Preface Notes: I love the Anaheim Ducks, and I'm also a long time Dallas Stars fan. The recap below is not the average recap, so for those expecting my usual...oh boy are you in for a treat.
After a slow start to the playoffs and a terrible penalty kill in the first round the Ducks were roasted. The Stars played a fantastic six games and certainly seem a tough team to beat going forward but for the Ducks there is nothing left but to go home, ice the wounds, and begin golfing. Before I move forward into this off season I should point out I love my Ducks, BUT I do not have to like the pathetic way they defended the Cup.
Their play has me questioning what I witnessed last year, since this year's team is more jam packed with talent. Well Ducks, I said boo on you for letting go of Andy Mcdonald, who was your pulse in last years post season. So doom on you!
Game 6 began just as any hockey fan would have hoped. Hell, up until the third it had the makings of one of the best playoff games I have ever witnessed. In the first period it was clear both teams were passion filled and neither one was going to back down. The period would end tied at zero with great goaltending coming on both ends.
In the second period Corey Perry got a great wrist shot off on Marty Turco sending it right through the five-hole to the back of the net. The Dallas crowd was clearly stunned. By the end of the second, the Ducks were holding onto that one goal lead.
And then all Hell broke loose:
As soon as the third began, the Stars looked different. They clearly came out fired up, while the Ducks responded by going on their heels. Anyone who has played and coached the game will tell you that’s a terrible way to react. The new sense of aggressiveness clearly paid off for the Stars as they tied up, and took the lead, all in less than a minute.
I have been to a great many Stars games since my first in 1995, but I have never seen a Stars crowd (live or on TV) go berserk like that crowd. It was a rush even from a couch!
Although I am saddened over the end of this season for the Ducks, and the questionable return next year of Teemu Selanne and Scott Niedermayer, I know after the slow start the Ducks deserve this end. In truth it should have come in a sweep. With such a loaded roster, the Ducks should be ashamed of their play in the series with the Stars.
They should be ashamed for hanging J.S. Giguere out to dry every game by being out-shot by the Stars. Shame! The Stars have a young, inexperienced blue line with the loss of Sergei Zubov and Phillipe Boucher, and you still managed to suck with shots on goal! Congrats!
For those of you who may not know, I’m a passion filled hockey fan. This comes from being a passion filled hockey player, as I saw my fair share of dirty penalties and game misconducts. As the Ducks stare down the loaded barrel that is a long off season I only hope the early exit will take its toll like it has on the Stars in past years and prove to mold a more motivated and dedicated hockey program.
4 comments Last one added about 1 year ago — Leave a Comment
Karen Mizumoto about 1 year ago
You question what the Ducks did last year? Why? This year's version of the Ducks is not the same as last year's team---and I don't mean the personnel is not the same. The 2006-07 Ducks were on a mission and except for a rough patch during the middle of the season when they had a rash of injuries, they just seemed like a team that wouldn't be denied. They were focused on one thing from the opening of training camp to game 5 of the SCFs. Even when they weren't playing their best, they found a way to win. That team last year was one of the most single-minded teams I have ever seen.
Your point about AndyMac? AndyMac was traded because of tagging issues; in order to have cap space to get Scott back on the roster (and to get Getzy resigned to a contract extensionbefore July 1), the Ducks had to trade Andy. As much as I love AndyMac, he wasn't playing that well without Teemu, and at the time of the trade, it wasn't even certain if Teemu was going to come back. Was the Doug Weight trade a mistake? Yes, of course it was. But if the Ducks didn't get Scott back on the roster, they probably wouldn't have even made the playoffs.
So what happened this year? The off season started out great by the resigning of JSG for less than market value. After that there was set back after set back starting with the rumors that Scott and Teemu were contemplating retirement less than two weeks after the Ducks won the Cup, then Penner was signed to the Oilers offersheet, then the team's already short summer was shortened further when they opened training camp a week earlier than the other teams (except for the Kings). Then they had that stupid road trip to England, opening the season with back-to-back games in London and then 72 hours later playing in Detroit, Columbus and Pittsburgh, and playing those three games in a span of four nights. The Kings at least got a week to recover from their trip to England.
Injuries were also a problem. Both Sami and JGS were out with injuries at the beginning of the season, and Schneider and Bertuzzi, who were supposed to be replacing Scott and Teemu, were both injured during the first couple months of the season, and later Sami, Perry, Pronger and Carter were a few who were out for extended periods with injuries. The Ducks didn't necessarily have the most injuries in the league, but they never were able consistently put their lines together for several games in order for the linemates to develop chemistry. I don't know how many games Carlyle was able to consistently use the same lines--not many I'd guess.
And as much as the team didn't want to admit it, the speculation of whether or not Scott and Teemu were going to come back was a big distraction.
I also think that because they started out so poorly, they had to really fight hard to get into playoff position. The Ducks have also played the most games over the last couple of years than any other NHL team. They looked like a tired team, not like a team ready to start the playoffs.
What other defending championship team in recent memory has had to go through the amount of uncertainty and turmoil the Ducks did this past year? The team may have been jammed packed with talent, but there is something to be said for chemistry, cohesion, consistency and other intangibles that make a great team a great team. I couldn't definitively say if all this had a lot to do with their lack of focus, but they were definitely not in the right mindset to begin playing in the playoffs against hungrier, more determined team like the Stars. And I don't think what transpired this year should in any way be a reflection or diminish the accomplishments of the 2006-07 team. If you truly be that the Ducks 2006-07 Stanley Cup victory is somehow tarnished by the team that lost to the Stars in the first round of the 2007-08 playoffs, then I question how much of a Ducks fan you really are, and find your statements about loving the Ducks pretty disingenuous.
Congratulations to the Stars. They were definitely the better team and deserve to be moving on, most probably to the WCFs against the Detroit.
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Ken Armer about 1 year ago
First of all, i never allow my fan hood of a team to cloud my judgement about a team. No, them not repeating as champs was not expected but from a team that this season looked even more promising they ended up being a huge disappointment. Almost every outside decision came up to bite them. Bertuzzi was underachieving, and Weight was the worst choice I've seen in years. Also, on paper, i see eye to eye with losing Mcdonald to get back Scotty, but he underachieved in the post season by leaps and bounds and i would not be surprised if he hangs up the blades for good. Teemu took time to come around, as expected with everything going on in his personal life. As far as the cost of Andy Mcdonald, its never always about money....don't believe that for a minute, their are things behind closed doors only Andy and the organization know.
The Ducks overcame a slow start in the early months to end the regular season as one of the hottest teams in hockey. But between the end of the regular and start of the post season they took a giant dump. I have been a long time hockey player, and a lack of motivation is clear and they were textbook examples, thats where my shame of being a fan came from. They looked like they didn't care if they won or lost. I can stand the teams i love to be beaten do to lacking the talent but at the end of the day the Ducks didn't care, thats what breaks my heart.
The bottom line is, The Ducks had a hell of a year, and in most respects by suffering this year may have set them selfs up for more success next year but they still could have done more. As a player and a fan you expect more of yourself and of your team. At least the worst is over, and the dawn of a new season is on the horizon.
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Karen Mizumoto about 1 year ago
I agree that this year turned out to be extremely disappointing and frustrating for the Ducks and their fans, and I am not blind to their short comings. In fact anyone who really followed the Ducks knew there were some big question marks going into the season.
I don't agree that this team was necessarily more talented than the 2006-07 team. Right after the end of the SC playoffs, I thought the Ducks had a very strong chance of repeating---as good a chance as any of last several SC champions. Within a month, I seriously doubted that they would have much of a chance to repeat at all and might even have difficulty making the playoffs.
The Ducks were not as talented in terms of goal scoring and they lost their speed line with Selanne out for most of the season and the McDonald trade. The Ducks were successful scoring last year because they had a fast/skilled #1 line and a skilled, big, physical #2 line, two of the top scoring defensemen in the league, and had a very good PP. They were #9 in goal scoring (3.1 goals for) and had the #3 PP. In 2007-08, Penner was gone, they were without Selanne and Niedermayer for a the majority of the season, and Mac and Kuni both had drop offs in their scoring. The team dropped to #20 in goal scoring (2.4 goals for) and had the #20 PP unit. Their goals for dropped by .7 goals per game, or on average, about 57.4 goals less for the season.
Firstly, it was obvious that they were going to lack in scoring. Without Selanne and Penner, the Ducks lost their #1 and #2 goal scorers (77 goals), and McDonald and Kunitz (#3 & #4) were lagging way behind their 2006-07 goal production. Through 33 games, AndyMac scored 4 goals, which at the time would have projected out to 10 goals over the 82 game season and 17 goals less than his goal total for 2006-07. It would have gone up if he had been able to play with Teemu again, but at the time the Ducks didn't even know if Teemu was going to come back. Kunitz's goal production didn't suffer as much, but that was also because he played a good part of the season with Getzy and Perry. In terms of point production for 2006-07, the Ducks top four were: Selanne (94), McDonald (78) and Niedermayer (69). So without Selanne and Niedermayer, the Ducks had to replace 163 points. At the time of the trade, McDonald only had 12 points (projected out to 30), which was a 48 point drop off from 2006-07. I'm not positive, but I think by the middle of the season, they had been shut out more times in 2007-08 than they had been in all of 2006-07.
Also, last year the Ducks shut down line played almost every game together. This year Sami was injured for significant parts of the season and both Rob N. and Travis Moen also missed games. Their point production, which helped to give the Ducks some balanced scoring also dropped off from last year.
Those are a lot of goals and points to replace. And the Ducks didn't do anything to replace these lost points. Sure they were hoping Getzlaf and Perry would step up, and they both had very good seasons, but they needed more point production from other players. Bertuzzi was a huge risk because he hasn't had a good year since before the Moore incident, and he had back and concussion issues with Detroit. He wasn't worth $4M/year and it angered me that Burke him for that much when he only signed Teemu for $1M in 2005-06 because of the risk, yet Bertuzzi was even more of a risk. I knew this when Burke signed him and was not happy with this signing, aside from the fact that I don't really like Bertuzzi anyway.
What were some of their other shortcomings? Their special teams were a lot less effective in 2007-08, although the PK improved quite a bit with Scott's return. Scotty Bowman used to say that to be a successful playoff team, a team's combined special teams #s should be >100. In 2006-07, the Ducks had the #3 PP (22.4) and the #5 PK (85.1) = 107.5. In 2007-08, their PP sank to #20 (16.6) and the PK dropped to #12 (83.1) = 99.7. So their special teams dropped off by almost 8. If Scotty Bowman's rule of thumb is true, then the Ducks were most likely not going to be successful in the playoffs. And guess what? Their special teams were not good against the Stars, particularly their PK.
The Ducks lost four key members of their 2007-08 team for good parts of the season, and in Penner's case, all of the season. They got older and slower (with Bertuzzi, Schneider and Weight). So I don't really see how this was a more talented team than it was last year. The Ducks were a very quick team, and their speed and their relentless forechecking were two of the reasons they were so successful last year. This year they didn't have this.
The Ducks D? On paper, they should have been one of the best defense corps, since the Canadiens in the 70s. Pronger wasn't playing like he did last year. I think the suspension and his jaw and possible lower body injury (he couldn't finish the last game against Phoenix and left the ice doubled over in pain) took a toll on him. He certainly didn't play with the same bite and aggressiveness he has played with. Scott? I don't know what happened with him. He was great when he first came back and certainly held the defense together during Pronger's suspension. Beauchemin may have played better in the playoffs, but he had a bad year. His play really digressed from 2006-07. Huskins and Schneider both had good seasons, Huskins really did develop into a good defenseman this season. But the team's defense, and team defense as a whole, was awful against Dallas. They were slow, they were beaten to the puck, their coverage broke down, they missed assignments, they turned the puck over too much, they couldn't clear the puck out of their zone and as a result took too many penalties and gave up too many scoring chances to Dallas. Why this was the case, I can't answer.
As to the mental aspects of the game, I can't really say why they didn't have the same intensity, drive and energy they had last season except to say that I think the issues I raised in my first post did take a toll on the team. Teemu himself before round 1 started that they needed to find the drive and passion that they had last season; that's a bit of an ominous sign coming from one of the team leaders before the start of a playoff series.
You say the Ducks were one of the hottest teams at the end of the regular season. And while that is true in terms of the points and games they were winning, there were signs that the stats didn't tell the whole story. They had a horrible stretch around the All Star break when they lost six games in a row; they were often inconsistent and unimpressive in their wins when they were outplayed, but managed to win and rarely dominated a game; and they were not impressive in their last few games, especially their games against the Sharks and their last two games of the season against Phoenix and the Kings. They were lucky to win those games against the Coyotes and the Kings and it was probably a pretty bad omen of things to come.
BTW, I'm not sure what you mean about AndyMac. I believe you are a blogger, but do you have press credentials to cover the Ducks or connections within the organization or to Mac to know that there were problems between Mac and the organization/management? Andy was genuinely surprised, at least that was what he said in an interview with the OC Register, so it didn't sound like he thought there were serious issues with management. If you are speculating, it's pretty irresponsible to do so unless you have some credible information behind your speculation.
The Ducks have some serious cap issues for next season even though the cap is going up. They need to sign Perry first and foremost, but their hands are tied until they know what Selanne and Niedermayer are going to do and until they know what the cap is going to be. It doesn't sound like they will be able to sign Perry, from what Burke has said, until July 1. This is worrisome considering the offersheets that can be thrown Perry's way. The Ducks also need to resign Hiller and they need to find a #2 center who can score. It's too bad they can't trade Bertuzzi, but who is going to take on his contract?
The Ducks also have an issue with where their primary development team is going to play. It doesn't sound like they are going to stay in Portland, and it's even questionable if they are going to stay in the AHL. This is going to be a big mistake if they use the ECHL (San Diego I think) for their primary minor league affiliate team.
I think the window of opportunity may have passed for the Ducks to be a Stanley Cup contender. They may squeek into the playoffs, but if they don't fix their lack of scoring, their special teams, and reestablish their physical game, they may have to start rebuilding process as soon as next season.
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Ken Armer about 1 year ago
I agree with everything down the line, my jaw dropped at the signing of Big Bert with his past poor choices on the ice. As far as Mcdonald, I'm basing it on what other people have said but they should be credible sources with direct connections to him. As far as anything else you seem to defend Burke, so im going to assume you have organization connections, it truly does not matter to me because the bottom line is the Ducks slammed the door on a guy that was the back bone of the team in the Stanley Cup playoffs who had been a franchise face. When push came to shove my concern lies with the fact they didn't seem to upset about losing him. Now this is coming from a guy who grew up watching Stars games where franchise players, even in an off year, are kept part of the organization. Trade him for Cap space fine...but don't trade him for some never heard of kid and the senior citizen Doug Weight, enough about Andy though, i wouldn't have applied for the Ducks Community Leader position if it wasn't about them, not him.
As far as the minor leagues i had no heard any news of them cutting loose from Portland, although i must admit the distance between has always left me scratching my chin. Are you saying the Pirates will relocate? or they will cut loose from the Pirates organization?
As far as scoring being an issue, if their was one thing that got me insane during the season it was the squeaking by in close games. With the men they had and the lines they had set up they should have been making goalies look terrible. The defense was a nice balance of Offensive and Defensive minded individuals. The problem as you noted was tossing money at guys like Bert who underproduced terribly. I have become more and more concerned with Pronger as well, he seems to have become a distraction of late. I think the Ducks may need to consider taking the LA Kings approach of looking to young talent and developing it (1. Its cheap, and 2. Fans enjoy franchise players much more than new additions every 3 years)
Either way i must ask who you are and where this knowledge comes from...you without a doubt belong on BR writing articles. I haven't had my opinions challenged like this since my father passed away. Its something i've missed.
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