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Therrien decided to go wie
in Diamondcraft - Registration Fri Dec 27, 2019 3:09 amby yyys123 • 1.785 Posts
ANAHEIM - It was one of the funnier moments in this years Stanley Cup playoffs. Anaheim Ducks winger Corey Perry squirted water into one of Jeff Carters hockey gloves, which was left on top of the boards by the Kings bench, unattended, during a commercial break. The Los Angeles Kings centre appeared unamused and voiced displeasure to a nearby linesman. "Just trying to, I guess, get under peoples skin," said Perry with a shrug when asked about the prank he pulled in Game 1 of the series. "Just try to get people off their game." But so far in the first-ever playoff showdown between the NHLs two southern California teams it has been the Kings, who have gotten the Ducks off their game as Perry, a 43-goal scorer in the regular season, and Hart Trophy nominee Ryan Getzlaf have failed to make a major impact. "Him and I put a lot of pressure on each other and on ourselves and its our responsibility to get the team going, to produce and we havent done that," Perry admitted. So far it has been the Kings top line featuring Selke Trophy nominee Anze Kopitar, which has gotten the best of the Ducks dynamic duo. "In the playoffs you have to be better than the guy across from you," Getzlaf said. "If hes playing great you got to be better than that. Thats how you find a way to win." "If you know Ryan, he puts a lot of onus on himself," said Ducks head coach Bruce Boudreau, "and he knows hes the leader of this group and when hes going to his best [level] then we usually have a good result. He feels he needs to be a little bit better, hes probably correct." Post-game on Monday, Getzlaf said he was "ticked off" by how the series has unfolded. And the Ducks captain made it clear on Tuesday that the anger he felt in the moments after the loss has yet to subside. "Yeah, Im still mad. I want to win and when we dont win I get mad. Thats just [my] nature I guess." And while Getzlaf believes he can be better he certainly doesnt shoulder all the blame for the bind his team is in. "Its not all about me. Im not going to go out and win Game 3 by myself thats for sure. The story of our season has been our depth and our lineup and we need, from top to bottom, everybody pushing." The Kopitar line, which also features captain Dustin Brown and sniper Marian Gaborik, is likely to be matched up against the Getzlaf unit over the next two games as Kings head coach Darryl Sutter will have the advantage of last change at the Staples Center. But Anaheims lack of success isnt about one matchup. The Kings have tightened up all over the ice and are playing the same suffocating style that led to a Cup two years ago. "They didnt win the Jennings Trophy just by luck," said Boudreau. "Theyre a good defensive team." The Kings allowed the fewest goals in the NHL in the regular season (2.05 goals per game). Los Angeles also led the league in hits. "The system [they play] is really basic," Boudreau explained. "Theres nothing really extravagant with what Darryls doing. They just do it well. They got the right personnel, theyve been through the wars, theyve won the Cup before with that group and they know how to do it. "Quite frankly, its the same system we use. Its layers of blocking, layers of having to go through guys when you come into [their] zone and the last six games theyve been very good at it." Cracking the Kings sound defensive structure is one issue, but the bigger issue for the Ducks has been Jonathan Quick, who has reverted to his Conn Smythe form after a shaky start in the first round series against the San Jose Sharks. Quick has a .961 save percentage during the Kings current six game winning streak. "Yeah, hes played well, but we havent played our game," said Perry. "We just have to be more determined." Quick turned aside 36 of the 37 shots he faced on Monday night with the only puck to beat him deflecting in off defenceman Jake Muzzins skate. "Hes seeing a lot of pucks," said Ducks forward Patrick Maroon, who was credited with Anaheims lone goal in Game 2, which came during a four-on-three power play. "Thats one of the problems here. Five-on-five we got to get in front of the net, get in his eyes, create more traffic and get in his head a little bit, because were not doing that. Were an outside team right now. We got to crash and bang, throw pucks at his feet and go to the net." Jonas Hiller, who faced just 16 shots Monday night, suggests Anaheims current approach is actually helping Quick build even more confidence. "I know from experience that those are the nice games to play if you face a lot of shots and are able to see most of them," said the Ducks goalie. "Quicks just playing a little better than I am right now. I think their first line is just a little bit better than our [top] line. We got to find a way to change that." Scoring goals wasnt a problem for the Ducks during the regular season as they led the NHL in that category (3.21 per game). Perry finished second in the league in goal scoring behind only Alexander Ovechkin while Getzlaf posted a career-high 31 goals. Ten Ducks had 10 goals or more. So why has the potent Anaheim attack, become so punchless? It appears the challenge at the moment is more mental than physical. "I think guys are almost trying to do too much, myself included, trying maybe to push it a little too hard and making it unnatural," said Matt Beleskey, who has two goals and two assists in four playoff games this spring while skating alongside Perry and Getzlaf. "The Kings are doing a pretty good job of boxing guys out, but its timing. You got to bear down and get there." Dropping the first two games at home can shake the confidence of a team. But Boudreau downplayed the importance of home-ice advantage. He pointed out that the games between the Kings and Ducks have been close all season whether theyre played at the Honda Center, Staples Center or even Dodger Stadium. "To me, these games whether we play them here or frigging any stadium you want, its going to be a tough game or a one-goal game and its two teams just battling really hard," Boudreau said. "The difference is they scored an empty-net goal and we didnt. Thats the whole difference in the series right now." Anaheim will need to win on enemy ice at least twice to keep their season alive. The Kings only have one regulation loss at the Staples Center in their last nine games there, but the Ducks dont see this as a daunting task. "Its tough to win in this building too and they did it twice," said Beleskey standing in the Ducks dressing room. "Definitely not going to be that hard for us." The Ducks believe one win can turn this series on its head. After all, the Kings stormed back against the Sharks in the first round. The Chicago Blackhawks erased an 0-2 deficit against the St. Louis Blues. Comebacks are all the rage in the NHL these days. "Were a confident group," said Ducks defenceman Ben Lovejoy. "We know we can beat this team. We feel weve had two pretty even games ... I truly believe that playoffs is all about momentum and right now we need to put a seed of doubt in their mind. And if we win that first game, if its 2-1 and we have momentum, we can do that. "As soon as we win one they remember that were a good team, we remember that were a good team and it puts doubt in their mind, but it all starts with us." Allen Crabbe Jersey .J. -- Jaromir Jagr has hit so many NHL milestones this season for the New Jersey Devils that he is starting to downplay them. Paul Millsap Jersey . Snedekers best result so far this year is a tie for eighth place at the Arnold Palmer Invitational in March. He sits 113th in FedEx Cup standings and has dropped to 31st in world rankings — not the results expected from a player ranked fourth in the world only two years ago. https://www.cheaphawks.com/954r-lenny-wilkens-jersey-hawks.html . The 55th-ranked Istomin saved 11 of 14 break points to win in just over two hours, setting up a second round meeting with Australian Marinko Matosevic. It was the Uzbeks third win in three matches against fifth-seeded Kohlschreiber, the 2007 and 2012 tournament winner. Slater Martin Jersey .The long-haired pivot, who joined the Alouettes midway through the CFL season and put up a 9-3 record as a starter, will be listed as the top quarterback in training camp next spring.With a full training camp under his belt, the Alouettes will see if he has what it takes to get them back to the Grey Cup game after a four-year absence. Chuck Share Jersey . His fellow Finn, 21 years his junior, had just arrived in Anaheim and was hoping to stick with the Ducks. Michel Therrien is keeping everyone guessing as to what lineup he will go with in Game 3 tonight against the Bruins. Following his teams optional morning skate, Therrien would only confirm that Rene Bourque, who missed practice yesterday with the flu, will play. Mike Weaver spent yesterday paired up with Douglas Murray instead of Francis Bouillon, indicating Murray could make his post-season debut tonight, which will give the Canadiens a little more size against a physical Bruins team. Up front, there are also question marks surrounding the potential forwards who will dress. Travis Moen missed the first round of the playoffs with a concussion and made his return in Game 1 of this series, but Therrien decided to go with Michael Bournival over Moen last Saturday, a move to bring more speed to the Canadiens line up. “Its nnever fun to sit out especially in the playoffs,” Moen said Tuesday morning.dddddddddddd. “You want to help your team win, but it was a decision and you have to live with it, hopefully I can play tonight.” With the absence of Bourque at practice yesterday, Ryan White was practicing as the centre on the fourth line. White has yet to play a game in the playoffs this year and will have to wait and see if his name gets called tonight. Even though the Canadiens have said that Brandon Prust is healthy, his play doesnt indicate it. At practice on Monday, Prust was no longer on his usual line and instead was skating extra forward alon side George Parros. Therrien refused to comment on the status of individual players, nut it is obvious Prust hasnt been himself since returning from an upper body injury. ' ' '
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