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A Breath of Fresh Air

Photo: NHL

By George Casner III

Hockey is finally back! It feels so good to watch and write about our Anaheim Ducks again!

With the season underway, let’s take a quick pause at the five-game mark and look at where our Anaheim Ducks are. Currently, they are 4-1-0, a solid start, one of the best in the league right now. As of today, the only teams who have played five games and have a better record are Buffalo (4-0-1) and Edmonton (5-0-0). So while the Ducks sit nice and high, let’s compare this start to last year’s.

I know thinking about last year might be like opening old wounds but bare with me. Last year the Ducks started out: 3-2-0 at the five-game mark. So already we see an improvement, an extra win is always a good thing, yet what really stands out is the playing. Mike, Eddie, and everyone here at DucksNPucks beat the “dump and chase” horse to death last year. It was infuriating, obsolete, and might be the reason I’m as bald as Getzlaf is. However, in just a small five-game sample size, we’ve seen a drastic change. Yes, occasionally we see a little dump and chase but, more often than not, we are seeing the guys skate and pass up the middle.

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What’s even better for our Ducks is the pressure in between the pipes has been significantly decreased. As a former, albeit after school, goalie I can honestly tell you feeling abandoned by your team is worse than losing. Yes, losing is horrible but feeling abandoned by your brothers just leaves you feeling empty and frustrated. And we need not look further than last year to see this.

Last year’s games were:

• Anaheim at San Jose, Score: 5-2 W, SoG: 15-33
• Anaheim at Arizona, Score: 1-0 W, SoG: 20-41
• Detroit vs Anaheim, Score: 3-2 W, SoG: 21-27
• Arizona vs Anaheim, Score: 2-3 L, SoG: 39-25
• Anaheim at Dallas, Score: 3-5 L, SoG: 25-51

So, as seen above, the Ducks only outshot their opponents once (when they played Detroit). In total, they were outshot 112-185, a 73 shot deficit. When you divide this we see that for every shot the Ducks took their opponents took 1.65 shots. This resulted in total goals scored by Anaheim being 14 and total goals against was 12. That’s only a two-goal difference. That’s really poor.

Now, this year’s games look as such:

• Arizona vs Anaheim, Score: 2-1 W, SoG: 33-29
• San Jose vs Anaheim, Score: 3-1 W, SoG: 36-33
• Anaheim at Detroit, Score: 3-1 W, SoG: 29-32
• Anaheim at Pittsburgh, Score: 1-2 L, SoG: 32-28
• Anaheim at Columbus, Score: 2-1 W, SoG: 23-27

When you add that up the Ducks have been outshot 146-156. This is only a 10 goal deficit, meaning for every shot the Ducks take their opponents only take 1.07 shots. As such, this year’s total goals scored by Anaheim are 11 and total goals against are 6, for a 5 goal difference. That is more than double from last year and shows that they are no longer leaving Gibby or Miller to the wolves.

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That is a huge step in the right direction. Taking that kind of pressure off the goalie allows them to feel more relaxed and to play their game. It may be early in the year but if feels different. This team feels rejuvenated and the guys look like they are having fun. They no longer look frustrated or like they are just going through the motions.

So, that poses the question, what’s causing this change?

The immediate answer that you may jump to is, “Randy Carlyle is gone! Duh!” Which, yes, is true and is a part of it, is not the whole picture. How about Ryan Kesler and Corey Perry?

Before I’m burned for heresy just let me say, I really love these two. They were great players and are nice guys. Perry was always one of my favorite Ducks and I hope his time with Dallas is good. Kesler was always entertaining, whether it was blowing kisses to booing crowds or making other players turtle and I hope his injuries heal with no long term effects. But their time had come and gone. Injuries and age did not do them justice and that affected their play. How many times did you hear another Ducks fan complain about one or both of these two? For me, it was quite often. They were no longer the players that they were and, hate me for this if you will, they were holding the team back. The way they played the game was obsolete, their bodies couldn’t play the way they could only a few years ago, and they were taking up spots that could have been filled by younger and healthier players. Again, I love these two guys a lot and wish nothing but the best for them, however, removing them from the team has clearly benefited the team as a whole.

Overall, the new faces and style of play have really made this year feel different. Now, granted, it is still super early and anything can happen but it doesn’t seem like it will. Our goalies have mich less stress, the team is playing like a cohesive unit, and this year just feels like a breath of fresh air compared to last year.

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October 13th, 2019

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