Kukla's Korner Hockey
Category: Anaheim-Ducks
Videos- From The Anaheim Side
by Paul on 05/23/17 at 08:18 AM ET
Comments (6)
from Helene Elliott of the LA Times,
This time was going to be different. After four straight seasons of backing down at the moment of truth, after building what they thought would be enough depth to get through a playoff grind, after bringing Randy Carlyle back to coach them because they believed his calm and resourcefulness would guide them past their mental and emotional postseason hurdles, the ending was the same for the Ducks.
Maybe even more painful than in previous seasons, because they clawed and scratched and were on the brink of forcing a seventh game in the Western Conference finals before they let their last chance slip away.
They got a few steps further than they did a year ago. But if losing to the Nashville Predators in a six-game conference finals one year after the Predators had booted them out of the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs meant the Ducks had accomplished something, that theory was contradicted by the tears welling in Ryan Kesler’s eyes and the vacant stares of Andrew Cogliano and Corey Perry after their efforts to mount yet another remarkable rally fell short in a 6-3 loss Monday.
“Personally, I don’t think the better team won tonight but it doesn’t really matter what I think,” said Kesler, who sat at his locker for long minutes with his head buried in a towel before he began to unlace his skates and unpeel the tape that held him and his equipment together. “They got the victory and they move on and we’re going home.”
Below, Mark Whicker of the LA Daily News and video of Perry, Getzlaf and Carlyle post-game...
Filed in: NHL Teams, Anaheim Ducks, Nashville Predators, | KK Hockey | Permalink
The Nashville Predators Advance To The Stanley Cup Final
by Paul on 05/22/17 at 10:54 PM ET
Comments (17)
Nashville defeated the Anaheim Ducks 6-3 to win the series 4-2 and now advance to their first Stanley Cup Final.
Here is the game winning goal by Colton Sissons, his 3rd of the game.
Filed in: NHL Teams, Anaheim Ducks, Nashville Predators, | KK Hockey | Permalink
Video- Nick Ritchie Hit On Viktor Arvidsson
by Paul on 05/22/17 at 08:46 PM ET
Comments (0)
Ritchie received five for boarding and a game, Arvidsson went to the room.
Filed in: NHL Teams, Anaheim Ducks, Nashville Predators, | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: nick+ritchie,
viktor+arvidsson
Open Post- Game 6 Western Conference Final
by Paul on 05/22/17 at 07:35 PM ET
Comments (9)
The Anaheim Ducks need a win to play in a game 7 on Wednesday, the Nashville Predators need a win to set-off a big party in Nashville.
Personally, I feel the Ducks are done but we will soon find out.
Anaheim @ Nashville, NSH leads 3-2, 8 p.m., CBC, TVAS, NBCSN
Filed in: NHL Teams, Anaheim Ducks, Nashville Predators, | KK Hockey | Permalink
Videos- The Anaheim Ducks And Nashville Predators Talk Game 6 Before The Puck Drops
by Paul on 05/22/17 at 03:06 PM ET
Comments (0)
First up the Anaheim Ducks.
Below, Roman Josi and Pekka Rinne from the Nashville side.
Filed in: NHL Teams, Anaheim Ducks, Nashville Predators, | KK Hockey | Permalink
Wrong Decision On Ryan Getzlaf
by Paul on 05/22/17 at 02:00 PM ET
Comments (15)
from Mark Spector of Sportsnet,
Hey, NHL. Rainbow tape isn’t enough.
Anyone can tape up a stick with pinks and reds and purples, use it at a skills competition, and then fall right back into our black-and-white hockey culture the next day. What’s hard is to look in the mirror and ask, “Why?”
Why have the other sports’ experienced players come out, but not the National Hockey League? Or Canadian Major Junior Hockey?
Why do the NHL, the NHL Players’ Association, the Anaheim Ducks and Ryan Getzlaf look at the “C” word spoken in the heat of the moment by Getzlaf in Game 4 of the Western Conference Final and not hear the word the way a gay man would hear that word?...
When terms hurt people, common decency dictates we stop using them.
And so it is time for the hockey world to examine the word Getztlaf used, one that has been accepted inside its dressing rooms for decades, and decide if it is acceptable anymore. It is a Top 10 swear word in the hockey vernacular. Maybe Top 5.
Getzlaf is a product of the Western Canadian hockey culture, as am I. He grew up in Regina and played his junior hockey in Calgary. I’m an Edmonton guy. We have both been desensitized to the word, the same way a doctor does not get squeamish at the sight of blood.
That is why the NHL, the Ducks, the NHLPA and Getzlaf all missed a golden opportunity this weekend to actually walk the gay rights walk. To not just tape a hockey stick for the LGBTQ community, but to identify and admit to a metaphor for homophobia that exists inside hockey’s DNA, and start down the path to removing it.
Filed in: NHL Teams, Anaheim Ducks, NHL Talk, NHLPA, | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: ryan+getzlaf
Anaheim’s Veterans Must Step Up Tonight
by Paul on 05/22/17 at 08:55 AM ET
Comments (0)
from Mark Whicker of the LA Daily News,
If the Ducks don’t win tonight, the issue will be who, not where.
Rickard Rakell is the only top six forward with a plus-rating. He didn’t play in Game 5, might not play tonight.
The questions that Getzlaf seemed to escape in the first two rounds are gathering again. He has three assists and no goals in five games
But for all of Ryan Kesler’s purple hearts, he has one point in the series and hasn’t scored a goal since Game 3 of the Edmonton series.
Kesler usually compensates with defense, but Nashville’s top line has frolicked without much argument, and did so again Saturday with Johansen injured. In Game 4, Coach Randy Carlyle abandoned his custom of hunting line matchups, at the players’ request.
If all the Ducks had been as effective as 23-year-old Nick Ritchie and 21-year-old Brandon Montour, they’d be prepping for the Final by now.
The Ducks aren’t trailing because of goaltending. John Gibson’s save percentage is higher than Pekka Rinne’s, although Rinne has been his usual self in terms of puck-handling, whether it’s inside or outside the legal boundaries.
It’s Nashville’s bottomless jug of defensemen that is weighing heavily. Its top two pairs, Subban-Mattias Ekholm and Ryan Ellis-Roman Josi, are averaging more than 20 minutes in this series in even-strength play alone. Those four play nearly five-sixths of the minutes and have totaled 11 points.
Filed in: NHL Teams, Anaheim Ducks, Nashville Predators, | KK Hockey | Permalink
Morning Line- Jeff Miller On the Anaheim Ducks
by Paul on 05/21/17 at 08:35 AM ET
Comments (0)
I mean, these are the conference finals, the Ducks and Predators among hockey’s precious final four, the exact spot that supposedly occupies these players’ dreams growing up.
At this point in the spring, it is whether you win or lose. But it’s also how you play the game, especially when you lose.
Coming up short on the scoreboard is to be expected; both teams can’t win, obviously.
But coming up short where numbers fail to tell the story – in the heart – is something that has to sit pretty heavy this morning inside some Duck bellies.
-Jeff Miller of the OC Register where you can read more on last night's game.
Filed in: NHL Teams, Anaheim Ducks, Nashville Predators, | KK Hockey | Permalink
Videos- The Anaheim Ducks Do What They Do
by Paul on 05/21/17 at 07:18 AM ET
Comments (4)
12 seconds left in the game, the Ducks are down by 2 goals, so what do they do?
Below, Ryan Getzlaf on being fined.
Filed in: NHL Teams, Anaheim Ducks, Nashville Predators, | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: ryan+getzlaf
The Season Is Now On The Line For The Anaheim Ducks
by Paul on 05/21/17 at 07:08 AM ET
Comments (0)
from Helene Elliott of the LA Times,
The resilience that has been the Ducks’ trademark during their push into the Western Conference finals deserted them Saturday. They ran out of energy and skidded into the grateful hands of the Nashville Predators, who aren’t just acting like they belong here — they do belong here. And maybe in the Stanley Cup finals, too.
While the Ducks spoke of running out of gas and not competing hard enough, the Predators simply regrouped after losing top scorer Ryan Johansen and team captain Mike Fisher to injuries before Saturday’s game. The Predators were the resilient group Saturday, scoring late in the second period and twice in the third to leave the Honda Center with a 3-1 victory and head home with a chance to clinch a berth in the Cup finals if they win Monday at Bridgestone Arena.
“I thought that we had the opportunity to go out and play hard and send a message in our building and we didn’t compete on the puck throughout,” Ducks captain Ryan Getzlaf said. “That means being hard on pucks, that means directing pucks at the net, all those things.
“I don’t think our compete level was where it needed to be. I thought they came out and worked harder than us in the second and third period and that was the difference in the game.”
There’s no extra day between games for them to recharge mentally and physical by taking a diversionary side trip, as they did during their seven-game elimination of Edmonton in the second round, or to relax by taking a day off to play pool, as they did before they pulled out an overtime win in Game 4 against the Predators on Thursday at Nashville. The clock is ticking on them and their season, and whatever resilience they’ve displayed up to now is nothing compared to what they’ll need Monday in what will be a rollicking, gold-filled arena filled with fans eager to watch the Predators continue the team’s longest-ever playoff journey.
Watch the game highligths below...
Filed in: NHL Teams, Anaheim Ducks, Nashville Predators, | KK Hockey | Permalink
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About Kukla's Korner Hockey
Paul Kukla founded Kukla’s Korner in 2005 and the site has since become the must-read site on the ‘net for all the latest happenings around the NHL.
From breaking news to in-depth stories around the league, KK Hockey is updated with fresh stories all day long and will bring you the latest news as quickly as possible.
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