Game 69: Blackhawks 2 - Ducks 4

Birthday Bobby scores twice, and nhl.com notes the occasion with...

...a picture of Ryan Carter.

Hooray!

But oh what a win it was. It was almost like having back the fiesty, fighty Ducks of years past. Physical play was a huge factor, and was hugely refreshing.

Speaking of which, how can you not smile at the sight of Brent Sopel* doing a momentary Superman impersonation before hitting the ice thanks to Corey Perry's repositioning effort. Did Perry nudge him in the back? Probably, yeah. But you'd think he had an air ram in his trousers from the way that Sopel flew. I'd call him Sopel-man from now on, except that his admirers** probably already use that in a positive sense instead of the dryly sarcastic way that I would.

If someone walked up to me on the street and offered me the chance to spend a day as either Brent Sopel or a grasshopper, I'd say "How the hell could you turn me into either of those things?" Then I'd choose to be a grasshopper so at least I'd have a reason for leaping if touched.

Brent Sopel is today's target of scorn.


Moving on...


The Chipchura-Marchant tag team goal, a.k.a. the "Hey kids, this is why you should be smart about challenging a play" goal, was awesomesauce.

The energy in the building every time Teemu had the puck and was facing the net? El Super Awesomesauce.

Hiller stopping every shot he possibly could*** might have been the lynchpin of the victory, but he didn't do it alone. There were plenty of bodies colliding in front of him, plenty of battles won, an adherence to the system that hasn't been seen a lot recently, and a healthy amount of fire in the belly.

Now, I don't mean to cast apsersions on anybody here, but have you noticed how cohesive the team seems to get when one of their big names is out? There have been plenty of games this season played without marquee players, Teemu and Getzlaf in particular, and they wind up in one of two very divergent places: either a tight, well-formed style, or a listless mess.

Luckily, tonight was the former, and the team is 2 points better for it. Can it happen again when the Islanders come in on Friday? I think so. The top two teams in the West were just toppled by the Ducks in reasonably decisive fashion. It's a reminder of two things: that this is a team with the ability to stand up to anybody, and that we've allowed waaaay too many opportunities to slide this season. A few more games like tonight's - games that the Ducks were always capable of - would surely have us in a much better position than we are right now.

But with 72 points in hand, I can sleep well tonight. There are 8 points (at least) to be made up in 13 games.


I'm starting to believe again.


Until next time...
-The Raving Duck


*Sopel, by the way, has clearly earned his Masters Degree from the Vlade Divac School of Flop. There are dives, there are dives, and then there's this:

Just... wow.

Sorry for the crummy resolution - it's the best I've got at the moment - but... wow.

**Does he have admirers? Seriously, does he? I'm only being about 18% facetious here.

***Well, maybe he could have stopped Seabrook's shot if he tucked his arm a little sooner, but that really doesn't diminish the stellar performance.

Game 68: Sharks 2 - Ducks 4

A consistent game.

A physical game.

A cohesive team game.


A victory.

Oh, and Bobby Ryan avenged his empty-net miss from a week ago against the Canadiens by sinking an empty-netter from the red line.


It's so tempting to gush about all the good things in this game after the past couple of weeks' worth of mediocrity, but I can't bring myself to do it. The risk of jinxation is just too high.

Even so, I'm doing my happy dance right now. And it feels good.

Until next time...
-The Raving Duck

ps - Does Jonas Hiller always pronounce "contribution" as "contri-boo-tion"? For some reason I find it amusing...

Game 67: Predators 1 - Ducks 0

On the plus side, I got a pack of trading cards. Also, I had the pastrami sandwich for the first time in a while, and it was pretty good.

Other than that, last night is the most recent in a string of games I'm trying to forget. Our playoff berth just slid that much further away.

It bears mentioning that the veterans - Selanne, Koivu and Marchant in particular - are clearly still trying to put up a fight. The flipside of that coin would seem to be the sagging shoulders of some of the younger guys. Dan Sexton seemed like the most egregious example, hanging his head at nearly every stoppage and skating aimlessly until the faceoff.

Bobby Ryan and his linemates continue to be cursed. Whether it's some evil exertion of fate, a conspiracy of physics, or simply a uncanny procession of hot goaltenders, the result is the same. Or rather, the lack of results is the same.

The vibe in the arena was subdued; the mood on the bench seemed downright dour. And worst of all? The frustration that's so understandable and relatable on a human level is also exactly what's keeping this team in a funk. It's a frustration that manifests itself in penalties (remember that Nashville's only goal came via a 2-man advantage), hasty playmaking, and a level of selfishness that reduces the team to 5 individuals. That those individuals want to pick the game up on their shoulders (Getzlaf, Beleskey, Visnovsky and Wisiewski all seemed particularly keen on heroism last night) is irrelevant. That they haven't yet is the problem.

A problem that we're running rapidly out of time to fix.



I'll try to rant some more before tomorrow's game againt San Jose. If I can muster the energy to do so.

Until next time...
-The Raving Duck

Time keeps on slipping...

Where did the season go?

No, seriously... where did it go??


My sincerest apologies for my massive absence. Real life got in the way for a couple of games back in late October/early November, I moved, I got a puppy, and the next thing you know I'm sitting here in mid-March wondering where the time went.

It's the stretch run, folks, and I'm going to do my bestest to get back on track, starting with tonight's game against Nashville in which the Ducks (if they have any heart left) will do their bestest to get back on track.

Expect a lot of grousing. When I ask (only half-rhetorically) where the season went, I'm not just talking about the actual passage of time. Looking at the talent on the Anaheim roster and comparing that to their dismal 30-28-8* record leaves a lot of unanswered questions. I intend to start asking them, and with enough blathering I might just wind my way to some closure.

Until then, I'm going to be as optimistic as possible about our odds of putting one more puck behind Pekka Rinne than Nashville can put behind Jonas Hiller.

More to come. Preferably after Anaheim snags a pair or points tonight. And preferably before another 4 months pass.

Until next time...
-The Raving Duck


*Just so we're all clear on this, being above .500 doesn't mean squat in the NHL. Or in any pro sports league for that matter. And for this club, it's apalling. That's coming from deep down in the crusty depths of this homer's heart, and it pains me to write it, but it has to be written. The fact that I've spent the past couple of days trying to find the point at which we'll mathmatically be ineligible for the playoffs is seriously, really, truly poopy, as is the fact that we may be at that point sooner than later.

There - I said it.

Go Ducks.

Game 10: Maple Leafs 6 - Ducks 3

Hooray! Toronto got their first win of the year! In Anaheim!

I could be defensive (unlike the Ducks - zing!) and point out that the Ducks needed to be shorthanded for roughly half the game in what turned out to be their most penalized game in team history in order for the Leafs to win. But there's no point (just like the Ducks got no points last night - zing!).

In other news, the Ducks played their most penalized game in team history. In terms of the power plays given, at least. If memory serves, they gave up 13 power plays including 4 5-on-3 opportunities, but I'm really much too depressed to go back and look at the stats or watch the game again.


It's time for a road trip.


(Interesting side note: I've apparently moved from describing the team as "we" and have started using "they." Not a good sign. Please, boys - get me back on board. And the rest of us. We really, really want you to succeed. We want our faith to be justified. Please.)

Until next time...
-The Raving Duck

Game 9: Blue Jackets 6 - Ducks 4

So close.

Again.


But we lost.

Again.

Until next time...
-The Raving Duck

Interesting Times

Sorry for the delay, kids. Some technical issues with my usual computer have left me high and dry for the moment. But fear not - if all goes as planned, recaps of Saturday's game (a.k.a. The Sadness), tonight's game, and the weekend goings-on will all be posted within the next 24 hours.

Until next time...
-The Raving Duck