did. The defensemen were pinching, leading to a couple two-on-one opportunities for Detroit.

As I said earlier, the third and fourth lines for Anaheim were the only ones with good scoring chances through this point in the game. The fourth line, as it's been doing lately, was group to get the Ducks on the score sheet. Etem (who else?!) sends a pass to an all alone Kyle Palmieri streaking into the Detroit zone. Tiny Dancer's laser of a shot ricocheted off the post, hits Detroit defenseman Ben Smith in the midsection and deflects into a wide open goal. A little bit of puck-luck ties the game at 1-1. This is Palmieri's third goal of the playoffs, tying him with Getzlaf and Nick Bonino for most goals on the team.

Detroit's two most dangerous players - Datsyuk and Zetterberg - nearly put the Red Wings in the lead again when Datsyuk skates around Selanne (who is trying to hook Pavel) and right up on goal, flinging a backhand just barely wide of Hiller. Not too long after the shot, the Ducks allow Zetterberg float around the goal line alone and he sends an shot off the post. The puck deflects directly to Abdelkader and his shot is clumsily swatted away by Hiller. The Ducks escape the second tied with Detroit.

Third Period Recap: To open the period, Jonas Hiller makes a Jonathan Quick-esque gaffe behind the net. With only a Red Wing in front of him, Hiller sends a blind backwards pass directly to another Red Wing at the side boards. Hiller just barely squeaks back in net as a shot is sent on goal.

Luca Sbisa takes a shot at the point and it's blocked by Todd Bertuzzi. Bertuzzi has a clear lane for a breakaway and he's blatantly tripped by Sbisa. Somehow, there was no call. Considering the other shenanigans happening since the Getzlaf penalty in the first period, I figured the refs were just going to let them play. More on that later.

Anaheim continues their pressure from the second period into the third. Cogliano, all over the place tonight, pressures the Red Wings and gets the puck over to Koivu. Saku quickly passes a charging Winnik in the middle of the ice. The pass was perfect but Winnik managed to miss the wide open net, sending the puck up and over the goal.

When play started again, the third line for the Ducks continued to pressure on the forecheck. From the corner boards, Winnik passes to Cogliano who sends the puck to Lovejoy at the blue line. Reverend Lovejoy intentionally shoots the puck wide for a rebound off the lively boards behind Jimmy Howard. His plan works and the puck pops back into play, in front of Winnik. Winnik whiffs on the shot as Koivu circles behind the net and intercepts the puck. He can't gain full control and the puck barely misses going in.

Remember how I said I thought the refs were going to let them play? Well, no surprise here, they didn't. Tiny Dancer (Palmieri) is whistled for high sticking after retaliating on Smith for a hit. The Ducks weren't on the penalty kill for very long. 40-ish seconds later, Zetterberg takes a shot from the point and scores. Franzen - again - screens Hiller and the puck goes in between the goalie's arm and post. Detroit back in the lead 2-1.

Detroit nearly scores on themselves again when Carlo Colaiacovo turns the puck over to Corey Perry. Perry skates in to the offensive zone and slows down to buy time for Cogliano to join him. Perry attempts to make the pass to Cogs but Colaiacovo intercepts the pass and manages to deflect the puck right on net, forcing Howard to make a quick save.

On the next play, Cogliano is sent to the box for tripping Datsyuk. It's amazing Datsyuk is able to play hockey with how easily he falls over. (Sarcasm font). Note this is the third and final power play for Detroit. The Ducks received no calls. Say whaa? No power plays while in Detroit?! Shock me, shock me.

Anaheim gets the first scoring chance on their penalty kill. Shorthanded, Bryan Allen and David Steckel move the puck into Detroit's zone. Allen sends a hard shot on net and Steckel attempted to retrieve the rebound and put it on net but he whiffs.

The local broadcast showed Getzlaf chirping Zetterberg and Bertuzzi from the bench. Bertuzzi says something that gets Getzlaf mad and he slams his glove against the glass. The best part is that in the little space between the two benches is Brian Engblom for NBCSN. He's in the tiniest glass case of emotion I've ever seen. It made me laugh. I didn't see the national broadcast, so I don't know what Engblom heard Getz and Bertuzzi say to each other. A little later the cameras show Perry sitting in the spot where Getzlaf was and he had a smirk on his face as Bertuzzi continued to chirp.

Anaheim killed the power play but weren't out of the woods. Jakob Kindl shoots from the blue line, the puck hits Hiller in the legs as he drops to his knees. He has no idea where the puck is and reaches behind to block the five hole. The puck was underneath him and the Ducks had an additional safety net with Lovejoy putting himself in net and behind Hiller.

Later the Ducks weren't so lucky. Dan Cleary, like usual, had himself parked in front of the net. Around him were Getzlaf and Lovejoy but they did nothing to try to move Cleary. Up high, the Decepticon Abdelkader shoots on net and Cleary, still screening Hiller, deflects the puck in the net. Detroit now up 3-1.

Clearly frustrated, Beauchemin lands a massive, legal hit on Cleary near the benches. Beauch and Bonino try to get back on the bench when Cleary, who also attempts to slew-foot Beauch, and Nyquist starts hitting people on the Ducks bench. The worst of it was received by Cogliano who was just minding his own business. Cleary's stick gets up on the dasher, and from the bench, Corey Perry, being Corey Perry, grabs the stick and yanks Cleary towards him. All the while Bonino is facewashing Nyquist. I didn't mention the referee is watching all of this and finally decides to break it up as Getzlaf howls for a penalty.

I'll admit it, I figured the Ducks were spiraling downward at this point. In four minutes, they were outshot by Detroit 17-5. The Big Line couldn't produce anything. Bobby kept going for the pretty play (leading to a turnover) instead of just getting the puck in the zone. Yet, all the sudden things started to change. The Ducks transformed into a desperate team.

Anaheim was firing shots on Howard and each time Detroit tried to clear, Getzlaf kept the puck in the zone. On one instance, Getz keeps the puck in and sends it right to Cam Fowler. Fowler throws the puck in the direction of the goal. The puck bounces off Etem's leg right to Valtteri Filppula. Filppula does a gloriously boneheaded thing by giving a blind reverse pass to no one behind the goal. Etem grabs the loose puck and taps it in past Howard. Ducks now down by a goal with just under 3:30 to play.

Somehow the referee didn't make a call when Perry obviously trips Kyle Quincey behind the Red Wings' net, despite staring at the infraction as it unfolded. Because of the lack of call, Quincey loses the puck and it makes its way to a pinching Beauchemin. Beauch gets the puck back to Perry on the near side and in-turn Perry passes across the crease, right to Bobby Ryan on the far aside. BR easily scores to tie the game. Two goals for the Ducks only 0:51 seconds apart and Mike Babcock quickly calls a time out. By the way, never fails - I spend the game cursing Bobby Ryan's play and he ends up scoring a humongous big goal.

Zetterberg got off the final shot of the period and it nearly was the game-winning one. Getzlaf's pass to Etem is intercepted by Zetterberg who'd been lurking around the blue line. His fast shot hits the post and then sends the puck back through the crease, just skirting the goal line. Hiller was completely beat.

We're going to overtime.

Overtime Recap: Stop me if you've heard this one before. The Red Wings come out of the intermission with massive pressure on the Ducks in the first minute. Hiller's teammates in front of him are practically cardboard cutouts and he has to make some strong saves to keep them in it. When Anaheim does finally get the puck, all they can do is ice it to clear the zone. The players needed to change but couldn't because they iced, so Bruce Boudreau uses his timeout.

Six seconds after the time out, the game ended. Datsyuk beats Koivu on the draw. The puck gets to Zetterberg who shoots from the point. Hiller is not only screened by Cleary (of course), he's also screened by Fowler and Lovejoy. It looked like Fowler attempted to block the shot but instead it deflected into his own goal. Doesn't matter how it went in, it went in and the game was over.

Detroit forces a Game 7 after another miraculous comeback by the Ducks in the final minutes. Gulp.

**********

The Good: I am head over heels for the play of Emerson Etem. I wish he'd get time up with Getzlaf AND Perry (not as separate entities). His energy and forecheck are desperately needed on the top line. Matt Beleskey is good at the physical play but think of how much more opportunities Getz and Pears would get just by having Etem's speed, tenacity and ACCURACY with the puck along side them.

The Bad: After a second game with an amazing comeback and a nearly instant loss in OT, I feel like someone punched me in the stomach. Momentum was their friend and then overtime happened. Now the Ducks have to fight for their lives back home on Sunday when they should have ended things tonight.

The Ugly: It's fantastic the Ducks can come back to tie the game up in the final minutes but man are they a buzzkill when they don't actually win the game.

**********

3rd Icehole: The St. Louis Blues. They allowed Dustin Penner to score with 0.02 seconds left and send the Kings into the next round. Los Angeles is now waiting on the winner of this series. Holy cow.

2nd Icehole: Sheldon Souray. No mind-blowingly awful penalty but he's become such a non-factor because he's scared to make a mistake. What's good about a defenseman with a cannon of a shot if he's not going to use it.

1st Icehole: Penalty Kill. The PK seemed to have really improved and then they go 1-for-3. Not sure what stings worse - how iffy the penalties that were called on them were or how they Ducks received zero power play time themselves.

Next Game: Sunday, May 12 at 7:00 PM PST in Anaheim. IT'S GAME 7! (And Mother's Day!)

Group Therapy: From Glow Sticks to Boning

SK eleven — Fri, 10 May 2013 15:00:10 -0000

Hey there! SK coming straight at ya with some good ole fashioned group therapy. You might not recognize me as I’ve aged, oh, about 25 years here in the past week and a half. I’ve probably gathered enough stress and pulled out enough hair to last a lifetime, but hey, that’s Ducks hockey for ya! It is absolutely amazing to me how the range of emotions between the regular season and the post season are amplified. I don’t just mean heightened, I mean a jolt of lightning to the body amplified.

I’m fairly confident –no, I’m certain – that I have woken my neighbors multiple times in the past week. Not just for cheering goals. Oh no, no, no, that would be considerate. I’m talking a range of curse words and expletives that would cause people to consider calling 911 for safety measures. I know they hear me. In the morning, before work, when we see each other in passing, they glance at me cautiously to ensure I don’t have any suspicious bruising on my face. I’m sure the loss of hair around my temples is a cause for concern, but so far, no late night knocks on the door from Social Services. And these are the 80 year old neighbors that live across the street!

Anyway, to that end, I thought we could rehash some things that have caused some hootin’ n’ hollerin’ in a (usually) peaceful home over the past week!

Corey Perry – It’s very nice of you to boost the save percentages of opposing goaltenders, but they’ll do fine without your assistance. Stop, please.

Nick Bonino – The puck likes you. I like the way you and the puck go boom boom. It’s a match made in heaven.

Daniel Winnik - Either score or forecheck...I don’t think you can do both though, right? Just work on doing one of them…very well.

Bobby Ryan - Do you even know that you are playing a game or are you just playing with yourself?

Cam Fowler – Left wing? Think about it.

Andrew Cogliano – I DO appreciate your willingness to lose a few more chickletts.

Jonas Hiller – 1, 2, 3 overtime’s the charm!

Emerson Etem – Normally my PSA would say that speed kills, but in your case, it enhances! Keep putting your head between your legs and fly, kid!

Power Play – pshhhh, scoring Power Play goals is sooooo overrated, right? Earth to Power Play…hello...hello...? Testing 1…2…..1…2….. Awww I think it's out for the summer.

Detroit Fans – I’d like to thank those of you are 100% smarter than this guy.

Damien Brunner – Lover of glow sticks.

Pavel Datsyuk – Bite me.

Ducks Win Game Five, I lose Five... Years Off My Life

Kyle Nicolas — Thu, 09 May 2013 06:43:20 -0000

Final Score: Ducks 3, Red Wings 2 (OT)

First Period Recap: It was about as good of a start as the Ducks could have wanted tonight. Immediately from the drop of the faceoff, a massive hit by Andrew Cogliano immediately generated some offense for Anaheim and Jimmy Howard had to be sharp early. However, Howard would turn the game around... by drawing penalties. First, Saku Koivu went a little too aggressively to the front of the net, trying to gain ground on Pavel Datsyuk who held his ground and shoved him into the netminder. The Ducks would kill this penalty rather effortlessly, however Howard would draw another penalty immediately after and this one was much tougher. Corey Perry would drive to the front of the net and with very minimal contact Howard flopped on his back like a flailing fish out of water.

I'm not going to lie it was absolutely disgraceful. The NHL claims they want to crack down on embellishment and diving, well the goalies of this league would be a great start. This isn't the first dive Howard has thrown down this series and it's absolutely disgusting. And it's not just Howard doing it, let me be clear, they're all doing it. But likewise it's an absolute atrocity when something so embarrassing can have such an effect on the game, particularly with how quickly officials are calling goaltender interference these days.

And an effect it had, as the Wings would open the scoring with only their fourth shot of the game as Johan Franzen banked a shot in off Jonas Hiller's skate. The goal snapped a streak of 8 consecutive penalty kills by Anaheim. The Ducks were dominating yet losing. How many times has that happened this season?

Despite how enraged I was at Howard's flopping antics, the Ducks held their composure and kept the pressure on.

The Ducks did draw a 2-man advantage after penalties from Franzen and Corey Emerton, but the Ducks failed to generate any beautiful chances on the power play and the Wings killed both of them off. Immediately after the power play ended Corey Perry found himself wide open immediately on top of the Detroit goal crease, and somehow managed to find Howard's glove and not the back of the net. Someone call the biplane squad because Corey Perry has King Kong on his back at this point.

When Howard wasn't drawing penalties by embellishing, he was sensational. The Ducks poured on the pressure with shot after shot but Howard stood strong on just about everything, with most shots hitting him square in the logo with no rebound.

Key word in that last sentence: "just about." With just over two minutes remaining in the period, David Steckel won a faceoff back to Kyle Palmieri, who flung a shot through a crowd of five different players in the slot. Howard never saw it and it beat him past his right pad. Justice was somewhat served and the game was tied 1-1.

The Ducks would generate one more chance in the period when Andrew Cogliano would speed around the Wings defense and shovel a puck to the net that Howard stood strong on, holding his post.

Despite the Ducks completely owning the period and outshooting the Wings 18-9, the first period ended with the score level.

Second Period Recap: Detroit woke up at intermission and came out flying. Todd Bertuzzi imposed his presence in front of the net and Detroit may as well have had a power play while he was there. Anaheim didn't surrender a goal on a long shift, but they were forced to burn their time out on an early icing call.

The Ducks did once again push back, with the Twins would put together a lovely shift on the cycle. The following shift sprang Kyle Palmieri on a breakaway and though he made a great move, the puck fluttered on him and he shoveled it wide. Yes I don't blame him for the puck fluttering on him, but those are the types of chances you absolutely can't miss; at least make the goalie make a save, and Howard likely wouldn't have as he was practically upside down in his net when the shot got off.

The Wings would take the lead again on a bad rebound from Jonas Hiller. Henrik Zetterberg took a long shot that hit Hiller in the pad and bounce way out into the slot right onto the tape for Mikael Samuelsson who had a wide open net to shoot at. The score moved to 2-1 Detroit, and once again great play and momentum from Anaheim was rewarded by falling behind by a goal. The hockey gods clearly liked to toy with the idea of justice tonight.

And it would continue as Damien Homestar Brunner caught the Ducks on a bad change and had a clear breakaway that Jonas Hiller made a spectacular save to stop, much to the delight of StrongBad. The Ducks failed to clear their zone and the Wings kept the pressure up, with Brenden Smith hitting the goal post on a point shot.

Minutes later Pavel Datsyuk picked off a clearing attempt like a low-hanging apple and Hiller robbed him with the glove too.

The wheels continued to fall off for Anaheim as Dan Winnik took a major penalty for a late hit on Daniel Cleary. And now we wait to see if we lose arguably our most consistent player this series and shots-on-goal leader for a game.

The Ducks responded well though, giving Detroit very little in the way of chances with the major power play. With just over a minute remaining Ryan Getzlaf got a puck away from Brenden Smith and drew a penalty while rushing into the Detroit end. A good penalty, as you would call it since Getzlaf would have been on a breakaway otherwise. The penalty negated the remainder of Detroit's major power play.

It didn't matter though because Getzlaf would get his goal on the Anaheim power play that followed. Once again a pack of people in the slot provided the screen which Captain Snot Rocket would squeak a beauty of a shot through that beat Howard over the blocker. Perhaps it's a bit of injustice again this time as Anaheim managed to tie the game despite playing a horrid period.

Detroit pulled some of that shot total back this period, putting up 15 to Anaheim's 9, but the Duck carried the advantage 27-24 still.

Third Period Recap: The third period may be the most important period of the series thus far and it definitely started as such: very tentative from both teams. However Anaheim appeared to be turtling a little too much defensively, often times giving Detroit a lot of room. As such, Anaheim was chasing a lot early.

Anaheim however did get a great chance early as Emerson Etem's speed found him with the puck in the corner. He shoveled it to the front of the net and Kyle Palmieri slid into Jimmy Howard. The whistle blew and the puck was in the net but the officials immediately waved for no goal. It was ruled that Palmieri initiated the contact with Howard and cause the puck to go in. In other words, Palmieri pushed Howard into the net with the puck. No goal, and after a few replays I do agree that was the right call.

The referees clearly put away their whistles after that as well. Cogliano was high sticked and Palmieri was blatantly tripped to prevent a breakaway, both not called.

With about six and a half minutes in the period only six shots on goal had been registered between the two teams.

With just under four minutes left in the period the Ducks had the best chance of the frame between both teams as the big line imposed their will in the Detroit zone. Bobby Ryan got a great wrist shot on Howard which he kicked away with his toe. Ryan Getzlaf got to the rebound and barely pushed it wide with defenders draped all over him.

Coincidental penalties to Brenden Smith and Matt Beleskey brought the man power down to four on four and oh man did things get scary with multiple great chances to both squads.

With just 9 seconds to go Getzlaf found Perry, who cut into the slot and Jimmy Howard swallowed it up just barely. It could have ended right there, but it didn't and the game was bound for overtime... again.

The tightly-played low-chance period (well... for the first 15 minutes at least) led to 5 shots for Detroit and 6 for Anaheim, bringing the game totals to 33-29 Ducks.

Overtime Recap: Yep... we're doing this again.

The overtime started with a spectacular chance for Bryan Allen. Ryan Getzlaf won a huge battle and found Allen crashing the slot. He missed by about three inches.

That proved to be a warning shot. The very next shift Ben Lovejoy failed to control a fluttering puck for a shot and instead carried it down below the Detroit goal line before dishing it out into the front of the net. Teemu Selanne and two Red Wings fanned on the puck but Nick Bonino did not. Standing unguarded with an open net to shoot at, he made no mistake and ended the contest 1:54 into the extra frame. Somehow Detroit actually outshot the Ducks 2-1 in the OT, but the game total still came out in Anaheim's favor 34-31.

Ducks win a huge contest and an absolute nail-biter 3-2 in OT to take a 3-2 lead in the series.

**********

The Good: Anaheim found a way to win this game. It was ugly in that second period and it really looked like the entire playoffs might be over but this team fought back like it has done so many times this season. The penalty kill came up huge in nullifying Dan Winnik's major penalty, and the Power Play even came up with a timely game-tying goal. Nick Bonino has apparently become one of the most clutch guys on the Ducks roster, and that's a good thing, particularly with Perry still monkey-wrestling. Jonas Hiller made some spectacular saves to keep the boys in this game and he continues his great play in this series.

The Bad: Anaheim lost their confidence in the second period and was nearly driven out of the game because of it. They surrendered way too many chances, including breakaways and golden chances to guys who you really can't rely on to miss them very often. Likewise Howard is still up to his diving antics and those really need to be put to a stop somehow. It's pretty atrocious.

The Ugly: Anaheim's puck possession was brutal; 15 giveaways and 5 takeaways by Detroit equals a whopping 20 turnovers by the Ducks. You aren't going to win many games with that kind of a statistic. Sheldon Souray was arguably the guiltiest party, lazily giving the puck up to either Henrik Zetterberg or Pavel Datsyuk FIVE times (by my count) tonight. Really poor showing tonight from the grizzled veteran, and I wouldn't be opposed to seeing him benched next game. The Wings are clearly attacking and beating him.

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3rd MVD: Ryan Getzlaf got mad, and when Getzy gets mad, he takes over the game. [Ed. Note: HULKZLAF SMASH! - JN] Whether he was using his strength to generate chances, burning defensemen and drawing penalties, or scoring the game tying goal in overtime, Getzlaf was a stud tonight. If only he would play like that constantly every game. (Though admittedly being mad constantly might be bad for your health.)

2nd MVD: Daniel Winnik and Andrew Cogliano share this one for their grit and energy tonight. Winnik, who led the Ducks in shots on goal coming into tonight, made a huge pest of himself, and Andrew Cogliano's speed and physicality caused a multitude of turnovers from the Detroit defense. Often times any pressure and offensive zone time from the big line was preceded by a great shift from Winnik and Cogliano to establish possession.

1st MVD: Ben Lovejoy had an absolute whale of a game tonight. Normally I have a philosophy on defensive-defensemen that if I don't notice you or think about you at all during a game, you've done your job perfectly. Not only did I notice Lovejoy tonight, he made me think "Wow... this guy's having a hell of a game tonight," multiple times. He made smart decisions with the puck, never gave up on pucks to keep plays alive, and made a brilliant play to set up the game winner. Easily the Ducks best defenseman tonight.

Next Game (Game Six): Friday, May 10th at 8pm at Joe Louis Arena

Ducks vs. Red Wings Game 5 update: Overtime needed to decide the series lead

Dominik — Thu, 09 May 2013 04:51:23 -0000

The Detroit Red Wings and Anaheim Ducks needed overtime to determine a winner in Game 5 of their Western Conference Quarterfinal series.

Each team had a goal per period until the third, when they locked down defensively and produced only 11 total shots, and zero goals, between them.

In the first two periods, the Ducks and Wings traded a goal per period, Anaheim twice erasing one-goal Detroit leads and the teams combining for 51 shots.

Ryan Getzlaf's power play goal with 32 seconds left int he second period knotted it at 2-2. That came after the Ducks had killed a five-minute major penalty to Daniel Winnik that could have allowed the Red Wings to pull away. The penalty resulted from this hit on Daniel Cleary:

Instead of converting on that power play, however, Wings defenseman Brendan Smith took a penalty that killed the final minute of the power play and created the opportunity for Getzlaf's equalizer.

Next goal wins, and gives the winner a chance to clinch in Game 6 in Detroit.

Ducks Blank Detroit 4-0, Lose Lydman On Controversial Hit

Jen Neale — Sun, 05 May 2013 06:17:34 -0000

Final Score: Ducks 4, Red Wings 0

First Period Recap: I don't believe any Ducks fan would be surprised if the team came out sluggish on Saturday night, considering the super-duper high and massive crashing back to earth - emotion wise - experienced on Thursday. Whatever happened in the 48 hours following worked well for the Ducks because they came out with more tenacity and speed.

The Ducks and Red Wings spent a majority of the time in the period going back and forth with each team, at first, choosing to shoot from around the face off dots. Shots like those were easy for Jonas Hiller and Jimmy Howard to stop. Following each whistle, it wasn't difficult to determine the 'I really hate you' quotient had substantially increased from the previous game. The Red Wings targeted Corey Perry by getting all up in his biz-ness once play stopped. Perry remained composed, at least when the refs were looking he was.

Drawing back into the lineup was Luca Sbisa in place of Sheldon Souray. Souray was the goat of Game 2 and I believe Bruce was trying to send the veteran a message. Sbisa had his brainfarts at times but played a relatively solid game. He and Ryan Getzlaf were bringing the physicality and hitting anything that moved.

The first real threat of Ducks scoring chance came via a turnover. Bobby Ryan, playing on a line with Nick Bonino and Teemu Selanne, passes the puck to Bonino, and Bones whiffs when attempting to puck handle. The errant puck came towards Francois Beauchemin at the blueline and he turns the wrong way on the ice (not an ambi-turner?) to grab the puck. John Franzen is on the opposite side of Beauch, the side with the puck, and he's off on a breakaway. Hiller is patient with Franzen and allows him to make the first move. The Red Wing ends up putting the puck on net but it deflects up and over Hiller.

Detroit's Mikael Samuelsson, in his first game of the series, interferes with Selanne, sending the Flash down to the ice and the referee's arm up. Right after the whistle sounded, Samuelsson gets his money's worth by giving Bonino a hearty slash. The normally composed Bonino took exception and gives Samuelsson a couple shoves. Instead of being on the power play, the Ducks and Red Wings are playing 4-on-4 with Bonino off for roughing.

With 1:20 remaining in the 4-on-4 Joakim Kindl cross-checks Andrew Cogliano in front of the Red Wing's net. The Ducks think they're going to get a power play out of it but then they remember they're in ~~the portal to hell~~ Joe Louis Arena. As Cogs was being cross-checked, to his left in the crease Saku Koivu clips one of the Detroit players. Detroit now goes on the 4-on-3 power play.

With 0:03 seconds remaining on Detroit's power play, Beauchemin gets the puck and in an attempt to send the puck along the glass to Getzlaf up in the neutral zone. Beauch, who looked incredibly unsteady this game, lifts the puck a foot over the glass and now the Ducks are down 5-on-3. Even worse, Beauch's penalty can't start until Bonino's penalty is over. I thought all was lost because the iffy Ducks penalty kill had been shaky all series and they were going to be down 5-on-3 for 0:40 seconds.

Boudreau sends out Daniel Winnik (played much better in Game 3), Bryan Allen and Luca Sbisa on the PK. In a way, the Ducks PK gets lucky because Detroit spends a whole bunch of time passing the puck a billion times. When they did finally decide to shoot, Hiller covered the puck easily.

Ryan Getzlaf is sent out to help kill the remaining 0:16 seconds of the two-man disadvantage. He loses the face-off and the puck gets to the always dangerous Henrik Zetterberg. Z-Berg sends the puck to rookie Damien Brunner and he whiffs on the shot as Koivu's penalty ends. The Ducks aren't out of the woods yet, they've still got Beauchemin in the box for another 1:20.

Detroit gets their chances, including one Hiller stopped with his head (really wish he'd stop doing that) but Anaheim manages to kill the final penalty. It couldn't come at a better time. The penalty killers looked near dead.

Cam Fowler played out of his mind again tonight. He had a few oopsies but for the most part, he was solid. As he's been doing a lot lately, Fowler joined in on the offensive rush, this time with Corey Perry and Kyle Palmieri. Perry drop passes the puck to Palms. He easily skates around the defense and fires off one of his lethal snap shots. Howard barely gets his glove on it to deflect the puck upwards.

I liked where things were headed until Selanne trips Franzen as he rushed through the neutral zone. Anaheim goes back on the penalty kill just barely over a minute after successfully killing off what seemed to be the longest power play in the world. The Ducks penalty kill seemed to have a renewed confidence this time around. They pressured the Red Wings like crazy and forced them to slow down the pace of the game. Another successful PK.

The refs couldn't ignore the blatant penalty committed by Patrick Eaves. Fowler leads the rush - again - and as he enters the Detroit zone, he is hooked by Eaves to the point where C4 spins around. Finally the Ducks get and stay on the power play for a full two minutes, well, almost a full two minutes. 0:37 seconds left on the Eaves penalty, Andersson takes a light tap to Selanne's hands. It was a menial call but I'll take a 5-on-3 without complaint.

The best chance with the two-man advantage came after Fowler keeps the puck in the zone at the point. The puck makes its way to Getzlaf and he sends it to a wide open Selanne stationed 'in his office'. Somehow Selanne misses and the Eaves is out of the box.

On the remaining 1:21 of power play time, Anaheim almost scored on a Beauchemin rebound off Howard. Beauch rockets the puck on Howard, the rebound bounces to David Steckel in front of a wide open net and Steckel can't tap it in and Howard covers. The period ends 0-0 with 0:02 seconds left on the power play.

Second Period Recap:

The second half was much like the first with both teams trading chances on turnovers. Hiller and Howard were the main reasons the score continued to be 0-0 well into the second.

I am going to skip the minor plays and get to the big controversy of the game.

Under five minutes left in the third, Decepticon Justin Abdelkader takes seven strides in from center ice to in order to lay a nasty hit on Toni Lydman near the boards. Abdelkader leaves his feet and makes contact with Lydman's head, leaving the Ducks defenseman on all fours on the ice. For the hit, Abdelkader was given a five minute major for charging and a game misconduct that comes with an early exit from the game. Lydman was helped off the ice by the trainer and went straight to the locker room. He did not return and is being 'evaluated' (i.e. concussion watch).

You can make your own decision as if it was a legal or illegal hit. Watching the Red Wings press conference after the game, Mike Babcock thought it was a 'hockey play' with body contact and his player stayed grounded (picture above this recap says otherwise). Sound familiar? Former Babcock assistant coach, now head coach of the Ottawa Senators used the same language when describing Eric Gryba's hit on Montreal's Lars Eller. Anyway, if Abdelkader does face a hearing with Player Safety, I can't see more than a one game suspension coming to the Decepticon.

It didn't take long for the Ducks to respond to the scary hit taken by their fallen teammate. A mere 0:18 seconds into the power play, Getzlaf gets the puck to Perry who fires on net. Who else but Nick Friggin' Bonino backhands the puck past Howard, it's 1-0.

After the goal, I thought to myself, power play is clicking, lets milk this five minute major and score a bunch more. Yeah, things didn't go exactly as planned. The Ducks had one or two shots on Howard but they allowed about four short handed opportunities. If it weren't for Hiller the Red Wings could have easily taken the lead.

The period ended with the Ducks still in front, thank goodness, 1-0.

Third Period Recap:

The first few minutes of the third saw the return of the Ducks who have the lead but play not to lose. They weren't attacking the puck or being physical anymore, allowing the Red Wings to get set up several times in the Anaheim zone. When the Ducks managed to clear, they usually iced the puck. It was ugly. Even worse, on 3-on-2, Valtteri Filppula sent a cruise missile directly into the head of Jonas Hiller. I reiterate my earlier point, I really wish he'd stop doing that.

Because the Ducks are playing in ~~the house of satan~~ The Joe, marginal calls tend to not go in their favor. Sbisa was using his body to keep Zetterberg away from the play after he passed the puck and subsequently penalized for interference. One difference I've noticed between the Carlyle PK and the Boudreau PK is the patience with the puck to kill time. Carlyle had his players rocket the puck out of the zone every chance they could. Boudreau encourages the players to skate in circles to kill time before clearing the zone.

With 0:02 seconds remaining in the Sbisa minor, Captain Getzlaf goes Ryan Getzlaf circa 2008 on us. Getzy strips Damien Brunner of the puck and darts down the middle. Howard takes a gamble and comes out to challenge Getzlaf. Howard dives in an attempt to get the puck off Getzlaf's stick but the captain stickhandles around him and fends off a diving/hooking Brunner to score a wide-open short-handed goal. Ducks up 2-0. I think I could actually see the memories of Thursday night in the third period flashing through the Red Wings heads at this point.

Only 90 seconds later, Ben Lovejoy takes a hit in order to get to the puck and ring it around the boards to Selanne. From behind the net, Selanne sends a perfect pass to an on rushing Emerson Etem. Etem easily puts the puck past Howard, scoring his first ever Stanley Cup Playoff goal.

Now Detroit was really frustrated. They were still trying to start stuff after the whistle, especially Niklas Kronwall. He kept poking at Perry and Perry turned the other cheek. The rest of the Red Wings were getting away with murder down the stretch until Bonino draws a holding call, sending Brunner to the box.

It took Anaheim a while to finally get set up in Detroit's zone. When they do, the Red Wings are called for another penalty. Turns out, someone was watching Perry in front of Howard when Howard - not Perry - punches Pears in the back of the head with his glove. I'm sure Perry probably did something to deserve it but I'll take it. Still on the power play when the penalty is called, the Ducks will now have 1:00 minute-ish of 5-on-3, so Bruce Boudreau calls a time out to give his top power play unit a breather.

The Ducks do a lot of passing and don't get anything on the two-man advantage. While back on the regular power play, Bobby continues to play his way back into my graces. Ryan controls the puck behind the net, he makes a hard pass over to Koivu who shows his skill at the one-touch pass again, sending the puck to Matt Beleskey in front of the net. Beleskey scores on the power play. I know, I don't get it either. The Ducks are now leading 4-0 and the seats empty quickly in the arena.

Anaheim holds off Detroit and their late iffy power play with 27.5 seconds to go. The final horn sounds and the Ducks are up 2-1 in the series.

Side note: I don't want to seem like a Debbie Downer but good Lord, Ducks, can we score all these third period goals in the first period? I don't like feeling like I'm on the edge of the cliff until halfway through the third.

**********

The Good: This season, the Ducks are now 2-0 at ~~the pit of despair~~ The Joe. Haven't said that in a while. This is Anaheim's first ever shut-out at JLA and Hiller's third in his playoff career.

The Bad: Toni Lydman was steady once he rejoined the lineup. Now that he probably has a concussion, he's going to be out leaving Bruce with a decision. Sbisa earned his spot back in the lineup so there is one open space and two scratched defensemen: Sheldon Souray and Sami Vatenen. I thought the defense was better without Souray but can we trust a smaller, rookie defenseman against a great passing and skating team?

The Ugly: I watched a ton of hockey today. The officiating in every game, not just this one, is awful. There is zero consistency. I don't want to sound like Hazy, but seriously, what power does the JLA have over officials to make them call such a shitty game for the road team?

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3rd MVD: Cam Fowler. I love, love, love watching him skate up the ice with the puck. Since he's joined in more on the rush, his confidence has skyrocketed and he's shooting instead of passing. So excited to keep watching this kid mature in his NHL career.

2nd MVD: Jonas Hiller. Hiller played stellar in the third period on Thursday night but it wasn't a great game for him. He needed this shut-out as much as the Ducks did. Just please, please, please stop making saves with your brain case.

1st MVD: Ryan Getzlaf. Hulkzlaf returned with a vengeance tonight. He was hitting and attacking the puck. He stayed calm when he being prodded by the Red Wings. He continues to make those around him better, which in my mind, is the true definition of a great player. My only knock against him is the 27% face-off percentage.

Next Game: Monday, May 6 at 5:00 PM PST in Detroit

Poll

Will Justin Abdelkader be suspended for his hit on Toni Lydman?

NO

7 votes

YES! 1-2 Games

85 votes

YES! 3-5 Games

17 votes

YES! 6+ Games

4 votes

113 votes | Poll has closed