The Anaheim Ducks hosted the New Jersey Devils on Friday night at Honda Center in an ESPN+ exclusive matchup. Besties Jack Hughes and Trevor Zegras were at the center of the game’s marketing as ESPN rightfully highlighted two of the NHL’s brightest young stars. On Friday, the Ducks were wrapping up a franchise-record 10-game homestand on which they were 3-5-2. On the other hand, the Devils were playing their first game on a 4-game West Coast road trip.
The two teams sit at opposite ends of the spectrum when it comes to their season outlook. The Devils are in the midst of a playoff race and sit comfortably in second place in the Metropolitan Division. The Ducks are in a race of their own; the race to the bottom of the standings for the best odds at landing the #1 overall pick in June’s NHL Entry Draft. John Gibson got the nod in net for Anaheim, and he was set to face Vitek Vanecek, who was set to occupy the Devils’ crease. Dallas Eakins sent out this lineup to take on New Jersey…
Remember that movie from the mid-2000’s “You Got Served”? The one where hip-hop dancers would dance-battle each other with sweet moves until there was a winner, and the loser got “served”? That’s what this game felt like. While the Ducks were doing “the robot” and “the running man,” the Devils were spinning on their heads and doing backflips. The Anaheim Ducks got served.
The game started well enough for the Ducks. It was a back-and-forth affair with hard forechecking and tight checking. At the eight-minute mark of the first period, New Jersey opened the scoring by capitalizing on a defensive-zone breakdown sending the Ducks spiraling into quicksand. The more the Ducks tried to do to counter New Jersey’s attack, the more mistakes they made. The Devils were up 4-0 halfway through the second period and, with the game out of hand, seemed to let off the gas as they have a game on Saturday in Los Angeles to face the Kings. Anaheim managed to find the scoreboard a couple of times while New Jersey was playing “garbage time,” and the game mercifully ended in a 6-2 Ducks defeat.
Offense
It was clear the Ducks came into the game with an emphasis on more controlled and precise breakouts. Defensemen and forwards alike were looking to make shorter passes to players with speed exiting the defensive zone and into the neutral zone. It was commendable for the coaching staff to try something new, but some kinks still need to be ironed out. The second and third passes through the neutral zone weren’t the cleanest and New Jersey, being a quick-transition team, was able to counter-attack effectively when those passes weren’t perfect.
As the game wore on and got increasingly out of hand, the Devils rested their top two lines quite a bit in the last 30 minutes. It was the first game in the 2022-23 season that Jack Hughes saw less than 15 minutes of ice. The Ducks finally saw success on the scoreboard when New Jersey started giving their bottom two lines and bottom defensive pair more minutes. Anaheim was able to close the shots on goal gap as New Jersey made more of an effort to protect the front of their net, allowing the Ducks to get more shots from the perimeter.
A handful of times in this game, Troy Terry tried to put the team on his back (to give the monkey that lives there some company) as a one-man transition monster. While he had trouble getting his trademark shot off the rush, his ability to skate the puck from his own zone to dangerous areas of the ice generated several chances all game. At the 13:35 minute mark, he was able to strip forward Erik Haula of the puck at the Ducks blueline, spring himself on a partial breakaway, and get a shot off. His shot ultimately went wide, but he tracked down his rebound behind the net and found Adam Henrique in front, who buried it.
Max Comtois has put together a few good games in a row. He has been supporting in the defensive zone and making himself an option as an outlet for defensemen to get out in transition. He and his linemates, Jakob Silfverberg and Sam Carrick, saw some extended zone time on the cycle in this game. His attention to detail and overall effort aren’t going unnoticed and should result in opportunities if this trend continues.
The Ducks’ powerplay was finally able to find the scoreboard in this game. They currently sit at the bottom of the league in powerplay efficiency, converting at a lowly 15.2% clip. Credit where it’s due; the coaching staff always seems willing to make slight tweaks and adjustments to the top unit’s tactics, from breakout to zone entry to positions of personnel. Trevor Zegras was able to convert on an opportunity late in the game. When that goal was scored, Troy Terry (who usually has been a net-front/goal-line release option) switched spots with Mason McTavish (who usually occupies the right side of the umbrella).
Defense
This game followed a very familiar trend for the Ducks’ team defense. A very unique defensive failure caused every one of the six goals the Devils scored. There were blown d-zone coverages, puck-watching, turnovers, and missed neutral zone assignments, to name a few. It was a true buffet of bad decisions and a clinic on how not to defend at the NHL level on full display by the Anaheim Ducks in this game.
Frank Vatrano brings valuable attributes to an NHL team. He has an incredibly high motor, is a world-class forechecker, and has a blistering shot. He is lost in defensive zone coverage. It’s the aspect of the game he struggles with the most, and it continues to cost the Ducks goals. The wing is the easiest position in the defensive zone to play. A winger’s main assignment is the opposing point man and to make sure he doesn’t make himself a passing option in a dangerous spot on the ice. Frank Vatrano lost sight of Dougie Hamilton on the Devils’ opening goal as he was caught puck-watching after Hamilton’s shot. Dougie was able to get to his own rebound and rip a shot past John Gibson from the hash marks.
Kevin Shattenkirk was serving up Little Caesar’s hot and ready pizzas all night. He was very effective on the defensive side of the puck, winning battles and sticking to checks, but with the puck on his stick, he seemed to malfunction. He has a tough time with his escapability and resorts to attempting stretch or area passes. One of these instances cost the Ducks as the Devils scored their sixth goal of the night. Shattenkirk retrieved a puck with clear control, mishandled it, and tried to backhand the puck up the boards. Yegor Sharangovich knocked it down and found a streaking Jack Hughes, who beat Gibson for his second goal of the game.
On a positive note, John Klingberg continues to improve as the season chugs along. The tweaks to the breakout system are benefiting him and allowing him to skate the puck further up ice with possession and options at his disposal. His defensive shortcomings were limited in this game, and he was able to get out in transition in an effort to generate offense. Hopefully, this trend will continue, and he’ll be able to right his season, which has been the worst of his career.
Goaltending
John Gibson put together another decent performance that won’t be reflected in the numbers. He stopped 33 of 39 shots and didn’t have much of a chance to save any of them. His team continues to let him down. He made all the saves required of an NHL goaltender and even came up big a couple of times, making some tough saves look easy. The Devils scored goals on two breakaways, a blown defensive coverage, a d-zone turnover, a powerplay tip-in, and a 2-on-5 wraparound. The wraparound was the only goal in which Gibson may have slightly misplayed the puck. However, the play should have never even made it that far, as Hughes and Bratt were able to perform a give-and-go against all five Ducks players.
Summary
The Anaheim Ducks continue to find new ways to fail defensively. It’s almost impressive at this point. With continued tweaks to the way the team breaks out, defensive zone time should ultimately be limited. However, like life, bad defense finds a way. And we’ll all be eager to find out how.
The Ducks will be back at it as they open up a six-game road trip that starts on Monday in Pittsburgh.
Episode 107: Quack Therapy – Late Arrivals: An Anaheim Ducks Podcast
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