Ducks vs. Sharks, round 1 game 6

Back at the Ponda, it's our hometown heroes' chance to put away these Sharks once and for all. How sweet would that be to do here at home? In a way, our Ducks don't really have a choice. If they lose this one, the pressure will be so strong to win the last one, and on Sharks turf no less.

If you ask me, I think Sharks coach McClellan has finally figured out who his big offensive line should be. In game five, his Thornton/Marleau/Setoguchi line was dominant in scoring and the Blake/Boyle defensive line was effective in shutting down our Ducks all the way up until the third period. No doubt he will have them out again and they'll be in top form as they try to escape elimination. And with this knowledge, and the momentum of a win here tonight, they'll come out at the Shark Tank for game seven with guns ablazing.

Well, it's settled. Ducks have to win this one tonight.

Right off the draw, Ryan Getzlaf goes toe to toe with big Joe Thorton. Wow! Talk about the fight of the century. I'm not sure if this is a good thing so early on, but it definitely sets a physical tone to the game at hand. As if we didn't already know it's going to be a physical affair!

Man, the Ponda is loud tonight, and rightly so.

Ugh. Only a minute in, the Ducks draw their first penalty. It's Robbie Niedermayer for tripping against Roenick. I'm happy to see that Jonas "Hiller the Shark Killer" is once again on his game, making some great saves in the Sharks first power play. And the Sharks come up fruitless.

After the power play, the Sharks carry their momentum to keep the puck primarily in the Ducks zone. They're definitely coming hard. C'mon boys, fight back!

Cheechoo takes a huge hit thanks to Corey Perry's shoulder, and the Ducks draw another penalty. Replay shows it's Perry's elbow that makes contact with Cheechoo's head. Our Ducks penalty kill is tremendous, but I'd rather they didn't need to be! Let's stay out of the sinbin, boys. Francois Beauchemin takes a puck off the left ankle and is shown limping off to the locker room at the next whistle.

Not a good sign. The Sharks are hitting harder, putting more shots on goal... and ANOTHER Duck penalty. This one is on James Wisniewski for slashing. The fans are booing. This is a horrible start. I can only hope they'll regroup and shape up during the first intermission. And hopefully, they won't have dug a huge hole of goal deficit by that time. It's during this penalty that Hiller lets one past him. Blake puts a huge shot on Hiller that rebounds into the slot, right on Michalek, who hammers it home.

The next play is whistled off at the Shark net, which instantly turns into a mosh pit. Oh man, more penalties are going to come out of that one. Two in the sinbin for the Sharks, George Parros and Mike Brown in the sinbin for the Ducks, but additionally, big D Danny Boyle is in for the Sharks. And our boys have their first power play. Unfortunately, it's short-lived. Teemu Selanne gets a hooking call less than thirty seconds in. Now we're 4 on 4.

And see, these aren't necessarily bad calls. Our Ducks really need to clean up their act. You can't get anywhere offensively if you're constantly killing off penalties.

Finally, penalty against the Sharks on a hooking play. We're 4 on 3 for the first 15 seconds. It lends to a beautiful mid-air tip in by Perry, off a pass from Getzlaf in the slot who bounces the puck off Evgeni Nabokov's right leg pad. Big goal for our boys, tying things up 1-1 with one second left in that 4 on 3 power play.

As if it could get any faster, play picks up tremendously after that goal. Ducks have risen to the occasion, re-energized, making good hits, strong forechecks, and shots on Naby. The fans sense it too, "Let's go Ducks" resounding. They're starting to look really sharp out there, connecting those passes and going whistle-less from here on out to the first intermission. It's 1-1 and it looks like our boys are finally ready to play some hockey.

The great plays continue in the second period, as the Ducks' third line sets up a few scoring opportunities. The Sharks' third line is also strong, putting a number of shots on Hiller. Our goaltender is on fire though, and he's flawless. My eyes are literally drying out trying to follow all the action here. Big George ends up in the Shark net with Nabokov twice. His line also gets a bunch of scoring opportunities. Maybe it's just me, but the Sharks don't seem to be connecting their passes as well as the Ducks are. Ducks also outnumber the Sharks in shots on net.

We get halfway through the period without any penalties, all the way until the whistle blow ends in a scrum in front of Hiller. He crawls away with the puck as the players get into each others' faces.

Frankie Beauchemin gets an interference call, and the Sharks get another power play. The penalty kill is looking strong, with Hiller once again blocking pucks with his mask.

Now it's the Ducks turn on the power play. Erik Christensen catches a puck on the breakaway, pausing perfectly before he passes the puck to Andrew Ebbett speeding down the slot. His Shark defender hooks him as he fires on the net. His bid flies over the net, but draws an all important penalty.

Right off the faceoff, Selanne wins the draw. It goes back to the Captain at the blue line, who passes it up to Chris Pronger. He fires it back to Selanne who, on a pass to Getzlaf, makes contact first with a Shark stick and it's past Naby in the blink of an eye. First goal this series for the Finnish Flash! And only nine seconds into the power play.

They hardly finish officially announcing the goal when Mike Brown muscles possession of the puck, passes quickly behind the net to Ryan Carter who manages to feed it up ice to Frankie at the blue line. He fires a huge one timer, which breaks Boyle's stick in its path to the Shark net. 3-1 Ducks lead!!

The fans are screaming, our Ducks are on fire, and I'm so wishing I were at this game! The Sharks on the bench look stunned and bewildered. It's a beautiful sight, people.

"Let's go Ducks!"

And Hiller makes a highlight reel sprawling save. What an unbelievable period!

I would hope to see another goal by my boy Bobby Ryan, tying him with the record for goals in a post-season series by a rookie. He's contributing big time tonight, doing all of those little things that prove so important. But earning a point isn't in the game plan, at least for the first two periods.

The horn sounds the end of the period and a brawl erupts on the ice. Pavelski and Ryan Whitney start throwing fists. The zebras let them duke it out for a bit before pulling them apart. There's defnitely going to be penalties at the beginning of the third. But for now, Ducks have a comfortable 3-1 lead going into the second intermission.

The third period opens with a bunch of guys in each sinbin, but Anaheim with the man advantage. Nabokov comes up big in the Sharks penalty kill, as our boys fire shot after shot on him. He's keeping his team in the playoffs at this point. No goals.

Things are getting really chippy. A whistle after Hiller covers up turns into another scrum as Michalek takes a stick to Wisniewski. Guys run in from all corners of the rink to join the melee. As the zebras discuss how they'll dish out the penalties, the coaches look on as they lose important parts of their specialty teams. The sinbins are practically standing room only as there are four players from each team sitting out.

Our Ducks strategy looks like it involves keeping the puck deep in the Shark zone whenever they can, still applying pressure on the forecheck in their defensive zone. They've got the lead, but they can't let up.

There's a nervous moment as Setoguchi goes deep after a home run pass from Marleau. Before he can reach it, Hiller is flying out of his crease to knock the puck away with his stick. It's just Setoguchi and Hiller out there and I'm suddenly reminiscent of the play where Hiller takes a flying dive at the puck out on the blue line. No shot on goal following that moment, but our Ducks don't manage to clear. About 17,000 fans including myself are holding their breath as the few feet surrounding Hiller turn into a veritable pinball game, the puck bouncing off Hiller's chest, off sticks, off skates... everywhere except the net.

Only half of the period left, and the Sharks are getting even more desperate. I think they're starting to get a little sloppy, fanning on shots, fumbling the puck at the blue line, not connecting on passes. And Hiller is staying sharp and true as they apply tons of pressure around his crease.

Play continues up and down the ice, shots on both netminders. We're down to the last five minutes of the game, and the score is still 3-1. This is it, the final stretch! Our big line is on the ice, keeping the puck as deep as possible for as long as possible. Perry gets dragged for a while as Ehrhoff tries to free his stick from his skate blade. A puck battle in the corner to the right of the Sharks net turns up aces as Robbie Niedermayer manages to dig out the puck and get it to Getzlaf in open ice. He edges it up to the high slot, trying to open up a shooting lane. He fires a mad wrister and all we see is Naby's water bottle jump. GOAL!!!

Huge grins on all our boys on the ice and on the bench. The Sharks are positively pissed, and I'm loving this! By the way, with a goal, an assist, and a fight, that's a Gordie Howe hat trick for Getzlaf. Two minutes and some change left, shall we consider this one done? The fans are on their feet. The rest of the game is a mad scramble for the puck, which is flying haphazardly all over the ice. Empty net for the extra attacker. It doesn't make any difference. The Ponda is deafening. The final horn sounds and it's over!

Hiller takes his Ducks in their eighth seed all the way to the top, defeating the President's Trophy winner, and kicking the Sharks all the way into next season. Which, incidentally, will be the next time Sharks fans will see their team on the ice.

Bring on the Detroit Red Wings!

Ducks vs. Sharks, round 1 game 5

I could've caught tonight's game at a watch party, but I opted to crash my parents' house instead. Hey, free food and seating in front of a 52-inch HD flatscreen sometimes beats out the draw of fellow fan camaraderie. Although, it will make for a patchy blog post... (my family seldom leaves me alone when I visit)

We're off to a bad start here, Corey Perry in the penalty box for cross-checking and, somehow, Jonas Hiller is even MORE stellar than ever to help our boys kill that penalty.

Ugh. Duck penalties!

At the halfway point, I'm sensing that this game is looking a lot like an amalgamation of our Ducks least impressive performances. Again, THANK GOD for Hiller. He's the only reason why the Ducks are still in this.

Our boys just seem half a second too slow in this game. I don't think this series will end tonight, boys. You'll have to bring it back home and win with your home fans.

Or maybe I've spoken too soon? The third period begins with a Ducks deficit 0-2. A beautiful pass from Andrew Ebbett to Ryan Carter right in the middle of the slot goes in past Evgeni Nabokov for Carter's first career playoff goal.

Good work, boys! Now you have 19 minutes to get one more.

And that they do. Off a perfect pass from the Captain, failsafe Corey Perry fires one in over Naby's glove hand.

Suddenly, we have a tied game, 2-2. I'm glad our boys finally decided to show up and play some hockey.

I'm noticing my boy Bobby Ryan wincing in pain off his last shot, which he still manages to fire onto the net with good force. He's back on the bench still wincing, and is later replaced by Teemu Selanne on his top line with Ryan Getzlaf and Perry. I hope he'll be okay.

Two minutes left in regulation and we're still tied 2-2. There have been big opportunities for both clubs to take that winning goal, but the goaltenders have been huge. I even have to say that Naby's been playing his best game of the series here.

Overtime. The first one this series. It takes about six minutes for a puck to get stuffed and whacked through Hiller's padding. Unfortunately, I was right. Our Ducks will just have to bring this one back home to the Ponda and win amongst a sea of orange playoff towels.

Let's go, Ducks!

Game Five... can our hometown heroes put the San Jose Sharks away with a 4-1 series trouncing? We'll find out tonight.

In the meantime, I'm watching a simply riveting series finisher between ex-Duck Chris Kunitz and his Pittsburg Pens against the Philly Flyers. Awesome game!

Isn't playoff hockey great??

Ducks vs. Sharks, round 1 game 4

An exceptionally generous date allowed me the opportunity to see our boys take on the Sharks for Game Four of the Sharks-Ducks playoff series. I'm expecting the game to be even more intense, even more physical. Our Ducks don't have the best home record, I'm hoping they'll turn that around tonight. I don't think I'm the only fan ready to push our hometown heroes to victory with home energy.

The series has been all about defense. We've got Captain Scott Niedermayer, Chris Pronger, Francois Beauchemin, Ryan Whitney, and James Wisniewski out there... how can we not do well? The Sharks, with Boyle (who made two goals in Game Three), Blake, and Murray put up a good fight defensively. And they proved in the last game that they can play just as physical a game as our Ducks can. This fourth game is important on an emotional perspective. Our Ducks need to take the control back, especially on their home ice. As for the Sharks, I'm sure they're eager to show everyone that Game Three wasn't a fluke.

We're already getting scrums at the crease after every whistle. Our boys seem to have gotten caught off guard early on in this first period. They're sluggish and not moving their feet enough. Jonas Hiller is called upon to make a number of quick saves. Thank god Hiller's awake. C'mon boys, let's get a move on.

Ducks get the first power play of the game, after Wisniewski gets tripped by Pavelski. Our Ducks get some good shots on Evgeni Nabokov, who's looking a bit unconfident in the goal crease. He's leaving rebounds left and right That's a good sign. Ugh, if our guys can just get focused. They're not completing passes, and they aren't in front of the net to capitalize on those rebounds. My boy Bobby Ryan gets a solid four shots on that goal, and an excellent pass to Wisniewski. Go Bobby! The Ducks continue to keep possession of the puck for a good minute or so after the power play ends, and I think they manage to change the momentum of the game.

Another Ducks power play when Setoguchi takes down Bobby after holding on to him behind the Sharks goal line. Shots on net, but Sharks are putting a lot of guys in front of Naby and blocking. Again, no fruit.

Soon after, Andrew Ebbett gives the Sharks their first power play with a retaliatory trip. Ducks' penalty kill proves strong, Hiller is flawless. No goals.


Just one man and his net

The horn sounds the end of the scoreless first period. Our boys picked up their game, and they're playing with a little more discipline. At least, the parade to the sinbin hasn't started yet. The Sharks, amping up their physical game, look like they're taking a few more penalties because of it. I'm hoping our boys will be able to get more offense going in the next two periods.

The second period starts with 4 on 4 hockey, thanks to a few players taking penalties from the scrum at the end of the first period. At even strength, Bobby continues his onslaught of shots on the net. The rest of his team need to catch up to him!

A shot on Naby gets pushed into the net but is deemed a no goal, even though it appears that Naby never had control of that puck. Big George managed to push it through. Boos erupt from the fans in attendance as the replay reveals to us that it should have been a valid goal. Less than a minute later, karma. Bobby grabs the puck in the Anaheim zone and passes it up ice to Ryan Getzlaf, who takes it up through neutral ice and into the Shark zone with Corey Perry on his right wing. Bobby speeds up the center, through the slot, right as Getzlaf makes a beautiful spin pass across to him and he hits it home past Nabokov.

Great goal for Bobby, who does one of his jumping body slams against the glass behind the goal line. First goal of the game goes to the player who finally hits paydirt. Third goal of the post-season for Bobby. The fans in the upper deck start up a chant of "Bobby! Bobby!" and I'm lovin' it. Apparently, Bobby is too. The big screen catches him smiling in the afterglow as he sits on the Duck bench.

Play continues for the next few minutes, and our boys look energized with that first goal under their belt. We end up taking a long break in play as the pane of glass between the two team benches shatters and needs to be replaced. I've never seen that particular pane broken before, and I'm assuming it doesn't happen often. The crew at the Ponda whip out the measuring tape, apparently needing to cut a new piece of glass. Replay reveals the pane shatters when Bobby takes a hit by a Shark defender in front of the player benches. He's pushed along the wall and his shoulder smashes into the glass.

Halfway through the second period, the break in play is taking almost as long as another intermission. Not good for keeping the Ducks momentum going after that first goal. The players are out skating around, trying to keep themselves limber.


Not my idea of halftime entertainment!

Play resumes and our big "Legion of Doom" line is back out on the ice. Perry tries to stuff the puck on a wraparound, but it bounces off Naby and back to Perry. He then catches his own rebound for another shot, which bounces free off the hapless netminder and down the slot to where Bobby is waiting. He drops to one knee and flicks it into the empty net with a quick wrister. Just like that, another goal for my boy, as if nothing had happened. We're on our feet, screaming and cheering, "Bobby! Bobby!"

While the goal is being announced, Wisniewski takes a holding penalty. Amazingly, it's just the second penalty for our Ducks, and the second time they have to call on their penalty kill. Hiller is once again flawless through a number of tricky shots on goal.

Right as Wisniewski is out of the box, our boys are in the Shark zone, putting some sweet shots on net. The word is out, fire on Naby's skates and wait for those rebounds cuz he seems to cough one up every time.

Back in the Ducks zone, Getzy blocks a one-timer off the top of his foot and looks very uncomfortable afterwards. He limps to the bench. Less than a minute later, Ebbett is looking rather shaken himself and barely makes it back to the bench. After the television timeout, both players look much better. Whew!

We've got another penalty, and Marleau heads to the sinbin after high-sticking Getzlaf behind the net. The arena fittingly plays Alice in Chains' "Man in the Box," Our boys get a few huge chances on the first half of this power play. The shots are strong (have I mentioned Wisniewski has one helluva slap shot?), the defensive pairing of Whitney and Pronger are looking perfectly in synch as they complete long stretch passes to each other and to the offensive line. As the end of the second period is sounded, I have to insist that our Ducks are playing the best hockey of the game right now. They're riding high on confidence, on the energy that's practically crackling through the air, and on the momentum of Bobby's two goals.

Ducks lead 2-0.

As the third period starts, the rest of the Ducks power play is killed off by the Sharks. Meaning to send a message to Bobby, big defenseman Blake puts a huge hit on him a few seconds after he leaves the puck. It could easily have been an interference penalty. But Blake took most of the damage off that hit, he spun Bobby, but careened off into the boards in one direction, his stick flying off in the other direction. Luckily, Bobby saw him coming at the last minute and was able to avoid the majority of that hip check.

Hiller continues complete dominance of his goal crease. Very few rebounds, and engaged defensemen helping to clear any rebounds that do appear keep him safe. Hiller is tight and on his game tonight. Honestly, he needs to be. He has no choice. The Sharks are down with zero goals in this final period. You know they're coming with blood in their sights.

Play continues for minutes at a time without a whistle. Our Ducks are making the Sharks play a lot of defense, and that's key to protecting this lead. Huge shot on net by Ehrhoff point blank at the crease, but saved by Hiller. And then again, on a shot made by big forward Thornton. And Hiller keeps himself calm and cool throughout the whole thing. Shots are made, blocked, stripped, and saved... good plays by both teams.

Less than half of the third left. Can we start hoping for Hiller's second playoff shutout? Or maybe a hat trick for Bobby? There will be another goal, not by Bobby, but by his big line. Getzlaf fires from the slot, and Perry puts the redirect on it between Naby's leg pads and into the net. More screaming and cheering from the fans. We're really enjoying this now. The energy is thick, you can tell our boys are absolutely pumped and enjoying themselves out there. Their confidence is infectious and squeezing the life out of the Sharks players.

Puck battles are won every time by Duck players, the Sharks aren't even charging the puck, and Naby is sprawling all over his crease. At every break, the fans are on our feet. There's three minutes left in this game, and we're going to cheer our team right to that win.

Even Hiller's got that extra spring in his step. He makes a glove save with a little more than his usual dramatic flare, and then innocently pushes away from the net while Thornton and Whitney mix things up at the crease, Roenick charging in to add his two cents. Or two fists, as the case may be.

At a buck thirty, Naby leaves the net. We're on our feet. Breakaway by Rob Niedermayer and Drew Miller, who fires onto the empty net from the red line. It's in! With less than thirty left, we've got a cross-checking penalty as Sharks' Miller attacks Ryan Carter against the boards. A huge brawl erupts. It's a power play, but only eleven seconds left. By this time, the Ducks best defensemen (Pronger and the Captain) are held in on the bench, and the Ducks best enforcers (Parros and Brown) are out on the ice. Wise decisions by coach Carlyle.

Sharks' Miller and Sheldon Brookbank, who joined the scrum, take additional misconduct penalties for the incident. The fourth line is left in for the power play, which they opt to whittle away by passing the puck back and forth between themselves in the defensive zone. Second shutout of the series for Hiller, and Ducks lead the series 3-1.


The Ducks are out to congratulate Hiller and each other for the win

The three stars of the game? Third goes to a much-deserving Wisniewski...



Second to Hiller...



And first? My boy Bobby Ryan.



Can I say, "Calder! Calder!"

Ducks vs. Sharks, round 1 game 3

Can't say I was too confident about our boys' ability to win on home ice for game three of the Ducks-Sharks series. I mean, home ice hasn't been too friendly to our hometown heroes during the regular season, what are the chances that would change in the post season?

I originally listened to this one at work and, since it wouldn't air on any television station save Versus, had to ask my mother to set her DVR to record it for me. In the end, I'm kinda glad I missed this game because what little I'd heard on the radio had been pretty ugly.

Some game notes:

- Jonas Hiller looking sharp once again in net. The Sharks have noticeably amped up the manpower in front of the crease and Hiller had to work a lot harder to make his saves.

- Like the first two games of the series, game three was also wrought with penalties. Our boys really REALLY need to work on staying out of the penalty box. What's notable is that the Sharks are also drawing a lot more penalties with their more physical play.

- George Parros and Murray go toe to toe in the first fight of the series. Big George had to put an end to the hits Murray kept making on Teemu Selanne.

- I think the strength in the Sharks' defense (which was actually another word for "offense" in this game -- all but one goal total between the two clubs were made by defensemen), was fueled by the momentum of being in the lead. The Sharks never trailed, and it showed in their game. The fact that the Ducks never led, I think that showed in their game too.

Let's just forget about this one and look forward to the next one!