BoC Gameday—Prelude to Burke Week

Los Angeles Kings (7-7-2, t-11th in west) at Anaheim Ducks (9-7-2, 5th in west)
That strange silence you're hearing is a quiet general manager.

Over the next week, I will be writing a series of posts looking back on the legacy of Brian Burke in Anaheim -- moves I liked, moves I didn't like, plus some general observations -- so yeah, look forward to that. For now, though, all I'll say is that I'm fine with the timing of the move, as there's not a lot of GMing that can really be done with the rest this year's roster. The Ducks are so close to the cap ceiling that there's not much to do except (a) promote Bobby Ryan and (b) re-sign some key players before next summer.

We'll get to (a) in a second, but really the re-signing aspect is the key one: once Burke turned down a contract extension, next year's roster became Bob Murray's concern, and better to put that person in charge now than to wait until the offseason. Incidentally, I don't expect to learn very much about Bob Murray's GM tendencies until next summer; for now it's still pretty much Burke's team, and the only clues we'll have about Murray in the coming months will likely be in the form of which UFAs get re-signed and which do not.

Ah, this PuckToon I drew last June seems appropriate.
(It's not as if I've never stolen from work before.)
I missed Friday's game against the Predators, so I was caught off-guard by the announcement that Frenchie Beauchemin will be out six months with a torn ACL. The ramifications of this seem to be twofold: (a) Bobby Ryan and Ryan Festerling got promoted from the AHL under long-term-injury cap relief, and (b) Scott Niedermayer will be getting a new minute-eating defense partner. I hesitate to say who will be getting the promotion, but I think I'd give Steve Montador a shot at some top-four duty -- he's a guy who's been impressing me with his overall game and could play anchor to Niedermayer's roamer game.

As for Bobby Ryan, now's the opportunity for the kid to step up to the big leagues -- on paper, he potentially gives the Ducks a set of six legitimate top-six forwards (sorry Marchant, one of the requirements is "hands") for the first time this season. Between Kunitz-Getzlaf-Perry and Ryan-Morrison-Selanne, I'll be interested to see how the Ducks' offense operates. It may just provide the positivity to offset the downside of losing Beauchemin.

Prediction: Tonight Sleek's lucky green shirt is going up to the Honda Center rafters (translation: I'll be sitting in the nosebleeds), as some hockey-playing friends of mine have taken advantage of a Ducks promotion -- sell enough upper deck seats and they get to play a short beer league-style game on Honda Center ice after the Ducks and Kings end. So if you see a green shirt during the game in Section 430, Row J, feel free to say hi, or if you're bored after the game and want to see some amateurs play, I'll be in the lower bowl for that. Ducks 4, Kings 2. Goals by Ryan (x2), Pahlsson, and Getzlaf.

Go Ducks.

Anaheim's All-Time Team: the 5th and 6th Defensemen

Well, I was happy enough with the variety of responses I got from my search for a #1 center for the all-time Anaheim Sometimes-Mighty Ducks of Anaheim that I think I'll continue this "ask the audience" theme before publishing my own roster (note: feel free to continue voting on centermen). Today's theme: third-pairing defensemen.

I won't spend much time justifying my picks for the top-four blueliners just yet (that will come with the unveiling), but just know that Scott Niedermayer, Chris Pronger, Fredrik Olausson, and Oleg Tverdovsky have all been pre-qualified, leaving just two slots to fill. I've narrowed the field down to eleven candidates, whom I'll list chronologically, but if you feel I've slighted anyone feel free to write in your own answer (c'mon, Trnka and Huskins fans). Which two players deserve a spot on Anaheim All-Time Team's blueline? Here we go!

Bobby Dollas (1993-94 to 1997-98)
305 gp, 28-61-89, +31

I'll have to admit; I was a fledgling fan back in Bobby Dollas' heyday, and my memory is sort of shoddy to the point where I only remember a blend of Dollas and Karpa. But hey, actual remembering isn't a requirement for the All-Time team, and Dollas was an original mainstay. I was shocked at his +31 career plus-minus for Anaheim, which is best on this list, as the old-school Mighty Duck teams weren't much to brag about.

Dave Karpa (1994-95 to 1997-98)
245 gp, 7-43-50, +5

See above. I believe Karpa played hockey in much more a tripod-fashion than did Dollas, but I can't even say that with 100% certainty. Still, you should give some credit to the old-school guard; they didn't have nearly the quality of linemates as recent Ducks players have enjoyed. If anyone wants to do justice to the memories of Dollas and Karpa, feel free.

Dmitri Mironov (1996-97 to 1997-98)
128 gp, 18-64-82, +13

Mironov was a short-term Duck, but he was productive (his .641 points-per-game is tops on this list). Not only a quality regular-season performer, but Dmitri also posted a point-per-game in Anaheim's first playoffs in 1997 (1-10-11 in 11 games). Strangely, I was never that enamored with Mironov's game -- he never seemed that dominant and I definitely don't recall being upset when he left the team. Again, though, this was the early days of Sleek the hockey fan.

Ruslan Salei (1996-97 to 2005-06)
594 gp, 26-79-105, -3

Ah, now we're getting more into my memory's wheelhouse. "Salei of Game" or "Cirque du Salei" was a mainstay for a decade on the Anaheim blueline, and his 594 regular season games is tops of all Anaheim defensemen. He was tough, dirty, and at times had above-average hockey sense, though there was always the sense he had the tools to be even better. Still, when the Ducks were down 3 games to 2 to Calgary in the 1st round of the 2006 playoffs, I thought that Salei more than anyone really elevated his play to help the team advance. Plus he's from Belarus.

Niclas Havelid (1999-00 to 2003-04)
310 gp, 24-61-85, -42

Ah, Havelid, the Swedish component of the 2003 miracle blueline. Havelid has pretty strong counting numbers (85 ANA points is third-best on this list), but man that minus-42 rating really stands out, doesn't it? At least the guy got an even rating in the 2003 playoff run. I'm not sure that Havelid ultimately belongs on this list, but in case there are any Swedish die-hards he's in the running.

Vitaly Vishnevski (1999-00 to 2005-06)
416 gp, 11-37-48, -11

Vish-dog in da house! I'm way too enamored with Vishnevski to give an unbiased description here, but despite his inability to score (by far the worst scoring rate on the list), Vish-dog is still second-all-time in games played by an Anaheim defenseman. His real skill isn't so much about scoring anyway, but more about creating opportunities to murder people on the ice. Sure his out-of-position wandering backfires, and sure he departed under suspect circumstances (traded right after arbitration), but he is by definition a third-pairing kind of guy, and unlike anyone else on this list, I do own a Vishnevski jersey.

Keith Carney (2001-02 to 2005-06)
271 gp, 13-48-61, +30

Damn, "Carney Asada" was an awesome defenseman for the Ducks -- a steady Eddie who was as vital to the 2003 cup run as anybody not named Giguere. He came to the team as a veteran, and seemingly was always one bad turn away from never standing up again, but he was a tough battler and a smart blueliner. Carney's offensive talents were average at best, but I'll never forget the pass he made to Rucchin to cement the 2003 Wings sweep -- the only time ever I've seen Carney behind an opponent's net.

Sandis Ozolinsh (2002-03 to 2005-06)
84 gp, 13-27-40, -1

Ozos is another short-timer, but probably represents Anaheim's best ever mid-season pickup on the blueline. While Sandis is well-known for his offensive skills and defensive shortcomings, I actually found him to be respectable on both ends of the rink, at least during his 2003 season. Consider: he was a team-best plus-8 in the 2003 playoffs, and was on the ice for all four of Anaheim's game-winning goals in the 2003 series against Dallas (all of which came after the 58-minute mark of the game). That's pretty damn clutch, and Ozos was pretty special to watch. Counting against Ozos? Everything after the 2003 cup finals.

Francois Beauchemin (2005-06 to current)
214 gp, 17-66-83, +6

I'm not sure how well to rate Beauchemin in this exercise, as Frenchie has yet to show much in the category of "playing without Scott Niedermayer". Still, the guy was a gem in 2006 and has been a steady enough player the last two seasons, and his early playoff heroics (punching out Iginla in Calgary and shouldering Brunette in G1 of the COL series) are legendary. I don't know where Ducks fans sit on Frenchie -- I've met fans who absolutely love him and fans who can't stand him (honestly, I don't really understand either side). Still, his 66 Anaheim assists ranks second on this list.

Sean O'Donnell (2005-06 to current)
182 gp, 5-24-29, +21

Another sheer wall of steadiness who also has spent some time piggybacking on a former Norris trophy winner, O'Donnell has been a great shut-down minute-eater for the Ducks, especially once paired with Pronger in 2006. O'Donnell is second-worst to Vishnevski in terms of offense, but that's not his game. In fact, I've never seen a defenseman throw so many pucks intentionally wide of the net to avoid opposing shot-blockers. But that's O'Donnell: safe and solid, and that is a huge contribution when facing the opponents' best. I'm not considering salary on this all-time team, but I was super-impressed when UFA O'Donnell, right after winning the Stanley Cup, re-signed with the Ducks for a discount. That's a team player, right there.

Mathieu Schneider (2007-08)
65 gp, 12-27-39, +22

Look, just because we're in the process of kicking Schneider's salary off the team, that doesn't mean the guy isn't eligible for all-time consideration. I mean, he did have a quality season playing easy minutes, and even picked up a few Norris votes. In terms of skillset, Schneider might be the best on this list, especially if we're talking about shooting. However, he most likely won't have been on the Ducks for very long, and he did have a rather invisible playoff series against Dallas (his only point of the series was a meaningless goal in the last 8 seconds of G4), but will that cost him a spot on the all-time squad?

-----------------------------------
So there's my eleven candidates with only two slots to fill.

Who gets your votes? Are you in favor of short-term production (Mironov, Ozolinsh, Schneider), steady stay-at-homes (Carney, O'Donnell), long-serving serviceable d-men (Salei, Vishnevski), old-school types (Dollas, Karpa), unheralded gems (Havelid, Beauchemin), or a mix of the above? There's no wrong answers; I'm just looking for preference, really.

I don't think I've done this list as much justice as I did with the centermen, but this is just Anaheim All-Time Decision #2 (I've still got two more coming). As before, feel free to leave your thoughts in the comments: which two defensemen deserve the all-time third pairing? If you want, you can also share who was a close runner-up. You don't even have to be a Ducks fan to chime in -- all are welcome.

Go Ducks.

More Number-Crunching with Scott

I'm in a bit of a rush today, but I did want to throw down a few more numbers around Scott Niedermayer's return to the lineup last year, even though he apparently doesn't need to give Brian Burke a retirement decision until July 1st now. I also made Burke's deadline the topic of this week's PuckToon, although I certainly could have drawn Scott a bit better -- in my cartoon he is being played by Adrien Brody.

Here's a table that shows the main five non-Niedermayer defensemen, and their even-strength performance before and after Scott's December debut:

Even-Strength Plus-Minus Before & After Scott Niedermayer

(click on image to enlarge)You'll note that in terms of even-strength play, inserting Scott at the top of the Anaheim blueline had a huge impact on the outscoring success of three players in particular -- Frenchie Beauchemin, Chris Pronger, and Sean O'Donnell.

For Pronger and O'Donnell, I think the improvement mostly stems from the sharing of tough minutes, no longer being the only shutdown option on the blueline. Really Scott's return enabled the team structure to go back to what worked so well for them in their 2007 cup run: a Norris defenseman covering most of the critical minutes, while a third pairing cleaned up on easy minutes.

It's a bit odd that Schneider and Huskins saw their outscoring productivity drop post-Niedermayer, but it wasn't a huge difference, and with Huskins in particular it could be attributed to additional even-strength minutes, freeing the superstar d-men to also manage the special teams minutes. While their numbers are very solid, it's important to remember that this system used to work with Huskins and Dipenta, who is roughly $5M cheaper than Schneidermayer.

I did want to focus a bit on Francois Beauchemin's play, however, who has spent nearly his entire career letting Scott cover his ass. You can see that Frenchie in particular struggled without Scott (and was redeemed upon Scott's return), and I think a lot of that stems from the bad habits that developed under Scott's tutelage. I've drawn a little schematic to the right to demonstrate this.

Normally, when a puck gets dumped behind two defensemen, it's likely a 50-50 split which defenseman will go retrieve the puck, depending on what side of the net the puck is directed. For Scott and Frenchie, though, they've developed something like a 80-20 split, where Beauchemin gets only the very close dump-ins and expects his fleet-footed partner to gather the rest. I remember watching a Scott-less Beauchemin very carefully in the opening 34 games, and to my eyes I could spot this happening to poor spoiled Frenchie -- he was so used to not retrieving pucks that he'd often leave his defensive partner with silly responsibilities that only a guy like Niedermayer could make look effortless.

I'm not blaming Beauchemin for anything, really -- if my back was always covered I'm sure I'd develop bad habits also, but that's another reason I really want Scott to return; he not only helps other defensive pairs manage their minutes better but also carries bad-habit Beauchemin into respectable results. Someday Frenchie is going to have to re-learn his puck responsibilities when paired with an average partner, but I don't want it to happen this year.

So that's a bit more on Scott's roster impact, at least at even strength. I'll close with a lame analogy, mainly designed to incorporate a crazy e-mail image that my dad forwarded to me. Scott's so valuable on the ice that putting him at the top of a lineup makes an ugly dude like Albert Einstein look like a beautiful blonde like Marilyn Monroe:

Step away from your screen to see some crazy-ass magic eye effect.
Insanity. Go Ducks.

Ducks Gameday—Who would you move to make Niederroom?

Anaheim Ducks (14-12-4, t-6th in west) at Nashville Predators (13-11-2, 11th in west)

The second guest-art installment
in the spade-in-victorhell series.
I don't have much to say about last night's game against Chicago, except (a) the Ducks won despite being outshot 42 - 22, and (b) Andy McDonald and Todd Bertuzzi went back to being invisible again. I regularly told my roommate, "Man, I can't believe we're winning this game," but whatever--I'm happy enough with the two points that I won't raise a stink. I'm guessing the same strategy won't work nearly as well in Nashville, though.

NIEDERWATCH: Here's my un-scientific listing of who's most likely to be moved to make tag room for Scotty, a list that shuffles quite regularly and isn't based on much more than my mood. I've included each player's next-year-cap figure, per NHLSCAP.com.

1. Matthieu Schneider ($5.625 M): I think logically, Schneider's paid way too much for a third-highest-paid defenseman. Even with goals in each of his last two games, I think the only reason that Schneidermayer would stay is if Burke is dead-set on icing the best blueline in NHL history, or if he's determined that Scott won't play next year and wants to pro-actively address that. As a bonus, moving Schneider might make enough tag room to sign Corey Perry to an early extension (provided Perry is willing to stay in the $4 M range).

2. Todd Marchant ($2.518 M): Even though the Ducks are forward-thin and Marchant has proved his value and versatility (especially in the last playoffs), it is a lot of salary for a guy to anchor a fourth line. Moving Marchant might involve moving a draft pick as well, though we'll see how cagey Burke can be. I'd certainly miss "Stone Hands" Marchant, as he has the highest PS2-to-Actual talent ratio on the team, but I feel that a kid like Petteri Wirtanen could play the fourth-line center role responsibly enough in limited minutes.

3. Andy McDonald ($3.333 M): Andy Mac has certainly had it rough this young season, though the dropoff in linemate talent is astronomical between Teemu Selanne last year and Mark Mowers earlier this year. Still, I don't know if to my eyes he's lost any speed or ability; he just seems to be more effective when opponents have to focus on his wingers more. Burke had better be more in tune with Teemu's mindset than I am; if Selanne is coming back, then Andy Mac drops to the bottom of this list; he was our best forward in the cup finals.

4. Francois Beauchemin ($1.650 M): Frenchie is another enigma of sorts; his goals-against rates were much better back when Scotty was covering his back. He is certainly underpaid for the amount of minutes that he plays, and thus should be fairly easy to move (in fact, I would expect some return in a Frenchie trade). Still, we shouldn't forget Frenchie's impact on the '06 playoffs; his fist-fight with Iginla and shoulder-hit on Brunette were enormous factors in advancing past Calgary and Colorado.

5. Sean O'Donnell ($1.250 M): Probably O'Donnell should be higher on this list, but I'll tell you: I think O.D. has been a tremendous team-first guy on this roster. I mean, the guy was an unrestricted free agent defenseman in a zany marketplace who had just won the Stanley Cup, and he signed back on the team for a PAY CUT. That is pretty huge in my books, and I hope that fact isn't lost on Burke. You know exactly what you are going to get on the ice with O.D.--the safest play he's capable of--but there's always a role for that kind of guy.

6. Some combination of Travis Moen ($913 K), Shane Hnidy ($718 K), Kent Huskins ($625 K), Brad May ($600 K), or George Parros ($550 K): I think dollarwise, this means Moen plus another guy. Moen (or as I call him, "the Omen") has had rough counting numbers but is still contributing defensively on the Pahlsson line. Plus he was HUGE in the playoffs, t-2nd on the team in goals and t-1st on the team in game-winners. Hnidy has been better of late, though his first instinct always seems to be to grab a guy with his free hand. The other three have all been improvements on last year's versions. There seems to be some possibility here (all these guys seem replaceable enough), but I don't think it's going to happen--it adds to the trade complexity and starts removing too many parts of an already-thin roster.

7. Todd Bertuzzi ($4.000 M): I talk trash on Bertuzzi more than most Duck fans, but given Bert's salary, I don't think there's many GMs that will easily take the guy--he'll probably cost the EDM first-rounder to move, I'd guess. But I'm not sure I'm entirely pessimistic about keeping Bertuzzi. Sure he's a floater who needs limited puck exposure, but as we saw with Penner last year, there's a way that Bertuzzi can be played effectively--essentially he'll be as good as his linemates can make him. Bert will probably look really bad on a bad team but may look really good on a good one, and if this team does take a step forward, I'm willing to stay on the Bertuzzi bet a little while longer.

So that's my list, based on zero inside sources and just my gut feel. Two things to note: (a) Burke has made his trade-timeframe public, and will not be bargaining from a position of strength. As we've seen in the case of Ilya Bryzgalov, it doesn't seem to be the case that rival GMs are in any hurry to do Burke any favors. (b) Going for Burke, though, is the fact that there isn't any real need to get any return for whichever player gets moved. Scotty (with the possibility of some Teemu) is plenty of return already. It wouldn't even be that bad if a player got on the waiver train to Phoenix.

So, just for fun, if you were Burke, which player would you look to unload? Unleash your fantasy GM skills in the comments.

Prediction: I'm not that optimistic; I'm guessing Nashville carries a lot of the play today. Still, Ducks 3, Preds 2. Goals by Platt, Pahlsson, and Pronger.

Go Ducks.

Welcome Back Scotter?

Sorry, kids, but this picture/title is a bit of an older reference, before my time, even.

At any rate, word on the web is that Scotty is considering coming back for another season, though for whatever reason, he doesn’t want to go to England. Severe anglophobia aside, this would be a tremendous development for the Ducks’ hopes of repeating.

The team went a whopping 54-13-12 last year when Niedermayer, Pronger, and Beauchemin all played, and that was before the addition of Schneidermayer. Plenty more to say about this, but I'll wait until speculation becomes fact.

Retirement Threat #1: how do you replace Scott Niedermayer?

(Author’s Note: I HAVE NO NEWS IN THIS POST. I figured I’d best say that up front.)

So with Scott Niedermayer and Teemu Selanne both threatening to retire 'on top of the world', I thought I’d spend today looking at Scott’s on-ice contribution, and deal with Teemu's in a separate post.

Over the course of the regular season and playoffs, the captain played over 2,800 minutes, nearly 400 more than the next highest Duck skater. He led Anaheim defensemen in even-strength minutes, power play minutes, and shorthanded minutes, and total scoring, as well. He was also Anaheim’s top-paid player ($6.75 M/year on a deal that has two more years on it), a Norris finalist, and the Conn Smythe winner to boot.

To help measure his on-ice contribution, though, here are the 5 defensemen signed for next year, and their combined regular-season and playoff totals from last year:

Even-Strength:

Player	GP	ES min	ES +/hr	ES –/hr	ES +/–/hr
Niedermayer	100	1,803	+2.66	-2.23	+0.43
Beauchemin	91	1,749	+2.44	-2.13	+0.31
O’Donnell	100	1,621	+2.48	-1.96	+0.52
Pronger	85	1,520	+3.00	-1.54	+1.46
Huskins	54	640	+1.97	-1.88	+0.09

What’s staggering here is really the difference in productivity of Chris Pronger from pretty much everyone else (even his regular defense partner Sean O’Donnell). The best goals-for, the best goals-against, and the best differential, all while playing comparable minutes to Niedermayer. I don’t want to knock the captain’s productivity, but Scott is clearly outshined on these metrics.

Power Play:

Player	GP	PP min	PP +/hr	PP –/hr	PP +/–/hr
Niedermayer	100	582	+7.94	-0.72	+7.22
Pronger	85	509	+8.25	-0.24	+8.01
Beauchemin	91	286	+6.09	-0.63	+5.46

On the power play, only three defensemen played any significant minutes, and certainly Niedermayer's presence was a huge part. One thing about Niedermayer: he's got a very below-average shot from the blueline, but made himself really useful as a high screen / rover. Again, though, Pronger is the star in terms of net production.

Penalty Kill:

Player	GP	SH min	SH +/hr	SH –/hr	SH +/–/hr
Niedermayer	100	415	+0.29	-6.65	-6.36
Beauchemin	91	385	+0.47	-6.08	-5.61
O’Donnell	100	367	+0.49	-3.93	-3.44
Pronger	85	333	+0.54	-5.23	-4.69

Note that these numbers are inclusive of 4-on-5 and 3-on-5 situations, which partially explains why Niedermayer's production looks bad here. Even so, though, his numbers pale again against Pronger's, who also was a fixture on 2-man disadvantages.

Bottom line: Even though Scott is outshined in the production metrics by Pronger, he still plays a huge role minutes-wise and leadership-wise, and his salary is quite favorable compared to other top-earning defensemen. Should Scott announce his retirement, the Ducks definitely need to figure out who their captain will be, and also find a way to replace his minutes for a pretty similar cost. Unfortunately, I really doubt this can be accomplished with one $6 - $7 M defenseman in today's high-priced market (it doesn’t buy you what it used to); this really is the main reason why I’d really prefer Scott to play out his existing contract.

A key question that still needs to be answered will be the production of defenseman Francois Beauchemin, who has played pretty much his entire 2-year NHL career with Scotty as his partner. Certainly the early play of Frenchie has been promising, but it is somewhat easy to look good when you’ve got the smoothest skater in the league leading your rushes and still covering your back.

If Niedermayer does choose to retire, though, I would guess the best way to go about replacing him would be pretty much to build a traditional blueline around the other Norris finalist, Pronger. Rather than have two defensive pairs play nearly all the minutes, the resulting defense would probably have to spread minutes to the third pairing a lot more evenly, so probably Niedermayer would be best replaced by two capable $3M defensemen, preferably not UFAs signed on July 1st, though—those signings usually signify an overcommitment.

Anyway, Scott’s decision is probably the one key thing I’m keeping my eye on this offseason—I don’t think the Ducks are in horrible trouble either way, but definitely there will have to be a huge strategy adjustment if he leaves. Based on the minutes he plays, I would say he’s a tougher hurdle to replace than Selanne, but we’ll be taking a look at that in a later post.

Red Wings Shooting Guide

Stolen from Mike Babcock's playbook, page 34:

Figure 1: Where to shoot to beat J.S. Giguere


Losing G1 2-1 is not the worst possible outcome for the Ducks, but it certainly is not the best. There are some things to take solace in: the Ducks outshot the Wings 32-19 and carried a lot of the play--Detroit at home this postseason was averaging a +17 shot differential and hadn't been outshot yet. Plus I can't really fault Giguere for either goal that went in.

The Ducks not only played a really good road game (they had a tie game with 5 minutes to go), but it was also a really good set-the-tone G1. Positives abound.

But damn, I'd rather have the win.

Reports of my demise have been greatly exaggerated

No, Sleek is not dead. Sorry for the unannounced hiatus, but after slicing my foot, pulling my groin twice, straining my abdomen, rupturing my spleen, and breaking my other foot, I suppose I needed a few days off.

Oh wait a second, those things didn’t happen to me; those happened to Sean O’Donnell, Ilya Bryzgalov, J.S. Giguere, Todd Marchant, Francois Beauchemin, and Chris Pronger. If you’re napkin-scoring at home, that’s roughly $15.5 million in salary that’s on the mend (O’Donnell and Bryzgalov have returned already, though).

And as for Ducks you’re not recognizing, Kent Huskins (#40) was brought in to replace O’Donnell, and then stayed on to replace Beauchemin. Then Aaron Rome (#34) was brought in to replace Pronger. Travis Green (#39) has been trying to mimic Marchant, while Michael Wall (#31), David McKee (#41), and newly-acquired Sebastien Caron (#29) have been Anaheim’s netminding options (although Wall was the only one to actually step on the ice). Oh, and some breaking news? Ducks have traded a conditional pick to Florida for D Ric “Don’t call me Rick” Jackman to replace the fall of Rome.

Actually, I’m kidding. Scott Niedermayer has tripled his ice time and is replacing everyone.

And as for the results? Overall, the Ducks have lost 8 times in regulation in 42 games this year, but half those losses have come in the last 5 games. Yup, it’s vulnerable time for these Ducks.

And yet, do I panic? Hell, no! I’m having trouble even caring. You see, other than the damage it’s doing to my fantasy teams, Ducks are doing too damn well for me to fret through rough patches like this:

• Anaheim has 62 points, a whopping number that wasn’t achieved until February 10th last year. It would have to be a record-setting effort to miss the playoffs with that start. President’s Trophy to me has been overrated, especially the last several postseasons. What matters is making the playoffs and playing well at the end of the season; what doesn’t matter is winning in January when you’re 20 points ahead of 9th place.
• Hey, we’ve lost 4 of 5, but despite the laughable lineup, there hasn’t been a game where we’ve been out of it. This AHL-NHL joint venture is still pretty good (especially now that we have an NHL goalie again), or at least within a goal of being pretty good.
• Plus, shifting your perspective can always be a nice thing. Ducks have just finished a 17-game stretch that involved 13 games on the road, with a more-than-OK record of 11-6.
• And probably most importantly, there’s still plenty of time to heal for the postseason. And it’s not a bad opportunity for these kids are getting a chance to show whether or not they deserve to be NHLers.

So beat ‘em while you can, these part-Pirates part-Ducks. p.s. Everyone’s probably read it already, but Christy at BTJ has some awesome stuff from the Stevie Y. retirement night. Hey, say what you will about the Red Wing winning machine, but at least they leave your spleen alone (exception: employees of Chris Chelios).

More photos from SJ/ANA

Pronger in game action. I guess this guy is growing on me, though I still have to catch myself from saying "You suck!" everytime I mention his name. He was as good as advertised last night, although he did break two different sticks trying to shoot pucks on net.


Some good seats for a prime battle between Todd Fedoruk and Scott Parker. This was towards the end of the second period, so he went straight to the locker room. I didn't notice at the time, but does it look like Fedoruk got cut in the forehead in that first picture?


Generally, Vesa Toskala was not too excited to give up 5 goals in a little more than 7 minutes during the second period. A lot of looking to the heavens and cursing the porous defense. "Where's my boy Joey Thornton?"


Frenchie Beauchemin was definitely excited that he will continue to play with Scotty Niedermayer this year. One time in the 3rd period he really went for a vicious hipcheck but really got caught out of position. If we still had Vishdog, then we could leave this sort of aggressive defense to the experts.

Meanwhile Dustin Penner looked really good re-teaming with Todd Marchant. Penner tallied the first two goals and assisted on an improbable Marchant goal later in the period.


These are the best of what Damndaze sent me last night, but he took a lot more. Likely, though, these represent the better-quality pics, but I'll see if he doesn't have any more gems. Enjoy!

Frenchie says “Oui, Oui!”

Fairly big news on the Anaheim front, as the Ducks have signed Francois Beauchemin to a 2-year contract extension, salary yet unknown [Edit: Per the OC Register, it is for $1.65 M each year]. I'm fairly sure that this does not affect his $500k cap number this year*, as that cannot be adjusted by extensions (otherwise Lou Lamoriello would just extend contracts until he was under the cap).

Frenchie, though he certainly benefits from having Scott Niedermayer on his flank, has a nasty shot, a solid frame, and though he is a tad slow-of-foot, his positioning is generally excellent. Scotty and Frenchie make quite a nice pairing, so don’t think it’s a coincidence both their contracts now run the same length.

If you haven’t checked it out, my poem to Beauchemin really captures the spirit of my appreciation.

------------------------------Oh, and I might not have highlighted this early enough, but apparently our new friend Ian Moran was keeping a blog during his time with the Boston Bruins. Perhaps like Vishnevski, I too am to be replaced by a minimum-wage player.

Then again, here’s some of his recent posts:

Strange
It is 5:45 am and a large round ball is in the sky. It appears to be orange. Not sure what it is, but it hurts when I stare into it!

12:00 p.m.
It’s 12:00 p.m. and I think the bright orange ball in the sky is making people smile. How bizarre! I’ve also noticed that pedestrians aren’t getting as wet because the people driving cars seem to be avoiding the puddles! It is all very surreal to me.

Sun or son (excerpt)
It’s 7:14 p.m. I’ve done research and I have learned that the bright thing in the sky is called the Sun, not to be confused with a son. Both are pronounced the same way and both can provide tremendous amounts of happiness.

Now I haven’t been keeping up with the Bruins to know whether they have some sort of Flowers For Algernon Appreciation Week or anything, but just in case he keeps deteriorating, I’ll maintain my role as a secondary Duck resource for a little while longer.

On the plus side, Moran easily wins the award for Best Mohawk on the team (which, as a Mr. T fan**, means a lot to me). He certainly puts Chris Kunitz's Alfalfa-look to shame!

* I might be wrong on this, but the Ducks are a team that are watching their cashflow more than their 'average-salary' cap hit anyway.

** Jerseywork courtesy of Ingmar Bergman.

Sleek's Poetry Corner

(Author’s note: I am no real poet, but I’ve probably been too analytical lately, and my imaginary therapist says this might help.)

ODE TO FRENCHY:

Fedorov joined us in 2003’s summer
Replacing Kariya, who left (what a bummer!)
After the rollback, he was still overpaid,
Now that his skills were starting to fade.
Carlyle and Burke had seen quite enough
Off to Columbus for prospects and such!
I’ll admit; I was skeptical about the whole deal
Silly me! How could I miss such a steal?

Before you arrived, I never knew who you were,
Even now that you’ve been with us, I’m not really sure,
Alas! It’s not always easy to see what you bring for us,
Usually ‘cause your partner has been Mr. Norris.
Captain Iginla found out your fists are an asset,
Hitting is also! Just ask Andrew Brunette.
Even though we lost to the Oil (boo hoo!)
Mainly the question has been “Sergei WHO?”
I speak for all Duck fans—we’re glad that you’re here,
Now can you be even better next year?

Go get 'em, Frenchy.

Duckling (P)review

Black Dog Hates Skunks said...

who do you like amongst the kids and why?

Quick answer: In terms of what the Ducks needed, I think Beauchemin was the best kid in '05-'06. Long term, I'm guessing Getzlaf is the guy, although there should be some good competition.

I should say that I am very happy with how the kids were managed this year. They all avoided full seasons, which kept them absent from any rookie-of-the-year comparisons, which would be unfair any way. Their roles were never critical, yet they were given enough ice time to contribute.

At any rate, the Ducks have a very promising pipeline of talent (rated #1 at hockeysfutures as of April 5, 2006). This should give Burke a lot of flexibility in the coming offseason, even if some of this youth gets used as trade currency. Here are Sleek's quick takes on Ducks born in the 1980s (a somewhat incomplete list):

Vitaly Vishnevski (3/18/80)—Vish-dog really doesn’t belong on the list, but he does qualify age-wise. He has played 416 regular season games for the Ducks, and has shown more dependability each year. I think he is top-4 next year.

Francois Beauchemin (6/4/80)—Burke got a real steal all right, in fact I think at first Frenchie was a steadying influence for Scotty, although later in the season that balance was shifted. He’s got everything except footspeed, but his shot is wicked. He’s hardly been seen without Scotty by his side, so some judgment has to be reserved.

Ilya Bryzgalov (6/22/80)—This guy is probably our netminder sooner rather than later. He showed that he is reliable and rather unflappable in these playoffs. His two advantages over Jiggy are size and reflexes, his downside might be streakiness. He should definitely be an upgrade in shootouts, probably Giguere’s weakest event.

Travis Moen (4/6/82)—Moen wasn’t as bad as I thought originally. He’s not afraid to show what a mediocre fighter he is, and he’s certainly no offensive threat, but he is reliable at moving the puck and his wheels aren’t bad. I wasn’t afraid when Moen was on the ice, can’t say that for all these kids. Not a bad 'spare part'.

Dustin Penner (9/28/82)—This is a kid I still don’t know much about, other than the story of how he had a very late growth spurt, supposedly why this big body doesn’t quite know yet how to best use his large frame but has above-average hands. Based on what I have seen, I am very excited to see Penner develop as a Duck. He could be very good or somewhat good, but he won't be useless.

Stanislav Chistov (4/17/83)—I am not sure what the Ducks’ position is on Chistov, who spent last year playing in Russia. He is still Ducks’ property, and Burke indicated earlier in the year that he planned on bringing Chistov back. Cheesy is a small, shifty Russian winger, stylistically akin to Datsyuk. He did play in the NHL 2 seasons pre-lockout, including the SCF run.

Joffrey Lupul (9/23/83)—I am not entirely sure what to think of Lupul. For sure his shot is outstanding, but he is a bit prone to hooking calls and I’m not sure if he’s better as a threat on a checking line or on a scoring line. He should score more goals next year, but I’m not sure if it’s a few more or a lot more.

Ryan Getzlaf (5/10/85)—I think Getzlaf might be the prize player in all this, although there are many contenders. He has a great combination of size, speed, and vision that promises a lot of future production. With him and Perry, I am very happy how Carlyle managed their season; they were able to go down to the minors and play their way back together. I think he is a better pointman than Beauchemin, though it is close.

Corey Perry (5/16/85)—Perry’s still got some filling out to do before we know how good he is, but he is practically European in his stickhandling. He could score a lot, I think, given the right minutes. He’s a pest also, which I think can work for him. His problem is he instigates a bit more than he can back up, but that’s the liberty you get playing with Fedoruk, another good move by Carlyle.

Ladislav Smid (2/1/86)—Our 9th overall pick in the 2004 draft, this sizeable Czech defenseman appears to be adequate at a lot of things without being spectacular at any. We love those guys. Apparently he’s the reason Salei might leave as a UFA.

Bobby Ryan (3/17/87)—The guy picked 2nd behind Crosby in the 2005 draft. Not sure if he comes up next year or not, but this ‘power forward’ could become an option.
The Anaheim Ducks are eagerly awaiting his development.