Ducks vs Buffalo Sabres

I had the weirdest dream the other night. It involved Chris Pronger, an Asian girl who I totally recognized in the dream but whose name I didn't (and still don't) have the faintest idea, and a few random coworkers of mine. Yeah. Whatever.

If you wanted to sum up this game in one word, it would be aggressive.

Although our Ducks didn't really step up to that term until the second period, there was already a lot of energy, a lot of action, through the first. Hiller started in net again, facing off with Patrick Lalime in the opposite net.

The Ducks were lucky it wasn't Drew Miller's brother Ryan Miller that they'd be trying to get pucks past... I understand that boy's got some skills.

The Sabres scored the first goal of the game, at the end of a horribly unfortunate play that left my boy Bobby Ryan writhing in pain on the ice behind the Ducks' net. He had just collided with the goalscorer, ramming his right knee hard into the boards. He had to be helped off the ice and luckily, much to the cheers of the home crowd, was able to rejoin his mates after the television commercial break.

Whew! I'm willing to bet that it's only a matter of time before Bobby gets seriously injured. He's a passionate player who plays with a lot of heart. He charges head-first as he chases loose pucks... and when he hits or gets hit, it isn't a light tap. As he becomes more notorious as a Ducks' scorer, other teams won't hesitate to attempt to take him out.

As if to realize my fears, Bobby sustained a couple more injuries in this game... with opponents and with his own teammates (he collided hard with Bret Hedican at one point).

The Ducks amped up their game in the second period. More time was spent in the Sabres' zone, more shots on Lalime. And again, Bobby went down as the wind was knocked out of him. He struggled to make his way back to the bench, blocking a shot on goal by Brett Festerling as he did. That play ended with a fight between Corey Perry and a Sabre.

Once Bobby got his breath back, he led a charge down the ice 3 on 2 towards the Sabres goal. Lalime managed to cover the puck, but Bobby nearly crashed into him. And that started a second scrum... and another man in each penalty box.

The Ducks power play came on hard and strong during this game, I was proud to see our boys fighting so well. A few minutes after halfway through the game, it paid off. Pronger's one-timer found the net, thanks to Todd Marchant's effective goalie screen, and the game was tied, 1-1.

Bobby had his incident with Hedican shortly after that goal, sending both players reeling across the blue line. Just not a good night for my boy!

And then, another fight. Craig Rivet starts pushing Chris Kunitz, Kunitz pushes back. And Rivet tries to control himself (he'd already paid five for fighting with Perry), yet his smirk triggers Steve Montador to throw the gloves down and attack.

As Montador and Rivet go at it, another scuffle starts up at the bottom of the Sabre net. The overhead shot of the rink reveals gloves and sticks strewn all over the ice.

It's really quite exciting.

I think our boys think so too, there are a bunch of smiles on the guys sitting on the bench.

Another fight instigated by Sabre's Weber, as he challenges Ryan Getzlaf. Getz doesn't bite, and Weber is sent to the penalty box. Another Ducks power play. No goal, but Ducks end the period with 20 shots versus Sabres' 6... and another tussle.

The tie is broken during the first half of the third period with a beautifully executed pass from Teemu Selanne to Andrew Ebbett who bumped the puck into the goal crease right as Chris Kunitz arrived on-scene. Kunitz sent the puck cleanly between Lalime's legs and brought the Ducks into their first lead of the game, 2 to 1.

The puck again spends most of its time in the Buffalo zone. The Ducks capitalize on a power play, with Montador slapping from the blue line, and the puck doing a little dance between the Sabre netminder's legs. Perry spots the puck dawdling in front of the goal line and he's in the perfect position to tap it in.

Even before the announcer can finish declaring the Duck goal, George Parros goes fist to fist with a Sabre. He's still in the penalty box when Drew Miller gets penalized for hooking, creating a much-needed Sabre power play. They only manage to make two shots on goal. There's a turnover that has Kunitz charging down the ice towards Lalime. His shot doesn't go in, but it's a thrill to watch our Ducks take so much control over a very frustrated and tired Buffalo team.

Apparently not tired enough to not score. Rivet lands a goal off an ill-placed Hiller rebound, narrowing the Ducks' lead, 3-2.

Bobby has been conspicuously missing from the Ducks' bench for at least the past couple of minutes... his injuries appear to be catching up to him. I'm just hoping we'll see him at the next game.

With less than two minutes left in the game, Pronger gets an interference penalty. Big chance for the Sabres to tie it up. Despite the 6 on 4 mismatch (Buffalo gets yet another man on the ice after Lalime is pulled from the net), the Ducks manage to hold on.

A great game results in an even greater win for the Ducks, 3-2.