Anaheim Ducks Roll, Rout New Jersey Devils 5-1

The Anaheim Ducks followed up their most impressive win of the season with an equally impressive outing, crushing the New Jersey Devils 5-1 and closing out their eight-game homestand with their sixth win. The Ducks are now 29-10-6 through the opening 45 games and are tied with the Nashville Predators at the top of the NHL standings with 64 points.

Corey Perry opened up the scoring just 4:09 into the game. Perry tried to get a centering pass across the goal crease to Patrick Maroon, but the pass deflected off the stick of goaltender Cory Schneider and into the net to give the Ducks a 1-0 lead. It was Perry’s 19th goal of the season and fourth in his past two contests. After two extended stints on Injured Reserve because of the mumps and an MCL injury, Perry seems to be rounding back into form as one of the premier goal-scoring threats in the league.

However, the Devils would tie the game at one with 4:48 left in the first period. Sami Vatanen was sent off for a tripping minor, giving the Devils their first power-play opportunity of the game. Just as how Perry scored from a sharp angle at the left side of the net, Martin Havlat fired a puck into the goal crease that squeaked through Ilya Bryzgalov into the back of the net. It was Havlat’s fifth goal of the season and second in as many games. He was signed along with Mike Cammalleri to boost the Devils’ goal-scoring, which came into the game ranked 28th in the league (2.20 goals per game).

The rest of the game, however, was all Ducks. Hampus Lindholm extended the Ducks lead to 2-1 just 3:16 into the second period. Matt Beleskey took a Rickard Rakell pass and entered the zone before leaving a drop pass for the Swede defenseman. Lindholm fired the puck past Keith Kinkaid, who replaced Schneider after the opening period. The goal was Lindholm’s fifth of the season, giving him points in two consecutive games.

The Ducks struck again just 1:52 later. The Ducks’ third-line of Andrew Cogliano, Nate Thompson, and Jakob Silfverberg established a cycle. Eventually, Cogliano used his speed to try a wrap-around attempt, which Silfverberg tipped past Kinkaid for to give the Ducks a 3-1 lead at the 5:08 mark of the second. The goal was Silfverberg’s fifth of the season, snapping a 12-game pointless streak for the Swedish winger.

In the third, the Ducks would add to their lead, despite a push from the Devils. Maroon got the puck to Ryan Getzlaf in the defensive zone and then hustled through the middle of the ice. Getzlaf fed the puck to a streaking Maroon, who barreled into the offensive zone and unleashed a wrister past Kinkaid to give the Ducks a 4-1 lead with 3:33 left in the game. The goal snapped a 17-game goalless streak for the big winger, who scored his third of the season. Maroon seems to be fully recovered from the MCL sprain he suffered early in the season, as he has been terrific the past couple of games playing on the top-line with Getzlaf and Perry. Getzlaf also recorded his 35th assist on the play, and Getzlaf is now tied for fourth in the NHL in scoring, with Tyler Seguin, Tyler Johnson, and Claude Giroux.

The Ducks finished their scoring, converting a late power-play after Jon Merrill was called for a delay of game penalty (puck over glass). Lindholm took a pass and fired cross-ice to an open Silfverberg, who fired a slapper over the shoulder of Kinkaid to make it 5-1 with 1:29 left in the game. That was Silfverberg’s first multi-goal game of the season and first since October 10th, 2013 against the New York Rangers.

The Ducks followed up an outstanding effort on Wednesday with an equally impressive game. The team protected Bryzgalov, who only faced 15 shots in the entire game. The Ducks were especially dominant in the second period, registering two goals on 12 shots on goal, while allowing a mere one shot on goal at the other end (a Michael Ryder wrist-shot). Schneider, who left the game with an upper-body injury after the first period, stopped 14 of 15 shots in 20 minutes of action. Bryzgalov had that exact same statline over 60 minutes, a testament to how effective the Ducks were. They controlled the neutral zone and were relentless on the forecheck, creating numerous chances in the offensive zone.

The Ducks have not always played at the level their record indicates they should. The Ducks entered with 62 points in the standings on Friday, and they played a game that was representative of being one of the league’s best. If the Ducks can continue playing at this level, there is no telling what the team’s true ceiling may be.

Next up for the Ducks is the team’s third meeting this season against the Los Angeles Kings on Saturday, when the Kings retire the jersey of Rob Blake. Anze Kopitar leads the Kings with 34 points and is tied for the team lead in assists, with 24. Marian Gaborik, who led all players with 14 goals in last year’s Stanley Cup Playoffs, leads the Kings in goal-scoring, with 15.

The Kings were dealt a major blow this week, losing rookie Tanner Pearson to a broken leg and another important young player in Tyler Toffoli to mononucleosis. With the departure of Willie Mitchell to Florida and the indefinite suspension to Slava Voynov, Drew Doughty has pulled a major load, as his 24 assists are tied with Kopitar for the team lead. Doughty also plays a whopping 29:17 per game, second only to Ryan Suter, and his play and sheer importance to the Kings has him in the conversation for the Norris Trophy this season.

The Kings are in the middle of a seven-game homestand, and the Ducks will be their sixth opponent. The Kings, thus far, are only 1-2-2 through the first five games. The goaltending duo of Jonathan Quick and Martin Jones has had a 3.96 GAA and .826 SV%. Excluding Jones’ shutout against Toronto on Monday, those figures are even worse, at a 4.94 GAA and .792 SV%. But the Ducks know very well how difficult it can be to defeat the Kings. Both games have gone past regulation this season, with the teams splitting a pair (the Ducks won 6-5 in a shootout on November 12th, while the Kings won 3-2 in overtime on November 15th).