The Anaheim Ducks final preseason game is set for tonight. The Ducks will face off against the San Jose Sharks, the same team they will open up the regular season against a week from tonight in San Jose.
The Sharks played last night and will therefore be resting most of their veteran everyday players. Alex Stalock appears to be the man in net for the Sharks.
The Ducks however appear to be taking this game as a final test run with some new line combinations.
Ducks coach Bruce Boudreau continues to flirt with the idea of splitting up Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry. Tonight will be Boudreau’s last test run to see how this idea could pan out.
Not playing: Chris Wagner, Nick Ritchie, Tim Jackman, Simon Despres, Korbinian Holzer
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For the second game in a row it will be Carl Hagelin and Christ Stewart playing on the Ducks top line alongside Getzlaf. The second line of Cogliano, Kesler and Silfverberg remains intact, as does the Sekac, Rakell and Perry third line.
The new look fourth line will get a shot tonight as Shawn Horcoff will be centering Pat Maroon and Mike Santorelli.
The defensive pairings are the same from the previous game as Simon Despres has been dealing with a minor injury and Boudreau is airing on the cautious side and holding him out of tonight’s game.
Freddie Andersen is back in net tonight for the Ducks, his second start of the preseason. He will be the Ducks number one goaltender this season, that should not even be in question.
This lineup has a great shot at being identical to what we will see on opening night next Saturday. Simon Despres will likely be in for the opener but aside from that, you can expect the line combinations up front to remain the same if tonight’s game goes well.
If this is the lineup the Ducks choose to run with, it will likely send Nick Ritchie down to AHL San Diego.
Many have expressed their desire to see Ritchie remain with the big club to start the year but the Ducks depth up front is making that a difficult possibility. With Hagelin, Cogliano, Maroon and Sekac all appearing to have locked up a spot as the left wingers, Ritchie may be the odd man out.
Ducks GM Bob Murray would likely prefer to have Ritchie grow his game in the AHL for a full season rather than have him be the 13th forward with the Ducks. Ritchie is just 19 and there is no need to rush a guy who could end up being a healthy scratch far too often if he starts the year in Anaheim.
Another reason behind Ritchie not beginning the year in Anaheim, Nate Thompson’s injury. Thompson will be out until atleast late November and the Ducks need depth up the middle which will likely land Chris Wagner a roster spot to begin the year.
Anaheim Ducks
Wagner also has the ability to play on the wing which makes him more of a priority than Ritchie. Tim Jackman also looks to be a guy that will start the year in Anaheim.
With Shawn Horcoff and Mike Santorelli panning out to be potential under the radar offseason signings, the Ducks depth up front is better than ever. Horcoff and Santorelli both scored in the Ducks preseason game Thursday night.
Contract situations also play a factor into who will get a roster spot with the Ducks to start the year. Horcoff, Santorelli and Jackman are all on one-way deals, meaning they would have to pass through waivers before being sent to the AHL. Ritchie is on his entry-level two-way deal so he can be sent down and recalled at Bob Murray’s convenience.
The biggest question on the blue-line is whether or not Josh Manson can knock Clayton Stoner out of the top 6.
Manson has been incredibly impressive this preseason and he has already forced Murray to place Korbinian Holzer on waivers, sending him to San Diego and securing Manson’s fate as being at least the Ducks 7th defensemen.
If Manson impresses again tonight, you may see another change in the ducks opening night lineup. Manson and Despres could be in and Stoner could be out.
Let’s see if tonight’s lineup works and if it does, it will likely be somewhat of a sneak peek.
Stay tuned for some final preseason updates.
Next: Anaheim Ducks Place Korbinian Holzer On Waivers
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