Ducks vs Nashville Predators

Living in Southern California, you get used to seeing lots of the visiting team's jerseys at Ducks home games. It can be a little annoying, especially when the visiting team has obnoxious fans. Never underestimate the annoyance factor of obnoxious people in large numbers.


Nashville Predators on the loose

With the Nashville Predators in town, I witnessed probably the smallest showing of the visiting team's fans. Very few Preds jerseys in the audience. Actually, there weren't very many of anyone's jerseys in the audience.

In a way, I wasn't surprised. Our Ducks could be playing a lot better than they have been. Hopefully, things are turning around. Our boys played well against the Canucks and then the Penguins, they just need to start winning. Then the audience would return.


The Captain leading his men into battle

Starting off the first period, I was happy to see that our Ducks got out there with similar gusto as the past game. There were still too many turnovers in the neutral zone, in my opinion, but our boys possessed the puck for longer stretches of time and were consequently able to put a number of shots on goal.


Coach Randy Carlyle diagrams a play

Our boys would get on the board first, with Ryan Getzlaf knocking a sweet back pass to Teemu Selanne, who would slap that puck home. Taking advantage of multiple Pred penalties, Selanne's power play goal would land him in 10th place for the NHL's top power play goal scorers.

Scoring pretty much ceased for the rest of the 1st period and the entire 2nd. Big George Parros tried to mix things up, dropping gloves with Preds' monster Wade Belak. Unfortunately, it wasn't Georgie's most impressive fight.


Parros and Belak trying to change the momentum in a scoreless period

The 3rd period started with the Ducks still leading 1-0. Our penalty kill continued to look 300% better than we started with, including our team's number one penalty killer, Jonas Hiller.


Hiller in the net

Towards the middle of the period, my boy Bobby Ryan takes a very questionable diving call after being tripped by Joel Ward's aberrant stick (which got caught in Bobby's skate). On the resulting 4-on-4, Teemu would catch a wicked pass in the slot from Saku Koivu down the right wing and, not missing a beat, slams that baby home. His second for the night.


The Finnish duo has begun to make some magic

Shortly thereafter, another veteran makes good on a killer pass into the slot. Todd Marchant, off an effective forecheck is able to free up the puck. Petteri Nokeleinen scoops it up and returns it to an open Marchant left all alone in the middle of the ice. Marchant quickly slaps it past Preds netminder Pekka Rinne for his first of the season.

Would the Ducks stop at 3-0? Heck no! The Legion of Doom line would come together for an absolutely beautiful play. Getzlaf passed the puck along the boards to Corey Perry, who speeds it down the left wing. Then, with a thread-the-needle pass between the feet of a Preds defender, he sends the puck to Bobby in the crease, and it's one-timed in.


Scoring line number one of two... how long have we fans been waiting for two productive scoring lines?

Our Ducks finally see their hard-work pay off in that final period, scoring three goals and shutting out the Predators 4-0.


Ducks celebrate Hiller's first shutout of the season

Ducks vs Pittsburgh Penguins

When the NHL schedule was released back during the summer, lots of Southern Californian hockey fans circled Tuesday, November 3rd. It would be the one time the defending 2009 Stanley Cup champions would play in Anaheim, an opportunity to see NHL notables such as Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Bill Guerin, Jordan Staal, and Marc-Andre Fleury live on the ice and, for Duck fans, a special homecoming for ex-Ducks coach Dan Bylsma and winger/fan-favorite Chris Kunitz.

As the date drew near and the Ducks would appear to finally get their game going, November 3rd would also become a pivotal contest. With key pieces Malkin, Maxime Talbot, and Sergei Gonchar out of the Penguin lineup, our Ducks had a good chance of taking those two points. We fans knew a win would also give our boys a huge vote of confidence to start off the month.


The Pens are my #3 team and I was greatly looking forward to this game, although I was disappointed that Geno's injury would be keeping him off the ice.

The game definitely started off on a positive note. Corey Perry would continue his red-hot goal streak when Captain Scott Niedermayer smacked a puck from the point into the slot. Perry was Johnny-on-the-spot, hovering around his usual zone in front of the goal crease. He completed Scotty's pass, spun around, and whipped the puck past Fleury. Straight to the highlight reel with that one.

Ducks got a welcomed first goal of the game. However, the consequent penalty parade that took over during the first period, complete with a ridiculous goaltender interference call against my boy Bobby Ryan, would threaten to frustrate our boys.

I'm very happy with the way our Ducks were able to refocus their energy, killing off all four penalties and cutting off the ant trail to the sin bin.

Our defense was looking a bit improved as well, which isn't saying much considering how horrendous it has been, but which also isn't completely unremarkable because our blue line was without James Wisniewski. Guys had to up their ice time to eat all that Wiz would have played. I'm liking the way Nick Boynton has stepped up his game paired with Scotty. Although, I'm still waiting for Ryan Whitney to convince me he's worth losing Kuni over.


Yours truly was a Chris Kunitz fan and still haven't quite forgiven Bob Murray for that trade.

What bothers me is the way opponents camp out (a la Tomas Holmstrom) in front of our goaltender. Our defense needs to make things uncomfortable in front of our crease. Don't let guys sit there, screening our goalie, sniffing around for rebounds. We need to work on this, boys! We need to give our goaltenders a chance. Why do you think Jonas Hiller can't stop those slap shots from the point?

Perry would net a second (for a total of six goals in the last four games) after a powerful display from our Legion of Doom line. Bobby stole a puck away during a strong forecheck behind the Pens' goal line, passing it quickly to Getzlaf in the circle. Shooting the puck into traffic at the crease, Getzy was able to send it straight into Fleury's pads, where it would rebound to Perry's feet. After a moment of stick smashing, our number one line was aptly rewarded with another goal.


Start bringing hats to the games, kids, Perry's gonna net that hattie this season!

Offensively, our Ducks had a number of opportunities, and their shots on goal reflected their efforts. I think I'm finally starting to see our second line come together. Teemu Selanne, Saku Koivu, and Joffrey Lupul are starting to complete passes, making near successful plays on net. Granted we would have wanted this to happen back in October, it's nice to see it happen eventually!

Saku would get credit for the third Duck goal of the game, a slick number smashed in between Fleury and the post short-side. Selanne tangled with the puck and his defender behind the net, Saku would join the mess, pushing his defender out of the play with a well-timed check that knocked the puck free. Quick maneuvering would see Saku beating Fleury to that short-side, and a biscuit in the basket.

Despite playing an excellent game, our boys would fall victim to some very lucky bounces for the Penguins, including an open net bid for the Captain which was blocked by substitute goalie Crosby and a strong shot by Saku from a beautiful pass gift-wrapped by Selanne behind the net which magically found Fleury's glove. Absolute robbery! Nobody was more surprised than Fleury himself.

Our boys should be nothing but proud. They kept Crosby off the point board, they put together an amazing push and all but outplayed the defending Stanley Cup champions, they killed six of six penalties. They just ran out of time. Corey Perry is in the midst of an incredible goal streak, who knows how far he'll go? And Saku Koivu is finally making magic with Teemu Selanne. If our boys keep up the good work, they will be rewarded soon with a win. Perhaps next game against the Nashville Predators?

Let's see some more pictures!


Jonas Hiller played one of his better games between the pipes; the shots he couldn't stop were screened through heavy traffic.


Pascal Dupuis, who scored the Pens' game-winning goal


Jay McKee and Sidney "The Kid" Crosby


Brooks Orpik and Chris Kunitz


Ex-Duck, Martin Skoula


Michael Rupp, Craig Adams, Crosby, and Kris Letang


Christopher Bourque, Kunitz, and Jordan Staal


Marc-Andre Fleury and Staal


Todd Marchant and Crosby in the faceoff

Ducks at Phoenix, vs Coyotes

Right after our hometown heroes' landslide win against the Canucks, they were aboard a plane to Arizona, scheduled to compete against the Phoenix Coyotes the following night.

Never having had a good history with the second game of a back-to-back, it was going to be tough for our boys to prove that last night's win was more than a lucky fluke. I am proud to say, however, that our boys held their own Saturday night against a young hockey club with zero pressure to produce wins and a hot goalie between the pipes.

They were able to pull a shootout loss and one point from the game, despite looking completely gassed through much of the third period. The game was chippy and uber-physical right from the start, and yours truly had a feeling our boys would not be able to last all 60 minutes.

George Parros dropped gloves with Bissonette and, following a hit on Coyotes' Captain Shane Doan, James Wisniewski and Doan would take matters into their own hands. Wiz would later receive a two-game suspension for that hit.

Neither Corey Perry nor Teemu Selanne could get pucks past Ilya Bryzgalov on their shootout bids, but both scored in regulation for the Ducks two goals of the game.

Perry found net on the power play, slipping a puck past Bryz that came to him in the crease. Selanne's slap shot goal squirted through Bryz and gave the Ducks the lead for a very short 18 seconds before Fiddler would net the equalizer.

In my humble opinion, I think we would have gotten a goal in that shootout if coach Randy Carlyle had put in my boy Bobby Ryan instead of Ryan Getzlaf. As good as Getzy is at shooting, I feel our star forward just isn't playing up to his potential. He has looked slow and awkward on the ice this entire season, as if pain from that summer hernia surgery is still bothering him.

Jonas Hiller did a great job on the other end of the ice, disproving previous records that he can't deliver on a second game of a back-to-back. He stood on his head to keep his team in this game.

Our Ducks will take two days off before hosting the Stanley Cup Champions, the Pittsburgh Penguins at home on Tuesday.

Ducks vs Vancouver Canucks

Our hapless Ducks went into tonight's contest against the Vancouver Canucks with the loathsome record of 3-6-1, second worse in the Western Conference. Having sat through three gameless days with the bad taste of Monday's 6-3 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs lingering in their mouths, our Ducks sounded determined to turn things around.

As a fan, I can say, "Oh, I've heard that before..." and roll my eyes. But, as a TRUE Ducks fan, I can say, "Okay boys, we still believe in you, the season is still young, let's fight for this..." and then pray that we come out of tonight with a win.

The season is only young for so long, of course, and our Ducks do need to be playing better if they expect to get anywhere near playoff contention. While it's natural to feel angry and frustrated, I'd say these are the times that are the most important to show our support for our boys. After all, anyone can support a winning team. Only loyal fans stick with a losing team.

It was with a certain amount of anxiety that fans filed into the Ponda Friday night, Halloween Eve. Would our boys leave dressed as game winners? Or would they drop yet another game and fall officially into last place (the Minnesota Wild won their game that night so a loss would drop our Ducks to the bottom)?


Duck's starting lineup during the National Anthem, probably saying their own prayers under their breaths.

The night started off bleak, with the Canucks finding the net a mere 66 seconds after puck drop. They would score again for a 2-0 lead later in the first period.


Bobbyhead surveys the miserable scene from the 224B Suite Box

And then, miracle of miracles, our boys decide to show up. Jonas Hiller would pull his game together to stop every remaining Canuck shot on goal, Corey Perry decided to add to his point tally as lead scorer for the team, and our fourth line rallied to put some points on the scoreboard too.

Perry's first goal would come towards the end of the first, as Joffrey Lupul shot a tight pass to him at the top of the slot. Converging on the net, Perry wristed the puck past netminder Andrew Raycroft.

Our Ducks would blow the game wide open in the second, with big George Parros and Mike Brown scoring their first goals of the season. Georgie's goal came from a bid on net by Ryan Carter, thankfully back on the ice since his foot injury. George was right in front of Raycroft and, falling through the crease, pushed the rebounding puck twice, the second time past the goaltender.

Mikey's goal came off an odd-man rush. He, along with Carts who assisted, sped towards Raycroft and cleanly netted the puck with a neat backhander. A nice career-first shorthanded goal for Mikey, scored against his former team.


Mike Brown, I repeat, one of the best things we ever picked up from Vancouver

Perry would put in his second goal of the night before the period's end with a tip-in in front of his favorite spot in the crease. My boy Bobby Ryan would grab an assist on this one, and then put in his own goals in the next period. Captain Scott Niedermayer grabbed the second assist, his official 700th NHL point. We fans gave him a standing ovation.


The large number of Canuck fans before us sat begrudgingly as Duck fans jumped to their feet to celebrate another Duck goal

Bobby's first goal came off a beautiful cross-slot feed from Ryan Getzlaf during the power play. Bobby quickly converted with a slap shot that beat Cory Schneider, who took over for Raycroft at the start of the third. His second goal came less than three minutes later, with Perry lending the assist. Bobby caught a rebound off Schneider and was able to wrist it over the netminder's pads. See, good things happen when you hang around the crease!


Yours truly is personally VERY happy to see Bobby add to that goal tally, and judging by the huge grin on his face after, I don't think I'm the only happy one!

By this time, the Duck victory was safely in the bag, but just to be safe, the Ponda thought it might help out with a fluke goal that sealed the Canucks' fate, 2-7. Lupes would send the puck along the glass and into the Canuck zone and Schneider, expecting to move things along behind the net, left his crease to meet the puck. A strange bounce off a stantion angled the puck directly at an open net. Lupes would get credited with the goal, one of the strangest ones I've ever seen live.

But we'll take it!


Bobbyhead kickin' it on the suite couch. Scoring two goals and an assist in one game is tiring! (photo courtesy of @HillerNtheNet)

It was like our boys could do no wrong, at least for the 2nd and 3rd periods. The Duck faithful fans in attendance were strongly rewarded for their loyalty, and we were more than happy to be there. Now, if our boys could only use this newfound energy to springboard a winning streak?


Ducks celebrate a long-awaited win with second star of the night, Jonas Hiller


First star of the night, Bobby Ryan

Duckie in the Big Apple

As mentioned in the previous entry, yours truly spent a few days in New York, specifically Manhattan. While I was away, our Ducks played home games against the Dallas Stars on the 21st and the Columbus Blue Jackets on the 24th. Both games were losses, 2-4 and 4-6 respectively, but I'll comment positively that we weren't shut out.

Notables on the Dallas game, which I was able to watch after the fact:

Ryan Getzlaf's first goal this season was a fancy display of deft puck handling, with a quick shot between Marty Turco's arm and blocker. Getzy wasn't the only one happy to see him finally get one up on that scoreboard.

James Wisniewski returned after a shoulder injury. Thank god Wiz is back on the ice. We can't afford to be down any defensemen this season, more or less one as pivotal as Wiz. He was looking good too, completing hits and sweeping pucks out of the slot.

Jonas Hiller (and J.S. Giguere) need to stay within their paint. Something discouraging that was pointed out to me by one of my more goalie-oriented Duck pals, our netminders are handling the puck a lot more this season... and the effects haven't been favorable. Our goalies are getting caught repeatedly on the wrong side of the net, gift-wrapping soft goals for the opponent. I don't know if it's an ill-effect of a Pete Peeters lesson or what, but it needs to stop. When he was actually in his crease, Hiller did a great job with the saves.

My boy Bobby Ryan trading places with Joffrey Lupul. Not a fan of coach Randy Carlyle's constant switching up of the lines, I do like the new line combinations of Perry-Getzlaf-Lupul and Selanne-Koivu-Ryan. Ducks' second goal came off a pinball pass from Perry to Lupul in the slot. One can only hope Carlyle will keep these boys on these lines long enough to actually gel a bit.

It didn't look like a bad game, honestly. Our boys still lack that confidence that allows them to be the aggressors on the ice, but I thought they did a good job creating scoring chances for themselves.

The night after the Dallas game, Ducks Joffrey Lupul and Ryan Carter appeared at the Huntington Beach Inline for the first of the season's Rink tours. For coverage of the event, click here.

I wasn't able to watch the Blue Jacket game at all, but highlights included two goals from Lupul, one from Captain Scott Niedermayer, and one from Selanne. Jiggy was doing a good job between the pipes until a too-quick save aggravated his previous groin problem. Hiller took over for the remaining minutes. You'd think that, with four goals, you'd win the game. Not so when your opponent gets six.

While in Manhattan, I couldn't pass up a visit to the NHL Store. Conveniently located a few quick steps from the Rockefeller Plaza, I spent nearly two hours at this mecca of all things pro hockey.


Hockey goodness in the heart of the Big Apple


Yay, Ducks gear right in the front display


While there was limited representation of West Coast teams (as I had expected), pre-customized player jerseys were a steal should you find your favorite player in the racks


Home of the NHL Live radio show every weekday afternoon


The store also boasts the only NHL-themed Starbucks... which really came down to a wall with hockey-type paintings

If you're a hockey fan, no trip to Manhattan is complete without a visit to the NHL Store. Make sure you put aside an hour or two!