Showing posts with label Anaheim Ducks. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Anaheim Ducks. Show all posts

Monday, May 05, 2014

Ducks Kings Series 20 Years in the Making

Well they are separated by 30 miles and have been division rivals for the last 20 years, but this would be the first time that the Anaheim Ducks and the LA Kings would ever meet in the playoffs. 

LA, who came into the series rattling off four straight wins to eliminate the San Jose Sharks, came into the series on a mission to keep on rolling. A big part of that success was goaltender Jonathan Quick. Quick struggled in the first game of the first round, but would improve his numbers in every single game of the series against San Jose. In the Kings five game winning streak they are currently on, Quick has looked like the Quick of the 2012 Stanley Cup team. If this trend continues, I'd expect the Kings to sneak their way into the Cup finals. 

As for the quack attack, they came into game one off of a very hard fought six game series against the Dallas Stars. However, they are starting to turn into the Vancouver Canucks in these playoffs with all of their goalie drama that is occurring as of late. With Fredrick Anderson getting pretty much all the game play in the first round, usual number one, Jonas Hiller, is left on the sidelines leaving the fans scratching their heads. One would assume that Hiller would be the guy for the Ducks in the playoffs, especially since he has the most experience. That was not the case in round one, but he would get the call for game one in round two. Hiller would play decent in this game stopping 33 out of 36 shots faced, but the Ducks would lose on home ice and look for revenge tonight in game two. 

Both of these teams have  big bodies who like to be physical, a good amount of skillful players, and excellent puck moving defensemen, but the key difference in this freeway series is the goalies. Quick is on a different level than both Anaheim tenders and will be the deciding factor in LA taking this series. 

I expect the rest of this series to be very fast, very physical, and no love lost between these longtime rivals. It is still very hard to believe that this is still the two franchises first ever playoff match-up in the 20 year existence of the Anaheim (Mighty) Ducks. It's playoff series like this that make already existing rivalries that much greater, the hate between players much stronger and the same can be said between these two very passionate fan bases as well. 

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Sunday, April 27, 2014

(Video) Anaheim Ducks forward Corey Perry snows the Dallas goalie Kari Lehtonen



If you want to start a line brawl, snowing the goalie is a good way to do it. Anaheim Ducks forward Corey Perry was being, well, Corey Perry. I think that Dallas Stars goalie Kari Lehtonen handled it well, he just skated over to the player's bench and toweled off.

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Monday, April 21, 2014

(Video) Stars and Ducks scrum (Antoine Roussel and Ryan Getzlaf)



I guess no one reminded Ducks forward Ryan Getzlaf that he had a bunch of stitches in his chin, right. It's got to be hard not to punch out a player like Antoine Roussel,when you play against him. I have to agree Getzlaf is a tough hockey player.

18:14 DAL Antoine Roussel served by Alex Chiasson Roughing - 2 min against Ryan Getzlaf
18:14 ANA Ryan Getzlaf Roughing - 2 min against Antoine Roussel
18:14 DAL Antoine Roussel Roughing - 2 min against Ryan Getzlaf
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Monday, April 14, 2014

2014 Stanley Cup Playoff Predictions

EAST:
Round 1:
Boston over Detroit
Montreal over Tampa
Philly over NYR
Pittsburgh over Columbus

Round 2:
Philly over Pittsburgh
Boston over Montreal

Round 3:
Philly over Boston

WEST:
Round 1:
Anaheim over Dallas
LA over San Jose
Colorado over Minnesota
Chicago over St. Louis

Round 2:
Anaheim over LA
Colorado over Chicago

Round 3:
Colorado over Anaheim

STANLEY CUP FINALS:
Colorado over Philly

Tuesday, January 07, 2014

Jonas Hiller Robs Brad Marchand - GIF

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What a save by Jonas Hiller as he robs the "little ball of hate" Brad Marchand.
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The Swiss 2014 Olympic Hockey Team

SAVE! Jonas Hiller
SAVE! Jonas Hiller (Photo credit: MattBritt00)
Goalies 
Reto Berra (Calgary Flames)
Tobias Stephan

Defensemen
Severin Blindenbacher
Rafael Diaz (Montréal Canadiens)
Philippe Furrer
Roman Josi (Nashville Predators)
Mathias Seger
Julien Vauclair
Yannick Weber (Vancouver Canucks)

Forwards
Andres Ambühl
Matthias Bieber
Simon Bodenmann
Damien Brunner (New Jersey Devils)
Luca Cunti
Ryan Gardner
Denis Hollenstein
Simon Moser
Nino Niederreiter (Minnesota Wild)
Martin Plüss
Kevin Romy
Reto Suri
Morris Trachsler
Roman Wick


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Thursday, June 27, 2013

Dan Bylsma to coach team USA for the 2014 Sochi Olympic

USA Flag
USA Flag (Photo credit: freefotouk)
According to Kevin Allen of the USA today, Dan Bylsma head coach of the Pittsburgh Penguins, has been selected to lead team USA in the 2014 Sochi games.  Bylsma is a good head coach and a great selection for to be the next head coach to USA Olympic team.  I would imagine many of us have a preliminary line up in our minds that would make the team. 


Kevin Allen, USA TODAY Sports -- USA Hockey is putting the band back together for the 2014 Olympics in Sochi, Russia, although the members will have a different place on the stage.
According to two people with knowledge of the decision, the Nashville Predators' David Poile will be the team's general manager, while Pittsburgh Penguins Ray Shero will be his associate general manager and Anaheim Ducks consultant Brian Burke will be the director of player development.
Penguins coach Dan Bylsma has been selected to be the USA's coach in Sochi.
The two people asked not to be identified because the official announcement will come Saturday in New York, the day before the NHL draft in Newark.

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Tuesday, May 07, 2013

Niklas Kronwall's hit on Emerson Etem



s/t to Kuklas Korner... Last night was pretty tame night of hockey, compared to the night before. Obviously, the Montreal Canadiens and Ottawa Senators gave us a lot to talk about, but no one was suspended, ironically… I am not sure how that happened.

On Monday night, the other series just played hockey and scored goals, there wasn’t a lot of controversy. In the L.A. and St. Louis series, both teams kept hitting each other. According to Don Cherry of the Coaches Corner there was 92 hits in game three.

This hit is for my two delusional buddies Mafia Man and Redwing77, who for whatever reason enjoy watching paint dry… I mean, watching the Detroit Red Wings play hockey.

Tuesday, April 30, 2013

(Video) Corey Perry Goalie interference on Jimmy Howard



This could have been a very dangerous play, which could have had a bad end result as Anaheim Ducks forward Corey Perry's skate was very close to the head area of Detroit Redwings goalie Jimmy Howard. Obviously, it wasn't what I would call a deliberate or a dirty play, it was just a dangerous play. Perry was doing what all good forwards do, he was going hard to the net. Goalies are in a dangerous field. Thank God we didn't have another Clint Malarchuk injury on our hands.
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Wednesday, March 13, 2013

Ducks' Perry suspended four games for interference

Corey Perry of the Anaheim Ducks during a pre-...
Corey Perry of the Anaheim Ducks during a pre-game warm-up. Vancouver, BC, Canada. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
I applaud the NHL for making this ruling, this was unnecessary, unneeded and I don't care if Corey Perry said he was sorry after the game. Don't want to get suspended, don't make the hit. I think this suspension should be five games.

I keep hearing the argument, but it's not a dirty hit. What do you mean, it's not a dirty hit, the puck is gone for more than two,  if not three seconds, in this situation, Perry is trying to blow up Jason Zucker.

Think about it this way, Perry took out a good player on a team that is in competition with them for a playoff spot in their division.

Objectionable hits should have consequences and in this case it does. Corey Perry will sit for four games.
NEW YORK -- Anaheim Ducks forward Corey Perry has been suspended for four games, without pay, for a late, illegal check to Minnesota Wild forward Jason Zucker during NHL Game No. 384 in Minnesota on Tuesday, March 12, the National Hockey League's Department of Player Safety announced today.

Under the terms of the Collective Bargaining Agreement, and based on his average annual salary, Perry will forfeit $115,135.12. The money goes to the Players' Emergency Assistance Fund.

The incident occurred at 4:21 of the second period. Perry was assessed a major penalty for interference and a game misconduct.
Again there is no defending this hit. Although, I have seen a few try today.



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Tuesday, March 12, 2013

(Video) Corey Perry Hit On Jason Zucker



In my opinion this is a violation of rule 48 and will cost Anaheim Ducks forward Corey Perry a game or two from the department of players safety, if it doesn't I will be very surprised. In my opinion, Wild forward Jason Zucker is in a vulnerable position and the head looks to be targeted.

48.1 Illegal Check to the Head – A hit resulting in contact with an opponent's head where the head is targeted and the principal point of contact is not permitted. However, in determining whether such a hit should have been permitted, the circumstances of the hit, including whether the opponent put himself in a vulnerable position immediately prior to or simultaneously with the hit or the head contact on an otherwise legal body check was avoidable, can be considered.

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Friday, October 12, 2012

Kerdiles to appeal suspension

According to Andy Johnson of Bucky's Fifth Quarter the NCAA will hear the appeal of the suspension of Nic Kerdiles next week on October 18th, 2012. Wisconsin officials are confirming the same thing.






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Thursday, October 11, 2012

Wisconsin freshman Nic Kerdiles suspended for one year by the NCAA

Bucky Badger 2003-Present
Bucky Badger 2003-Present (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Originally posted at the Hockey Writers - Combine

While I was on my vacation at the beginning of this week – a major story broke on Badgers freshman forward Nic Kerdiles.

Kerdiles is a highly touted incoming freshman forward and was one of the better players on the U.S. National Under-18 Team last season; unfortunately, he has been suspended by the NCAA for one year.

According to Andy Baggott, beat writer for the Wisconsin Badgers; the University of Wisconsin men’s hockey team could end up losing their highly talented freshman winger Nic Kerdiles for a year for a violation of the NCAA’s amateurism rules.
Multiple sources in the NHL and college hockey indicate the NCAA acted on photos and postings made public via social media that involve an agent and took place leading up to the NHL Entry Draft in June.

It’s not clear what specific issues led the NCAA to rule against Kerdiles, an 18-year-old from Irvine, Calif., but the Bucky’s 5th Quarter website culled a photo from an agent’s Twitter account that showed Kerdiles and two of the agent’s clients holding glasses that advertised a specific energy drink.

The photo could be construed as Kerdiles being marketed by the representative as well as being used to promote a specific product.

The agent who posted the energy drink photo, Toronto-based Ian Pulver of Pulver Sports, didn’t return a phone call seeking comment Monday.
This would be a major hit for the Wisconsin Badgers, according to Andy Johnson of Bucky’s Fifth quarter, Kerdiles is one of the top incoming recruits in the country this season and was expected to challenge for a spot on the Badgers top line.  Losing Kerdiles would be a major hit for the Wisconsin Badgers who have been picked by some to finish in the upper half of the WCHA standings this season.

Of course the University of Wisconsin is appealing this unprecedented decision. According to a tweet by Baggott the NCAA isn’t even going to hear Wisconsin’s Appeal this week.
Here is the kicker, you would think since Kerdiles has been suspended by the NCAA he could just go back and hone his skills in junior hockey and serve his suspension while he’s playing Junior hockey – he can’t – Kerdiles has to serve the suspension on the Wisconsin campus.


So, it would appear that a blue chip player like Nic Kerdiles isn’t going to sit idle for a season – the home town Anaheim Ducks who drafted Kerdiles in the second round 36th overall aren’t going to want him to sit around idle for a season, waiting to play Division I college hockey.

I would imagine that the Ducks are going to want him to continue playing hockey and you have to wonder if the CHL will be Kerdiles’ next destination.  Kerdiles rights are owned by the  Kelowna Rockets of the Western Hockey League.

It will be interesting to see how this story develops.

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Tuesday, June 19, 2012

Where is Justin Schultz going?


The million dollar question or should I say the $925,000.00 question - where is former Wisconsin Badger Justin Schultz going on or after July first during free agency signing period.

Schultz it going to be one of the more sought after free agents after July first - he will be able to take advantage of the same loop hole that Blake Wheeler did to sign with what ever team that he wants to. It will also be interesting to see if that loop hole is in the next CBA. Teams that lose their draft choices to other teams will get nothing in return.

Apparently, the Anaheim Ducks aren't all that pleased with Schultz's decision to shop his services to the best fit. I can't say that I blame them because Schultz has an awesome upside.
Stu Hackel, SI.COM --- That might be a new name for you, but he’s a University of Wisconsin star defenseman who was drafted by the Ducks in 2008 before he started his college career. He broke in as a freshman on a Badgers team that already boasted Ryan McDonagh, Jake Gardiner and Brendan Smith. (“I don’t know how anybody scored on them,” Ferraro remarked, adding that Schultz is thought to be better than Gardiner, but not as good as McDonagh.) But Schultz has never signed with Anaheim and if he doesn’t by July 1 – it’s been clear for a while that he won’t — he, too, becomes a UFA. Projected as a top-two defenseman and an excellent puck mover, he’s coming off a great junior year and he found the hole in the CBA that allows him to choose the team that best fits him the way Blake Wheeler did when he signed with the Bruins a few years ago. Whoever gets Schultz will be getting a very good prospect and won’t be trading anyone or using a draft pick to secure him.
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Friday, June 01, 2012

Thomas and Schultz rumblings.

Goalie Tim Thomas, NHL Hockey player for the B...
Goalie Tim Thomas, NHL Hockey player for the Boston Bruins (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
It's been a roller coaster season for Bruins' goalie Tim Thomas. It will be interesting to see if the Boston Bruins trade him or not. If I was the Boston Bruins General Manager I would make sure that I sign Tuuka Rask first before they even consider trading Thomas. The bad thing about trading Thomas is that it could come back to haunt the Bruins if he met his former team in the playoffs. I would rather watch him finish out his career in Boston with the Bruins.
Tim Thomas' Options

LeBrun: We know the Boston Bruins may potentially try and trade goaltender Tim Thomas when his no-trade clause evaporates on July 1 but among the other options I'm told Tim Thomas is considering is maybe not playing next season. I'm not saying that's going to happen for sure but I was told today that he's thinking about maybe taking the year off. It's been a stressful year for the 38-year-old, we all know about the White House controversy, and the Bruins have a #1 goalie-in-waiting in Tuukka Rask. [TSN.CA]
The Justin Schultz sweep stakes are a month away, it will be interesting to see where the highly sought after offensive defenseman goes.
Dealing With Schultz

McKenzie: It's going to be very difficult for Anaheim Ducks general manager Bob Murray to make a deal involving defensive prospect Justin Schultz. He's certainly out there trying to make it happen and there's lots of teams interested. Every NHL team will want this guy when he becomes an unrestricted free agent, which is likely to happen before July 1 but I can see the Vancouver Canucks, Toronto Maple Leafs and Edmonton Oilers among others being extremely interested. But it's going to be tough for Murray to get anything for Schultz. It looks like he's going to unrestricted free agency.
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Tuesday, February 07, 2012

Luca Sbisa hit on Tim Jackman


Check out this hit by Ducks defenseman Luca Sbisa on Calgary Flames forward Tim Jackman. While Sbisa does hit Jackman in the head, I definitely think the hit in question looks accidental and not malicious.

For the hit in question, Sbisa was given a five-minute major and a game misconduct for headbutting Jackman. After the hit, Jackman left the game and didn't return. I don't think the league will give Sbisa any more supplemental discipline.
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Tuesday, November 22, 2011

Hockey's Endangered Species


This was a story that was on line this morning, I know it's about a Wisconsin Badger player, but Justin Schultz is probably one of the best defensive players that I have seen play in college hockey for a very long time. In my opinion, this kid could probably be playing for the Anaheim Ducks right now and the Ducks have to be licking their lips with the prospects of having Schultz in their line up. I think you’re also looking at one of the 2012 Hobey Baker finalists.
Mike Sielski, Wall Street Journal --- As the NCAA's statistical outlier at his position, Schultz has the potential to develop into a creature that's been all but extinct from the NHL for two decades: the dominant offensive defenseman.

In the 20 years since the New York Rangers' Brian Leetch finished the 1991-92 season with 102 points, no NHL defenseman has topped the century mark. Only one, Detroit's Nicklas Lidstrom, has reached 80 in the last 15 years. And given the manner in which the sport has evolved, it's an open question whether a player of Schultz's skills and pedigree will ever approach 100 points again.
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Saturday, October 15, 2011

Jason Blake's arm cut in game against Sharks


This isn't pretty and I hope that former Fighting Sioux forward Jason Blake isn't hurt too bad. Let's hope that Jason makes a speedy recovery and will be back in the Duck's line up soon.
Los Angeles Times --- Ducks forward Jason Blake was taken to UCI Medical Center in Orange and was in need of sutures Friday night after suffering what was described as a severe cut on his left forearm late in the team’s 1-0 victory over the San Jose Sharks at Honda Center.

Blake, 38, was injured almost midway through the final period of the Ducks’ home opener. He was taken out of the arena on a special stretcher that allowed him to keep his arm upright as he was sitting, not lying on his back, a team spokesman said.
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Saturday, April 23, 2011

Bobby Ryan's skate down the ice - Awesome goal...


Wow! That was an amazing effort for a beautiful goal by the Anaheim Ducks forward Bobby Ryan, this is one of those highlight goals that should be on an NHL promotion... Bobby Ryan had just returned from a two game suspension; Ryan was suspended for games three and four after stomping on the skate of Nashville defenseman Jonathon Blum in Game 2 of the Western Conference quarterfinals.