Let's be honest: There's not much left to play for this season. Entering play on Sunday, the Ducks are 11 points out with 10 games left. Unless something biblical happens, they're probably going to be in store for a looooonnnnggg off-season (as a Ducks blogger, I can tell you that as much as it sucks not watching your team in the playoffs, trying to find something compelling to write about once a week for that extra few weeks is even worse). And even though it makes all sorts of logical sense, I can't get behind the lose-all-remaining-games-to-improve-draft-position mentality.

With that in mind, I'm taking a different tack. Here's a look at some of the statistical milestones that Ducks players may be able to reach over the next 10 games. Without much else to look forward to, I'm hoping our guys will still have enough fight to hit some of these benchmarks.

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After dominating the first two periods of play both on the ice and on the scoresheet tonight, the Ducks eventually fell 3-1 to Nashville on CHOC Night. After 40 minutes, Anahem held a 1-0 lead on the strength of a short-handed goal from Devante Smith-Pelly and Ryan Getzlaf. They also had 22 to 16 advantage in shots at that time and generally were the more dangerous team. In the third however, the Ducks came out flat and Nashville quickly tied the game on a blown line change, just 1:19 into the period. The Predators added a rebound goal 10 minutes later and then iced the game with a PP empty netter.

The Ducks still may not be mathematically eliminated (props to you if you're still tracking that), but the season is pretty much over. This was somewhat reflected in the lines, as Bruce Boudreau seemed to be auditioning for next year's second line by grouping Bobby Ryan, Nick Bonino, and Kyle Palmieri together. Defenseman Nate Guenin also drew into Toni Lydman's spot in the lineup and DSP was eventually rewarded with some top line shifts with the twins during the third period.

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For the third straight year, I attended the Ducks' Kids Club Party at Knott's Berry Farm on Saturday afternoon. For those who are unfamiliar with the event, it's basically a Q&A and autograph session with select players from the team (usually rookies and other young guys), as well as the Kids Club captain. The party is open to anyone with a Kids Club membership (those packages they sell for like $20 throughout Honda Center) and you can even purchase additional guest passes for friends and family (as we often do).

This year's captain was George Parros, and as you can expect, there were fake mustaches and #16 shirts all around Knott's today. Joining Parros at this event were Kyle Cumiskey (who still hasn't played a single minute for the Ducks), Cam Fowler, Nick Bonino, Jeff Deslauriers, and Devante Smith-Pelly.

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Jonas Hiller has been one of the biggest reasons the Ducks are surging in the second-half. In several games, the Anaheim netminder has played well enough to earn the shutout, but things just haven't panned out that way. Tonight, however, Hiller stonewalled the Panthers all night, and the Ducks provided just enough offense to secure two more points on their current road trip.

The Ducks have now picked up points in their last nine games and currently sit five points (Ed. Note: Robby misspoke in his Gameday post) out of a playoff spot. Tonight's contest wasn't necessarily the prettiest, but at the end of the day, the Ducks kept the ball rolling and continued their march toward the eighth spot in the Western Conference.

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After narrowly missing out on two point in New Jersey (thanks a lot, goal posts and Martin Brodeur), the Ducks need to get back to their winning ways today in Sunrise, FL (where the hell is that, exactly?). Despite picking up points in every game on this road trip, Anaheim is still five points out of the 8th spot. They still have five teams in front of them.

Simply put: The road trip has been great so far, but the Ducks are only one point better in the playoff chase today than they were when the trip began. They absolutely need two points tonight.

In terms of team news, Bobby Ryan skated yesterday without any difficulty after awkwardly falling into the boards at the end of the second period against the Devils. I haven't seen any reported line rushes over the past few games, so it's not clear whether Devante Smith-Pelly will draw back into the lineup or not. With Bobby coming off an inury, and DSP needing (and deserving) to draw back into the lineup, here's what I'd like to see for today's game:

Smith-Pelly/Getzlaf/Perry

Beleskey/Koivu/Selanne

Ryan/Bonino/Cogliano

Hagman/Pelley/Blake

I think Bobby could use some lighter minutes while he recovers and while I hesitate to break up that third line, Matt Beleskey surely deserves to be rewarded for his strong play of late by moving up the lineup.

The Ducks need two points tonight to stay in the chase. There's no gray area at all regarding that.

Go Ducks.

After a gameday in which I implored Anaheim's big guns (Corey Perry, Ryan Getzlaf, and Bobby Ryan) and PP to wake up, you'd better believe I'm taking credit for tonight's 5-3 win. I got both of my wishes, with the big three combining for four goals and eight points and the power play finding the back of the net on three occasions.

Yet, as is the Ducks' way, this game wasn't a total success. Despite dominating through the first two periods of play (after which they led 4-1), Anaheim got a little too conservative in the third period, giving the Blue Jackets some late life. The Ducks were also forced to play over half the game with only five defensemen, as Lubomir Visnovsky received a game misconduct early in the second period for not having his jersey tied down.

Still, even with their flaws, the Ducks are off to a great start on their 8-game road swing. Three points in two games is a nice feat on the road, and they'll need to keep extracting points from games if they're going to have any shot of clawing their way back into the playoffs. As of press time, the Ducks find themselves nine points out of the eighth spot.

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After a gutsy performance that saw them fall just short in Detroit, the Ducks now face what looks like a proverbial trap game. As Jen noted in her Red Wings recap, the Ducks are going from first-to-worst in terms of competition, but need to find a way to bring the same intensity and effort tonight.

Instead of focusing on the potential risks the Ducks face tonight, I'm going to take a different tack and talk about this game as an opportunity. Columbus ranks second-to-last in the league in goals against per game, letting in an average of 3.18 goals per contest. They also feature the lowest ranked PK in league, managing to kill off only 76.2% of chances. I'm pretty sure you can see where I'm going with this.

Although the Ducks are 3-1-2 since the break, they are only averaging 2.5 goals per game in that stretch, well below the 3.36 goals per game they were averaging during their torrid stretch in January. In the six games since the break, the Ducks have had 25 (!!!) PP opportunities, but have scored only twice, for a miserable 8 percent success rate. To make matters worse, the Ducks' big three of Corey Perry, Ryan Getzlaf, and Bobby Ryan have only registered a combined 2 goals and 5 points in that time. Simply stated, that's not getting it done.

The Ducks need an offensive explosion tonight to get some of their mojo back. Despite their recent struggles on the scoresheet, they have managed to earn a point in five of the six games since the break. Ideally, tonight's game will be a laugher, with the Ducks putting up five or so goals. With a tough stretch of games to follow, they need to take advantage of the Blue Jackets tonight and get some offensive confidence back.

The Ducks held their second annual Skills Showdown Saturday afternoon at Honda Center and Teemu Selanne's team once again claimed the Porcelain Pig. After six different skill events that saw participation from the entire active Ducks roster and selected youth from the Junior Ducks program, Team Selanne (wearing black jerseys) defeated Team Perry (wearing white jerseys) 12-10.

After Murray and Boudreau finished their comments, the team took the ice for a brief 20-minute practice and warm-up prior to the beginning of the Skills Showdown. Joining the Ducks on the ice was Francois Beauchemin's son, Samuel, who completely stole the show.

He was passing back and forth with his dad, Perry, and Bobby, and the goalies were letting him score on them. When the Ducks were whistled to skate hard, little Beauch was right with them, chugging out strides during the sprints and gliding during the breaks. It was freaking adorable.

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While I'll have a full breakdown (with video!) of the Skills Showdown tomorrow, I wanted to highlight the other critical piece of today's event at Honda Center. Before the actual fun began, General Manager Bob Murray and coach Bruce Boudreau spent about 30 minutes answering questions and giving an overall State of the Franchise. Murray and Boudreau covered a range of topics and made several interesting statements ranging from the state of the farm system and their goals in the draft to a not-so-subtle message that some of the team's best players need to start delivering more effort.

I did my best to take notes about everything Murray and Boudreau touched on, but I'm only one man with a legal pad. I feel that the following notes accurately summarize the high points, but please do not take any of these as direct quotations.

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After an incredibly slow first period that harkened back to all of the miserable hockey the Ducks played in November and December, the Ducks finally found their footing in the second en route to an eventual 4-1 victory. The third line of Andrew Cogliano, Nick Bonino, and Matt Beleskey hustled their tails off and created the first Ducks goal of the game after Mike Smith forgot that he should defend the area in front of the net, rather than the area behind it. Cogs used his speed to create the second goal of the game (with a healthy assist from Smith yet again) and a great touch pass from Bonino just minutes later gave Cogliano his third goal of the period and the first hat trick of his career.

The Ducks then survived a 5-on-3 penalty when referee Dan O'Halloran enforced NHL rule 69.3 and waved off what appeared to be Phoenix's second goal of the game early in the third period. Phoenix would never truly recover, and after exchanging a series of penalties with the Coyotes in the third period, the Ducks iced the game when Teemu Selanne skated the puck into the empty net for a power play goal.

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[Ed. Note: Throughout the All-Star Break, the Anaheim Calling team will be giving their mid-season reports. Next up, Robby Bobby Ryan.]

I really wanted to come up with a different pairing than anyone else. That said, I still feel like you can make a credible case for each of these guys. Both of my picks deal more with their play in an organizational context and how it will help or hurt the franchise moving forward.

MVP - First Half

Jonas Hiller. I know some of you may have just done a spit-take, but this team would be even worse off right now if it wasn't for Hiller. While he had a propensity to be leaky at times during the early part of the season, he also was repeatedly hung out to dry by his team, probably more so than just about any other goalie in the league. I can't remember how many times guys walked right in while our defensemen just kind of stood there.

As of the All-Star break, Jonas has faced more shots than only six other goalies in the league and he plays on a team that ranks 22^nd in the league in PK time. In short, Hiller faces an inordinate number of shots and has to deal with more opposing PPs than most goalies in the league.

Without a doubt, Jonas has not had his best season of his career so far this year. But he's really turned it on since the calendar changed, going 7-2-1 with a 1.7 GAA and .942 save percentage. And as good as though stats have been, what truly earns Jonas the MVP in my eyes is that the doubts are now gone. His health and capability were huge question marks coming into this season. The peace of mind in seeing Jonas healthy and effective will bring some much needed stability to this team and its off-season plans for a few years.

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Well that was fun-ish. As expected, the second-ever All-Star Player Fantasy Draft quickly degraded into an exercise of team loyalty and hating on rivals as Daniel Alfreddson selected every Senator (and practically every Swede) in the pool while Zdeno Chara picked every Bruin and adamantly refused to select any Canuck. He did select the only Canadien on the board, though.

As the lead indicates, Logan Couture was selected as this year's Mr. Irrelevant, while our beloved Corey Perry was selected before every forward except Pavel Datsyuk, Evgeni Malkin, and Marian Hossa. He ended up on Team Chara with Joffrey Lupul. There's also something truly delicious about a Shark getting picked last while a Duck (err Mighty Duck as Chara would call him) was picked so high in the draft. And lest there be any smack about how we have more All-Stars than you, the Kings, Sharks, and Ducks all ended up with one All-Star each. Though the bastard Red Wings did end up with two (stupid Jimmy Howard).

As for our reader contest, commenter Red8ball won with 14 total points, correctly picking Eric Karlsson as the first pick, Jason Spezza, Erik Karlsson, and Tim Thomas as the first players in their positions, and Shark Logan Couture as Mr. Irrelevant. In case you somehow missed it, a Shark was picked last.

Join me after the jump for some general draft musings and observations.

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For the second year, the NHL will do their best to drum up interest in All-Star Weekend by once again holding a fantasy draft to determine the teams for the All-Star Game. This year's captains, Daniel Alfredsson of the hometown Ottawa Senators and Zdeno Chara of the Boston Bruins, will proceed through 19 rounds of picks to fill out their rosters. They will be advised by assistant captains Henrik Lundqvist (Team Alfreddson) and Joffrey Lupul (Team Chara). [Ed. Note: I am officially referring to Chara/Lupul as "Team Chalupa"]

After a coin toss determines who gets first pick, the teams will alternate in their picks until each team ends up with three goaltenders, six defensemen, and 12 forwards. Similar to last year, all goaltenders must be selected by the end of round 10 and all defensemen must be selected by the end of round 15. Whichever lucky player is drafted last (it would be hilarious if Phil Kessel repeated) will have a $10,000 donation to the hockey program of his choice made on his behalf by the league.

So sit back and enjoy the awkwardness. Hockey players, by definition, do not exhibit gobs of personality, and last year's draft was an exercise in tooth-pulling when it came to generating interesting statements or moments. The absence of Alex Ovechkin probably won't help either, as it's unlikely anyone else will be brazen enough to openly mock the last pick.

And good luck to those of you who entered the Skills Showdown contest. We'll announce the winner once the final picks have been made. The winner will need to email anaheimcalling@gmail.com with their address in order to receive their tickets.

[Note: Tonight's recap is a tag team effort between Chris and I. Except where noted, all commentary is from Chris]

The Ducks were a bit lucky to find themselves in the lead after two periods tonight, having been outshot 28-10. Even so, they looked to have put the game away less than four minutes into the third with goals from Ryan Getzlaf and Bobby Ryan, but Colorado made it interesting late in the game. Despite the late flurry, the Ducks held on for a 3-2 victory.

The win was Anaheim's sixth straight on home ice, fifth in a row overall and gives them a record of 8-1-1 in the 2012 calendar year.

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In honor of the upcoming NHL All-Star Game in Ottawa, we're running a contest that will give the winner four tickets to the Ducks' Skills Showdown on Saturday, February 4. This will be the second year the Ducks have run the Skills Showdown, and if you've never been before, I highly recommend it. Not only is it a great way to see the guys have some fun and show some personality, but it's also a great opportunity to get a different perspective on the game (assuming you're not regularly able to sit on the glass for games).

The Contest

This contest is only open to all readers (sorry editors) who can commit to attending the Skills Showdown at Honda Center on Saturday, February 4. Doors open at 9:30 a.m. and a practice/State of the Franchise begins at 10, with the actual competition beginning at 11.

To qualify, post your predictions for the questions below by no later than 10 p.m. (PST) on January 20. The poster with the most points will win the tickets. In the event of a tie, we'll give the tickets the person that gave the correct or closest to correct answer to Question 3.

1) Who will be the first round pick for each team? (Three points per correct answer)

2) Excluding the captains, who will be the first two forwards, defensemen, and goaltenders drafted - as a whole, not per team? (Two points per correct answer)

3) Who will be the last player drafted? (Five points for correct answer)

A perfect score would be 23 total points. If you get anywhere close to that, you should give up your inside sources :)

The winning contestant will receive their tickets by mail.

Good luck!

More of that, please.

In a game that head coach Bruce Boudreau claimed would tell the Ducks just how far they've come, they came to play. While the 4-2 score in itself was nice, what was even better was just how thoroughly the Ducks dominated this game. They drew first blood on a great perseverance goal from Nick Bonino and kept pouring it on, even after the Canucks tied things up in the first. In the second period, the Ducks pulled away on goals from Bobby Ryan and Jason Blake, and Blake added another early in the third as a dagger that put the Ducks up 4-1. While Vancouver scored late in the third, the outcome was never really in doubt.

Anaheim excelled at every aspect of tonight's game. The Ducks were physical all night long, and it allowed them to create prolonged possessions in the offensive zone while limiting Vancouver's own chances in the defensive zone. The Ducks also did a magnificent job at containing Vancouver, holding them to just 9 shots through the first two periods and a game total of 23.

Good and Bad coming up after the jump. That's right kids, there's no Ugly tonight.

[Ed. Note: AC writer Chris was on Duck Calls tonight. Chris will self-promote on AC next time that happens. Captain's orders.]

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Amidst all of the rumors flying around the NHL right now, the Ducks seem to finally be finding their legs. Whether Bob Murray's threat has motivated them or not, the Ducks now look like the team we expected to see. Over their past five games, in which they've earned a point in every contest, Anaheim is averaging 4.2 goals per game. Coupled with a suddenly dominant Jonas HIller, this team looks capable of making a frantic run at the playoffs.

With the team's sudden resurgence, I thought it would be a good idea to compare the Ducks' performance under their two bench bosses this season to see if we can find any insights. We're still talking about relatively low sample sizes here, but I think there are some interesting nuggets for discussion here.

The Ducks still have negative goal and shot differentials under Boudreau, but that all-important goal differential is getting closer. Of course, scoring an extra half a goal per game helps. I'm not surprised that the offense has increased (although shots per game have actually declined), but I am surprised that the defense seems to be better under Boudreau. Everyone expected the offense to catch fire under Boudreau, and to a degree, it has. But I don't think many people thought we'd see more solid defending under his system.

Then again, these are small sample sizes and we're not talking about meteoric shifts in numbers here. Whatever it is, though, I'm glad that the Ducks seem to finally be playing with some confidence. Let's hope they can keep it going against a Vancouver team that has also found it's stride of late. Boudreau has even labeled tonight's contest a "measuring stick" that will help the Ducks get a true sense of whether or not they've made dramatic improvements since they were destroyed by the Canucks at the end of December.

Go Ducks.

[Ed. Note: Roberto Luongo in net tonight for the Canucks. The last time the Ducks faced Bobby Lu, they chased him from the net. Aaand the last time the 'Nucks faced Jonas Hiller they chased him from net. Best of luck to Cory Schneider and Jeff Deslauriers in their relief appearances. HA!]

Well that was certainly a lively affair. Even though Honda Center was pretty empty (I heard on the radio on the way home that attendance was 13,000+, which seems fairly generous to me), the place was rocking all night. In addition to an incredibly hot start that saw the Ducks pot four goals in the first period, the real fireworks weren't on the scoreboard. Late in the first and early in the second, the two teams began throwing the body and general shenanigans ensued.

By the time the dust settled tonight, the Blue Jackets and the Ducks combined for 11 goals and an impressive 69 PIM. While there were only two official fights, guys were taking runs at each other during and after plays, and we even saw a goal waved off because of things occurring behind the play.

Overall, the Ducks put forth a great effort tonight, and the offensive core once again led the way. While this was the first time the Ducks won back-to-back games since October, the victory was somewhat marred by the departure of Jonas Hiller due to injury late in the first period (more on that below).

G/B/U coming up.

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I don't think I'm alone in saying that Friday's effort against the Islanders was more in-line with what many of us expected to see from the team this year. For the first time in 30+ games, RPG dominated a game, combining for five points and three of the team's four goals. It's also encouraging to note that 10 different Ducks picked up a point on Friday night, something else that had not happened all season.

On the flip side, it was the Islanders and the defense still looked awfully suspect at times. We've also seen strong efforts from the Ducks before, only to follow up with three of four lackluster games. While a healthy dose of caution is encouraged (and honestly, it's not like we're thinking playoffs right now), there was something different about Friday's game. Something clicked, and the team finally performed the way it was designed to. We can vilify Bob Murray for his incompetence all we want (and rightfully so, most of the time), but Friday showed that the blueprint can work as expected.

It would be tempting to assume that this should be an easy win for the Ducks, but the Blue Jackets have already defeated us once this year and Columbus has an annoying habit of finding ways to win against us. If the Ducks fall behind at any point tonight, it will be interesting to see how they respond. For the first time seemingly all season, they found a way to hang around after giving up a goal in the third period on Friday. On Ducks Live after the game, Boudreau said that his team "got mad" when that goal went in. Let's hope that fire carries over tonight and that RPG once again finds a way to control the game. Two wins in a row would be a nice change.

Go Ducks.

[Ed. Note: All weekend, the AC staff will be trading the same five core players for another team(s) core player(s) of equal value. Thanks for forcing us to write this, Bob Murray.]

There are times when I’m convinced Jen makes up these group blog assignments just to torture me. [Ed. Note: True statement.] Now I’m supposed to imagine some kind of trade for Bobby Ryan. And you know the worst thing? I have to trade Bobby for just one player. One player?! That’s like taking the island of Manhattan for a pile of beads. It’s just not equitable value going both ways. And the one player in the world that could save the Ducks this season doesn’t even play hockey. He’s got some playoff game against Pittsburgh on Sunday.

Sigh.

As you’ll see while I’m going through, my biggest priority is defense. I’m not so great at paying attention to what assets are available from other teams or how they value them, but this is my best shot at even swaps.

Ryan Getzlaf for Dion Phaneuf

Toronto has a well-documented center problem and Brian Burke would probably love to get Getzlaf back under the fold. Phaneuf might be a bit of a stretch for Getzlaf, but I think subbing Getz is a solid upgrade over Tim Connoly, Tyler Bozak, or Mikhail Grabovski. I’m also hoping the sudden emergence of Jake Gardiner makes this move a little more palatable for the Leafs. At any rate, this move fills a legitimate need for both clubs.

Corey Perry for Claude Giroux

If I’m giving up one of the best players in the league, then I’m getting one of them back. Giroux would take over the number-one center role and could be an absolute monster for this team moving forward. I have a feeling Perry’s gritty style would be incredibly popular in Philly and Giroux has broken out as a defensive wunderkind this year.

Bobby Ryan for Kevin Shattenkirk

This may be a bit of an overpayment by the Ducks, but I’m trying to think out of the box here. Shattenkirk is a young, offensively minded defenseman that is also a career +8 despite playing for a horrible Avalanche team last season. Bobby, TJ Oshie, and David Backes could make one hell of a line for the Blues, who currently rank 21^st overall in goals per game.

Cam Fowler for Marc-Andre Fleury

This could be a bit of a stretch. Fleury is a good, but not elite goaltender in his later 20s while Cam has a lot of potential and is considerably younger. After losing Alex Goligoski last year in the trade to Dallas, and Kris Letang’s perpetual concussion (my fantasy team has a sad), the Penguins could use a young puck-moving defenseman. Since I’m going to be forced to trade Jonas Hiller in a few lines, the Ducks will need a solid goaltender to man the pipes until John Gibson is ready. Fleury seems like a reasonable get. It’s not like I’m trying to trade Fowler for Pekka Rinne or something here.

Jonas Hiller for Jordan Eberle

I’ve only gotten one forward back so far, so it’s time for another. Eberle is a good young player, but he doesn’t seem to have the hype of a Hall of Ryan Nugent-Hopkins. The Oilers don’t have the goaltending options in the league and acquiring a goalie like Hiller could be a solid move for them. I don’t pretend to know how highly coveted Eberle is, but this seems like a reasonable get from a team that could use a solid goalie.

As I said at the start, I’m really terrible at trying to measure player value. I realize that it probably seems crazy that I’m asking for relatively little in return for Bobby, but I’m very high on Shattenkirk and that seems like a reasonable trade to me.

Well that pretty much sucked. There's no cute excuses or clever ways to describe tonight's 5-2 loss against Vancouver other than these two words: unmitigated disaster.

The game saw the Ducks go down by scores of 2-0 and 4-0, at the end of the first and second periods. While they mustered something of a fight in the third period, eventually pulling to within two at one point in the third period, Vancouver just overwhelmed Anaheim at every opportunity. Things got so bad in the third period that Bruce Boudreau actually dropped Ryan Getzlaf down to the second line to center Bobby Ryan and Teemu Selanne. Tell me the last time you saw THAT happen.

Ugly x 3 coming up (not really, but it feels like that at this point).

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Fresh off their first road win in forever, the Ducks return home tonight to begin a six-game home stand that opens with a game against last year's Western Conference champs. While this appears to be a total mismatch on paper, the Canucks are actually unlucky enough to be one of the eight teams that we've managed to beat this year. While I'm not predicting Sharks-style dominance (humor me, it's the only thing going right this year), Anaheim has actually matched up very well against Vancouver in recent years. The Ducks' physical style seems to knock Vancouver off their game and Roberto Luongo always seems to struggle against Anaheim (I'll leave the Looo-bashing to others). [Ed. Note: Bobby Lu has been chased out of net tonight in favor of backup Cory Schneider.]

In looking at the Ducks' wins this year, one strange thing pops out at me: Anaheim is beating good teams. Sure, the Kings and the Canadiens aren't much to sneeze at this year (and Phoenix has recently dropped off), but here's the point totals and current conference standing of the eight teams the Ducks have vanquished in 2011-2012:

* Before play on 12/28/11

What does all of this mean? Who knows. In a season rife with frustrating outcomes, this is just another quirk to add to the pile of confusing and unexpected data.

Saku Koivu practiced yesterday and has once again been labeled a game-time decision by Boudreau, who has said that he hopes Koivu will play. [Ed. Note #2: He's officially out for his eighth consecutive game. This is bad. Very, very bad.] While Nick Bonino played probably his best game of his NHL career on Monday night, the Ducks badly need the second line to begin clicking again like they were before Koivu went down.

I'm not crazy enough to think of what it would take to make the playoffs at this point, but stringing together back-to-back wins (and the third straight game with points) would probably go a long way toward making the Ducks feel a little better about themselves.

Go Ducks.

[Ed. Note: Every day this week, the AC Staff and a few Duck Buddies will be giving each other Ducks related Secret Santa gifts. Up next is Anaheim Calling's dysfunctional duo. Bobby Ryan fanboy Robby bequeaths a gift upon neighborhood curmudgeon Daniel. ]

It's a Christmas miracle: Daniel and I are exchanging gifts. I'm sure this was TOTALLY serendipitous.

I kid, of course. I may disagree vehemently with him about everything, but there's no arguing that the man knows his hockey. He's been through worse seasons than the one we're currently witnessing, but enough is enough. The man deserves to get at least one of his wishes fulfilled.

That's where I come in. Without further ado, I give you Daniel's gift.

Since I'm not a Photoshop whiz, it may be tough to figure out who exactly this voodoo doll depicts. But the suit should be a hint. If only I could have found a doll that came with his own barstool.

I wanted to give Daniel a Bob Murray voodoo doll for two reasons. Not only does Daniel deserve the the opportunity to right Murray's wrongs, but I'm also legitimately curious to see how he'd use this new-found power. Would he force the Ducks GM to pull off a miracle trade for for Shea Weber by shipping off Bobby Ryan? Or would he take the safer route by forcing Murray to prank-call the Samuellis every five minutes until they fire him? Only Daniel knows.

Merry Christmas, Daniel. The next Mexican Coke is on me.

[Ed. Note: On Saturday, Teemu Selanne will be making his triumphant return to Winnipeg since being traded during the 1995-1996 season. As a tribute to Teemu, Anaheim Calling will be spending the days leading up to his homecoming in the 'Peg taking a look back at what got him to this point in his career. First up was Teemu and the 1988 NHL Entry Draft. Now he's ready to suit 'em up for the Jets.]

You've probably heard this before, but Teemu had a pretty good rookie year with the Jets in 1992-1993. And by pretty good, I mean the dude still holds the rookie records for goals and points he established that season. While he would never recapture the epic performance from that first season, Teemu's four years with Winnipeg established the breathtaking speed and skill that helped create the Finnish Flash moniker.

While Selanne experienced a lot of great moments as a Jet, you may be surprised to learn that it was in his first year that he first crossed paths with the man that would eventually coach Teemu to his only Stanley Cup (so far). Then-defenseman Randy Carlyle welcomed Selanne to the pros by promptly refusing to give up his number 8 jersey to Teemu. Selanne eventually decided to wear 13, and to-date, they are the only two jersey numbers Teemu has ever worn. For Ducks fans, this meeting between Selanne and Carlyle early in his career (and Carlyle's refusal to accede to the young Selanne) is oddly fitting. In some ways, it's unfortunate that Carlyle won't be the last man to coach Selanne in the NHL, but he did lead him to the promised land. That Carlyle would have denied Selanne this honor early in his career and then eventually coach him for several years is just another bookmark in the legend of Teemu Selanne.

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I'm normally an optimistic guy but I think this is the loss that pushes me over the edge. Up until now, I was trying to cling to some hope that things could turn around. Be it bounces, or track records, or a new coach, I thought that there was wiggle room for the Ducks to make something of this season.

There's not.

Once again, the Ducks lost to a team that I just can't stand losing to. Though the final was 3-2, the Predators controlled much of the game. Nashville overcame the frustration of having two goals called back and found a way to persevere. The Ducks, incredulous at the penalty to Brandon McMillan for tapping Jordin Tootoo in the stomach, collapsed in the third period.

It just sucked. There were some positives, sure. But I've never felt in my years of writing at AC that doing this was a chore. Tonight, it feels that way.

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The big news for the Ducks relates to the flurry of moves they made yesterday. With the Ducks loaning Devante Smith-Pelly to Team Canada for the upcoming World Juniors tournament and Saku Koivu still sidelined by a mysterious lower-body injury, the Ducks called up forwards Kyle Palmieri and Brandon McMillan from Syracuse. They also sent Nick Bonino down.

Then things got really strange.

With the new faces in town and the aforementioned Koivu injury, the Ducks rolled the following lines at yesterday's practice:

Kyle Palmieri - Ryan Getzlaf - Corey Perry

Andrew Cogliano - Bobby Ryan - Teemu Selanne

Andrew Gordon - Brandon McMillan - Nicklas Hagman

Jean-Francois Jacques or Matt Beleskey - Maxime Macenauer - George Parros

If these are in fact the same lines the Ducks use tonight, it will be really interesting to watch two things: How well does Palmieri fit with the twins and can Bobby (finally) find success as a center? The thing I do like about the Bobby-at-center experiment is that Cogs is also there in case things get away from Bobby a little bit. He also seems to be more upbeat about the experiment this year than he was last year, saying:

I’m not going to be one of those centers where you’re wondering why I’m not shooting the puck...I will have no trouble shooting it.

While the results haven't necessarily been there under new coach Bruce Boudreau, the team does seem to be more upbeat and generally more aggressive. They don't seem to be imploding as much when a goal scores and the fact that they're averaging 3 goals/game under Boudreau is something to be excited about (warning, small sample size).

I believe I read somewhere earlier this week that Dan Ellis would be getting one of the starts on this mini road trip. Since Jonas faced St. Louis on Thursday, I fully expect to see Ellis face off against his old team.

Unfortunately for the Ducks, erstwhile pest Jordin Tootoo will be making his return to the lineup after being given a two-game suspension for running Sabres goalie Ryan Miller. While Preds fans are probably salivating at the idea of wathcing Tootoo goad Perry into some kind of reaction, I would caution them to be careful what they wish for. Getzlaf and Perry both appear to be at their breaking point after the repeated abuse Perry has suffered in the last few games, and the budding rivalry between these two teams could cause one or both of them to completely lose it. Things could get ugly fast. While I'm sure that would give Nashville the vapors, the sort of violent outburst the Ducks used to be renowned for could be just what they need to start feeling good about themselves again.

In closing: Don't make us angry, Nashville. You wouldn't like us when we're angry.

Go Ducks.

Well that sucked. After a strong first period that saw them score two quick goals, the Ducks gave up a late short-handed goal that seemed to suck the life out of them. In the second period, the Ducks looked tired and slow, and Minnesota swarmed through the neutral zone to pick up every loose puck. The Wild struck twice in the span of 32 seconds in the second, giving them a 3-2 lead heading into the third.

Anaheim came out firing in the third, displaying the effort and style of play we saw in the first two periods against Philadelphia. While the Ducks threw shot after shot at Josh Harding, they just couldn't finish the many, many chances they generated. Ryan Getzlaf and Saku Koivu each hit posts on relatively wide-open nets and Teemu Selanne was unable to corral a beautiful cross-crease feed to put one behind an out-of-position Harding. While Cam Fowler scored off a Minnesota skate in the third to tie the game at 3-3, the Wild got their own flukey goal when Nick Johnson directed a Cal Clutterbuck feed past Jonas Hiller. The Ducks got their share of opportunities during a late power play (including the aforementioned chance from Selanne), but it was Minnesota that was able to capitalize on the empty net, sealing the game 5-3.

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For the first time since maybe the third week of the season, I'm actually excited about Ducks games again. And judging by the flood of comments on our various pieces at Anaheim Calling this week, a lot of you seem to be feeling the same way. I'm not sure about you, but It really feels like the season is starting all over again.

The Minnesota Wild and the Anaheim Ducks are both having seasons that are defying expectations. While the Ducks have found new and exciting ways to lose games, the Wild currently sit at first place in the Western Conference, just one point behind the NHL-best Pittsburgh Penguins. A quick look at the numbers suggests that Minnesota is succeeding on the strength of their defense, as they rank 5th in the league in goals against per game. The Wild don't score a ton of goals (their best player, Mikko Koivu, isn't even averaging a point-per-game), but they seem to be making the ones they do score count, as evidenced by their surprisingly low +7 goal differential.

Unfortunately for the Wild, they're one of the five teams that the Ducks have managed to beat this year. The Ducks beat Minnesota 3-2 way back on October 27th, although the Wild did return the favor on November 13th when they beat Anaheim by the same score. Over the past few years, the Wild have been one of those teams that has hung around much longer in games than I'd like. There have been a few games where the Ducks seemingly had things in the bag, only to see Minnesota make things uncomfortable late in games. Given our propensity to blow late leads this season, I'm somewhat apprehensive about this game.

After appearing gassed near the end of the Flyers game, new coach Bruce Boudreau held an optional workout yesterday to let the boys rest. If the Ducks have any chance of maintaining their energetic, up-tempo pace from the first 40 minutes of Friday's game, they'll need to come out firing with fresh legs. [Ed. Note: In the notes from practice, how awesome is it that BB is already calling out floppers? Can't wait until he sees Nashville vs. the Ducks]

In BB's second game behind the bench, I'm expecting to see a team and overall game plan that roughly matches what we saw on Friday. I was personally stunned by how different the Ducks looked in only their first game under Boudreau and I really cannot imagine another seismic shift in overall style. We may seem some tweaks to special teams personnel, but I would expect line combinations and the overall look-and-feel of the game to match what we saw on Friday.

And as far as I'm concerned, that's a great thing.

Go Ducks.

So, that happened. As I suspected in the Gameday, I should have stayed home and played The Old Republic. Not only did the Ducks find a way to blow a 4-2 lead in the third period, but we weren't even able to stay through the whole game as my son got pretty sick (we took him to Urgent Care as a precaution, but the doctors tell us he's just got a little virus). [Ed. Note: I'm assuming the Ducks have the same virus. They are not only losing games, but infecting small children. The horror!]

As for the game, the Ducks actually got off to a hot start, scoring twice in the first three minutes of the game. While Chicago fought back in the first, the Ducks added a late tally on a power play goal by Teemu Selanne and even extended the lead in the second period on a goal from Bobby Ryan.

Then the third period started.

Inexplicably. the Ducks came out with no fire or spark, and Chicago capitalized. Anaheim's lead evaporated in the first 92 seconds of the period and the Blackhawks claimed their first lead of the game on a goal by Patrick Sharp (which completed his hat trick) just two minutes later. Midway through the period, Hawks captain Jonathan Toews added the dagger on a power play and though the Ducks pulled within one late in the period, the game was effectively over at that point.

I'll say this for the Ducks. They find new and exciting ways to lose.

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After finishing a meal I slaved all-day over (this is no joke, I got up at 5 a.m. to start the turkey), I'm really ambivalent about the Ducks. In fact, if our game against Chicago hadn't become a sort of annual tradition where my parents go to a Ducks game with me, I'd probably swear off this game entirely to sink further into the beta testing for Star Wars: The Old Republic. [Ed. Note: Nerd.]

My personal distractions aside, the major news coming out of Wednesday's game against Phoenix (aside from that whole disappointing effort and loss thing) was Bobby Ryan's hip contusion. While Bobby didn't practice on Thursday, Carlyle told the media on Thursday that he expects Bobby "should be able to make a contribution" against Chicago.

Given the team's current slide, I can't for the life of me see why there should be any reason to hurry Bobby back into the lineup. His injury was obviously significant enough on Wednesday night to limit him to a season-low 10:32 of ice time (he was NOT benched, as some had hypothesized) and keep him out of practice the following day. You might as well give Bobby all the time he needs to fully recover and take this opportunity to experiment a bit with line combinations. Daniel has been pleading for a Devante Smith-Pelly audition on the big line all year and I think he deserves a chance. Hell, it seems that almost every other winger has seen a shift with the twins this year, and it might be fun to watch Ryan Getzlaf, Corey Perry, and DSP to take out their frustrations on Chicago.

I expect Honda Center to be about 50-50 in terms of Ducks and Blackhawks fans, and I really can't blame the Anaheim faithful for staying home or being shouted down. This team has given us almost nothing to cheer about for the past five weeks, and I don't anticipate things changing much against a talented Chicago squad that currently sits 2 points behind conference-leading Minnesota.

On the plus side, the Ducks' season skid began way back on October 21st during a home game against the Stars that my mom attended. This will be the second game she sees at Honda this year, and maybe returning to the scene of the crime will reverse the curse.

At this point, it's about the only hope I have left.