Ducks Take on Sharks Tonight at Honda Center
By Omar Zaman
The Ducks will continue their preseason tonight with a game against the San Jose Sharks after finally getting a break on Sunday. The Ducks had played four nights in a row before yesterday’s day off and it was clearly visible on the ice and in the locker room. Of the Ducks players interviewed after Saturday’s loss to the Kings, most commented on the fact that they’d played in three of those four games and resulted in a poor performance on Saturday.
The Ducks held an optional skate on Sunday morning and only about a dozen players decided to take part. The Ducks also made two separate roster cuts during the weekend resulting in a total of 10 players being sent down to the minor leagues. Details on those cuts can be read here and here.
Tonight’s game should be a very interesting matchup between the Ducks and Sharks. This is the first meetinig between the two clubs since the Ducks eliminated the Sharks in a rather easy (but stressful for fans) series for the Ducks. The result of that defeat caused a few changes to the Sharks’ lineup in the offseason, most notably the arrival of Dany Heatley and the departures of Duck-killer Jonathan Cheechoo, Milan Michalek, Christian Ehrhoff, and Brad Lukowich. Jeremy Roenick, one of the greatest American-born players in NHL history, decided to retire as a result of the defeat to the Ducks.
The Ducks don’t exactly have the same roster as the last postseason either, most notably because of the departure of Chris Pronger. Both teams decided to subract from the defense corps in order to add to their offensive lines, so it will be a very interesting battle all season.
Ducks coach Randy Carlyle will not release the roster until just before game-time tonight, but there aren’t as many options as there were just a few days ago. The recent roster cuts leave 33 players remaining on its training camp roster: 19 forwards, 11 defencemen and three goaltenders.
If I were a betting man (and I’m not saying that I’m not…), I’d bet that Scott Niedermayer, J.S. Giguere, and Bobby Ryan will be in the lineup tonight because none played in Saturday’s loss. Luca Sbisa should also see some more action as the coaching staff still needs to decide if Sbisa is NHL ready by their standards. The Ducks will have two days off after tonight’s game, so look for them to field a team with more regulars than rookies.
The Sharks, meanwhile, played a veteran-filled lineup against the Phoenix Coyotes on Saturday. Included in Saturday’s roster were Joe Thornton, Devin Setoguchi, Patrick Marleau, Ryan Clowe, Dan Boyle, Evgeni Nabokov and newly acquired Heatley. Look for the Sharks to have a similar lineup tonight.
OTHER NEWS
– Brian Salcido cleared waivers over the weekend and will report to Manitoba of the AHL. Salcido had a disappointing camp and is under contract for only this upcoming season. He may still have a chance to play for the big club if the Ducks have an injury on the blueline, but the fact that the Ducks’ defense is already stacked with veterans will make it extremely difficult.
– The Ducks will play the Sharks again on Friday in San Jose so there may be some bad blood built up by then. If tonight’s game includes more than a few fights, Friday’s matchup will be all the more interesting.
– I found out over the weekend that every Los Angeles Kings game telecast this season will be in High Definition. All 65 of them. They will also have three games nationally telecast. That’s exactly THREE MORE THAN THE DUCKS. Whoever plans the TV schedule must really hate the Ducks.