December 1, 2008
Road Still Smiles on Ducks
The Ducks continued their winning ways on the road with a 4-1 victory over the Carolina Hurricanes on Sunday night. The road has been kind to the Ducks this year and the Ducks have earned points in their last eight road games. It's a good thing, because home has not been nearly as comfortable for the Ducks.
The Ducks got scoring first with another goal from Ryan Getzlaf at 1:44. Carolina tied it up at 6:48 with a goal from former Duck, Matt Cullen. The game remained tied until the third period.
The Ducks did not play a perfect game. Far from it. In the second period, it was all Carolina, who outshot the Ducks 17-3 in the middle session. Jonas Hiller, getting his second start after shutting out Chicago on Friday, was the reason the Ducks remained in the game. Some of it was luck as the puck flirted tantalizingly through the crease without going in. Some of it was skill as Hiller made several excellent saves.
Luckily the Ducks got their bearings back in the third period and put away the game. It looked like things could go into overtime until Carolina gave the Ducks a 5 on 3 opportunity. Although they did not convert initially, the Ducks persisted and got a 5 on 4 goal at 7:16 from Teemu Selanne. Who else? Selanne redirected Chris Pronger's shot to earn him his 12th power play goal of the year, which eclipses the rest of the competition in the NHL.
Rob Niedermayer then added to the lead with two goals just 6:30 minutes apart. His first came at 8:25, the second at 14:55 to seal the Hurricanes fate. That was enough for the Ducks to win and get the two points they needed.
The Ducks remained strong on the power play, but also on the penalty kill. They have killed all 17 penalties in the past four games, a definite improvement for the club. They continue to be better disciplined as well, taking fewer penalties.
The Ducks will now head into a very unfriendly Joe Louis Arena for a game against the Detroit Red Wings tomorrow evening. Not much time to recover, and it is still unclear who will be in goal. Jean-Sebastien Giguere rejoined the club in Carolina after being in Montreal on family leave for five days. He did not practice at all during that time, and he backed up Hiller this evening.
The Ducks got scoring first with another goal from Ryan Getzlaf at 1:44. Carolina tied it up at 6:48 with a goal from former Duck, Matt Cullen. The game remained tied until the third period.
The Ducks did not play a perfect game. Far from it. In the second period, it was all Carolina, who outshot the Ducks 17-3 in the middle session. Jonas Hiller, getting his second start after shutting out Chicago on Friday, was the reason the Ducks remained in the game. Some of it was luck as the puck flirted tantalizingly through the crease without going in. Some of it was skill as Hiller made several excellent saves.
Luckily the Ducks got their bearings back in the third period and put away the game. It looked like things could go into overtime until Carolina gave the Ducks a 5 on 3 opportunity. Although they did not convert initially, the Ducks persisted and got a 5 on 4 goal at 7:16 from Teemu Selanne. Who else? Selanne redirected Chris Pronger's shot to earn him his 12th power play goal of the year, which eclipses the rest of the competition in the NHL.
Rob Niedermayer then added to the lead with two goals just 6:30 minutes apart. His first came at 8:25, the second at 14:55 to seal the Hurricanes fate. That was enough for the Ducks to win and get the two points they needed.
The Ducks remained strong on the power play, but also on the penalty kill. They have killed all 17 penalties in the past four games, a definite improvement for the club. They continue to be better disciplined as well, taking fewer penalties.
The Ducks will now head into a very unfriendly Joe Louis Arena for a game against the Detroit Red Wings tomorrow evening. Not much time to recover, and it is still unclear who will be in goal. Jean-Sebastien Giguere rejoined the club in Carolina after being in Montreal on family leave for five days. He did not practice at all during that time, and he backed up Hiller this evening.
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