from Kevin Baxter of the LA Times,

Thursday’s playoff contest will be the eighth in 14 days for the Ducks, who have gone consecutive days without a game just once in the last two weeks.

Add in the five charter flights that covered more than 9,000 miles and three time zones between those games and the postseason has become a grind for the Pacific Division champs.

“Yeah, it’s hard,” said Ducks forward Andrew Cogliano, whose team trails the Nashville Predators 2-1 in the best-of-seven Western Conference finals. “So you have to manage yourself. You have to do things in terms of recovery and rest that give you the best chance.

“These are the moments you hope the summer [workouts] pay off and your nutrition and the things you do away from the rink pay off. When you get in the game your energy level takes over. Your adrenaline starts going.”

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