DR. JEKYLL...
Though they started their recent road swing by toppling the mighty
Patrick Roy in Colorado, and registered a "fluke" (according to
coach Craig Hartsburg) seven-goal barrage on Dominik Hasek halfway
through, the rest of the six-game tour was almost entirely
forgettable. The Ducks gave up a late goal to tie at Ottawa, got
worked by Cujo in their final visit to Maple Leaf Gardens, and made
both Byron Dafoe and Nashville rookie goalie Tomas Vokoun look
formidable in back-to-back 2-1 losses.
Why should it be any different for a squad that has gone 5-11-4, and
thus far failed to prove it can win consistently, on the road this
season?
AND MR. HOME
At home, however, it's the same old different story: This team can
play. Buffalo avenged its New Year's drubbing, 3-2, on the strength
of Hasek's play, but the Ducks took it to the Sabres for much of
the first game back on their Pond. Then they smoked the Coyotes and
Oilers to open a season-long seven-game home stand.
The Coyotes game was notable for Paul Kariya snapping out of a
career-long 10-game goal scoring drought. Ironic that during much
of the dubious streak -- including the night he ended it -- the
once-and-future sniper still stood atop the NHL scoring list. But
back in form, he potted two against the desert dogs, then followed
that up with a goal and three helpers in a freaky game against
Edmonton.
To wit: Hartsburg seemed ready to pay for his unwise decision to
start Dominic Roussel in consecutive games when the Oilers chased
him after netting three goals midway through the first period. But
then, with 23 seconds left in the stanza, Edmonton defender Tom
Poti artfully deflected a Kariya pass into his own net to cut the
margin to 3-2. Then, a minute into the second, Ryan Smyth scored a
goal that would have -- should have -- made the score 4-2, except
that the video goal judge remarkably ruled that something other
than the puck must have made the back of the net twitch. Less than
a minute later, Travis Green lit the lamp to knot the issue at
three. Then Anaheim scored the second of their three -- yes, three
-- goals with a two-man advantage, the third of which came minutes
later after Mikhail Shtalenkov, in a less-than-smashing return to
The Pond, was called for delay of game when he rifled the puck over
the glass.
The problem was, Matt Cullen actually deflected Shtalenkov's
clearing attempt into the crowd. But no matter: On this night,
Anaheim had its way with the puck and the officials, and Shtalenkov
himself was chased from the game after surrendering the fifth goal.
CHEMISTRY LESSON
What does it all mean? Good question, squire. For his part,
Hartsburg was spinning positive as the Ducks returned from their
bumbling roadie, saying that this was all part of a maturation
process; that the team was still learning how to win. Which is
fine, except they better learn how to win on the road pretty soon
or they could find themselves -- despite sitting third in the
Pacific -- falling out of the playoff picture. In the parity party
that is the NHL, it's never too early to worry about the five-game
losing streak that could drop you from sixth to 11th in the
conference.
Though he's looked a little sluggish in his first few games back
from recuperation after wrist surgery, Tomas Sandstrom has
re-inserted himself into the Anaheim mix. If he can capture his
rejuvenated early-season form, it would go a long way toward
solving the eternal problem of finding a second line (with C Green
and LW Marty McInnis) that can put numbers on the board and take
pressure off the big boys.
Johan Davidsson's absence, with a sprained right knee, coincided
with the road losing streak and is definitely felt. His quiet
two-way play has been a steadying, if unspectacular, influence on
the Anaheim undercard. Stepping up, however, has been Cullen, whose
energetic play has stood out as a positive even though he's often
snakebit around the net.
Jason Marshall, the team's blue line leader, has returned from his
left-hamstring injury, although he's clearly not yet 100%.
COMING UP
Visits from Dallas, Pittsburgh and New Jersey will test the Ducks on
this Home stand before they head back to rival Phoenix's stomping
ground. Then the All-Star break, during which Selanne and Kariya will
star as starters on opposite teams, and a return to action with a
(second) home-and-home on consecutive nights against Colorado. Those
six games could be the difference between using the second half as a
launching pad toward the postseason, or just a long drawn-out
learning experience.
