Ducks vs Colorado Avalanche

After a grueling work shift at the job that pays the bills, I was greatly looking forward to ending my night at the rink.

With the Ducks looking to nab every point possible in a tight Western Conference race, a game against the bottom-dwelling Colorado Avalanche is a potential gift. Of course then, when you remember that the Ducks have a nasty habit of losing against teams they shouldn't lose to, you kinda get that lump in your throat.

Bottom-dweller or not, Ducks are gonna have to bring their game!


The Ponda makes a doozy of a margarita!

Best part of that margarita, you can buy it in the collectible shaker and then bring back the shaker for discounted refills! Unfortunately for me, multiple margaritas make for a very buzzed blogger. Luckily, most of the pictures were salvageable!


Bobby Ryan on one of many goal opportunities tonight

Ducks in the first period were nothing to write home about. They were looking flat-footed and uninspired. The Avalanche got two past goaltender Ray Emery, taking a 2-0 lead into the locker room at the 1st intermission.


Trying to get a fire lit under his teammates, George Parros lands a few haymakers on David Koci

The Ducks probably got a good talking to by coach Carlyle because they came out with a vengeance for the second. Passes were connecting, the forechecking presence was there, and the scoring lines put on the pressure. Finally, payoff.


Anaheim Ducks GOAAAAAALLLLLL!!!

The Ducks would score three goals (a Teemu Selanne goal sandwich with a bit of Jason Blake in the middle) during the second, before the Avs would answer back with a goal of their own. The score was 3-3 going into the 2nd intermission.


Just another milestone for the Finnish Flash

3rd period and a 20-minute hockey game between the Avs and the Ducks. Cam Fowler puts the Ducks up one early on in the period, himself recording a record nine goals in the season by a rookie defenseman. Five minutes in and the Ducks are awarded a power play for an Avs' "too many men on the ice" penalty. Everyone wanted to say it, "give the puck to Selanne!"

Apparently, the Ducks were saying it too.


Third goal and HAT TRICK for Teemu!

What a season for hat tricks! I've actually been in attendance for a record number this season, two for Corey Perry, one for Lubomir Visnovsky, and now one for Teemu Selanne. It's the 22nd of his career, but his first for me.

And this guy is thinking of retiring?!?!?

Avs get one more but are unable to equalize before the period ends. Ducks snatch another two points for the playoff race.


In this tight of a race, losing is just not an option


But the man of the hour is Teemu Selanne, 1st star of the game, and 40-year-old phenom

2010 Playoffs, round 1 (Western)

Even though our hometown heroes are well on their way to various golf courses around the globe, yours truly is hoping Duck fans are still enjoying playoff hockey. If anything, it's kind of fun to cheer against long-time Duck rivals.

And this post-season, the games have been very entertaining so far. The Phoenix Coyotes are my self-proclaimed mistress team, so I've been quite entertained watching them take on the Detroit Red Wings. Ex-Duck goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov has been stellar, capping off a Vezina-nominated season with what could be a legitimate run for the cup. Personally, yours truly would love to see this. The Coyotes have had their troubles this season, complete with ownership and bankruptcy squabbles that had most of the hockey purists denouncing the desert underdogs at the beginning of the season.

Under new coach Dave Tippett, the Yotes have fought their way into the post-season, breaking a number of franchise records in stride. They've risen dramatically in the playoffs, keeping pace with the Wings for a furiously entertaining series. Hockey enthusiasts can at least agree that both of these clubs have brought their best to the first round.

As a sidenote, I'm also enjoying seeing newly acquired ex-Duck Petteri Nokelainen bring his energy and enthusiasm to the Yotes. At least I get to see one of my boys in the playoffs.

I'm hoping to see the Yotes end the Wings' run early, and avenge my Ducks for last post-season's lame series-winning goal. It would be hockey justice, you know?

Also very intriguing is the San Jose Sharks contest against the eighth-seeded Colorado Avalanche. In keeping with the Sharks' post-season choking tradition, yours truly tuned in to last night's game just in time to watch Sharks veteran defenseman Dan Boyle fire a shot that was deflected behind his own goaltender within the first minute of overtime. I feel incredibly bad for Boyle, but I can't help but snicker at the Chokes' Sharks' misfortune.

I'm also keeping tabs on the Los Angeles Kings/Vancouver Canucks matchup. However, this is primarily to keep me aware of which nights to steer clear of the Staples Center. I've already mentioned how fond I am of Kings fans, and the hecklings I receive every time I step foot near Staples with my Bobby Ryan jersey. So here's hoping the Kings are quickly pushed out of their first playoffs since 2002.

I haven't been watching too many games in the Eastern Conference, highlights aside. But that will change as the rounds advance and there are less games to watch. Ducks fan or not, playoff hockey is playoff hockey.

Go Yotes/Avs/Canucks!

Ducks vs Colorado Avalanche

It's the first game since the Olympic break, and our Ducks team isn't exactly whole. Thanks to trades made up through today's deadline, the roster is a bit lighter:

- Big man Evgeny Artyukhin was traded to the Atlanta Thrashers in exchange for defenseman Nathan Oystrick and a conditional selection.

- Veteran defenseman Nick Boynton was sent to the Chicago Blackhawks for considerations.

- Goaltender Justin Pogge and a fourth rounder from either 2010 or 2011 were sent to the Carolina Hurricanes for veteran defenseman Aaron Ward.

- An even goalie exchange, Ducks sent Vesa Toskala to Calgary for Curtis McElhinney.

- For a 2011 7th-round pick, Ducks picked up goaltender Joey MacDonald from the Toronto Maple Leafs.

- Olympic silver medalist and defenseman Ryan Whitney plus a 2010 6th-round pick were traded to the Edmonton Oilers in exchange for high-scoring defenseman Lubomir Visnovsky.

- Grinding forward, and one of yours truly's personal favorites, Petteri Nokelainen was sent to the Phoenix Coyotes for a 6th-round 2010 pick.

Our defense consisted of only five guys, as Lubo and Ward won't get into town until tomorrow. In either case, yours truly is excited about the trades. As sad as I am to see some of our boys go, I think the changes are mostly positive. It will be interesting to see how the new guys do.

Tonight's contest against the Avalanche started with a special Olympic tribute to the players with both clubs who participated. I thought it a very classy gesture for the audience to give the Avs Olympians a rousing ovation before our own boys were honored.


Ducks Olympians given a special pre-game tribute


Saku Koivu and Teemu Selanne, bronze medal winners

The Olympic medals and jerseys were also on display tonight behind section 212.


Seven medals for our Ducks, the most of any NHL team!

Play started off well for our hometown heroes. There was energy, aggressiveness, and lots of offensive zone puck possession in the first. Big kudos to Jason Blake who, I thought, really stepped up in this game. It was encouraging to see that second line, with Blake, Saku Koivu, and Teemu Selanne start to come together.

During a Ducks power play, a pass from Bobby to Blake on the side of the net segues into the veteran banging at the puck as it shot under Avs goaltender Craig Anderson. It squirts into the net as Blake is steamrolled by an Avs defender.

Early in the second, Selanne gets his 598th career goal. From an offensive rush (that is actually grossly offsides) consisting of slick tic-tac-toe passing from Saku to Blake to Selanne for a nice open-net pitch. I swear, Teemu is much more his high-producing self without that face grill on! (this is his first game back without the extra headgear)

Ducks extend their lead to 2-0.


Jonas Hiller, turning in a good game for the first half...

At this point, the Avs began their proverbial goal avalanche. Ducks defense all but disintegrated, and a litany of turnovers don't help. Jonas Hiller seemed a bit off too in the second half of the game. Numerous power play opportunities prove unfruitful. The offense tries repeatedly to score, Bobby gets robbed at least three times, and yours truly isn't the only one in attendance feeling the frustration.

Not to say the lack of production is entirely Anaheim's fault, goaltender Anderson is definitely standing on his head and coming up big tonight.


With amazing saves and acrobatics by Craig Anderson, the game's first star was well-deserved

The Avalanche would see four goals go up on the board before the Ducks would manage to net a third. And even that one did not come until the last four minutes of regulation, when Captain Scotty Niedermayer sends a puck into the crease and it bounces off an Av skate, through Anderson five-hole, and into the net.

Unfortunately, that goal isn't followed by an equalizer, and the Ducks would see their 12-game home streak snapped as they fall to the Avs, 3-4.

Yours truly will be reporting the next game from Phoenix, Arizona, with (hopefully) special Ducks and Coyotes coverage. That's a lot of hockey!