The Anaheim Ducks record when leading after the first and second period is misleading as to what is actually happening, they are lacking a 60 minute effort and identity.
Last season, the Anaheim Ducks earned the nickname of the comeback kids. Continual thrilling comeback victories pegged them with this nickname and it led to a sense of confidence for the team, confidence that carried them all the way to game seven of the western conference finals. They believed they would win every single game.
This season has been vastly different, comeback victories are nowhere to be found and thrilling finishes are often swinging in the oppositions favor.
To put things plain and simple, the Ducks are lacking consistency and it has led to a lack of strong 60 minute efforts. The cause of this you ask? Well, it stems from something else the Anaheim Ducks are constantly lacking.
IDENTITY.
The key to success for the Ducks over the past several seasons has been an aggressive forecheck, one that often leads to turnovers and extra possessions. The Ducks thrive off of keeping their foot on the gas pedal, maintaining overly aggressive physical play to wear down the opposition.
This season, the Ducks have not had that same killer instinct, they have taken their foot off the gas pedal.
The physicality is still there, the Ducks rank third in hits at 27.5 per game. The forecheck is prevalent at times, but late in games it disappears.
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This is due to the Ducks ‘sit back and defend’ mentality when leading late in the game. Early aggression turns into complacency and satisfaction with a small lead late in games, the Ducks feel no urgency to continue aggressive play.
This false mindset starts with the man behind the bench, Bruce Boudreau.
It’s apparent that Boudreau wants his team to play smart and minimize risk with the lead late in games. It’s a fair concept, not turning the puck over in the neutral zone and smart defensive zone coverage is what every team tries to do when protecting a lead.
The problem for the Ducks is that they get timid and lose their identity in fear of making a mistake, they throw the aggressive play down the drain.
One example of this was shown in the Chicago game. In the third period, Carl Hagelin got the puck and carried it out of the defensive zone. It appeared that he had an opportunity to push a 2-on-1 break that could have possibly even become a 3-on-2.
Instead of pushing the puck to create an odd man rush, Hagelin decided to dump the puck in and go off for a change. This may not seem like a big deal, but what the man calling the game from inside the glass, Ray Ferraro, said was interesting.
Ferraro said that Hagelin wanted to push the puck up the ice and create something but Boudreau and the bench were calling for a change.
This may not seem like a big deal, but this is the continuous problem.
Boudreau is persistent on shortening his bench and calling for quicker shifts in the third period. What this does is instill a mentality to his team that they should not be aggressive and should err on the side of caution.
This is how you lose hockey games if your the Anaheim Ducks.
Changing your identity late in the game to protect a lead is sketchy at best, especially for a team that thrives off of aggression and forechecking. Dumping and chasing turns into dumping and changing late in games for the Ducks, something that needs to be fixed.
Here’s the Ducks stats when leading after the first period.
Essentially, the Ducks let 5 points slip away thus far when leading after one period. No team gives up more goals in the second period than the Anaheim Ducks, they have a -23 goals differential in the second period.
You may look at these numbers and say well a 5-1-3 record when leading after one is not bad. Your right, it’s not, until you look at the stats for when the Ducks lead after two periods.
Again, your probably saying a 6-0-1 record is great when leading after two periods!
Well, yes, but it is misleading and the Ducks are fortunate to have that record when leading after two. They are being outshot 64 to 46 at even strength in the third period and are only controlling 40.9% of possession in the third when leading after two periods.
A 127 to 88 corsi event (shots on goal, missed shots and shots that are blocked) differential in the third period clearly indicates the Ducks are sitting back and other teams are dictating tempo and controlling the game far more often.
Anaheim Ducks
Bruce Boudreau said after after Sundays practice that “If we can continually play like we played against Chicago we’re gonna win a lot more than we lose.” Well, if you sit back on your heels and let teams storm you late in the third you will either be sent to overtime, or continually get dominated in terms of shots and possession numbers.
Either way, if the Ducks continue to play the way they did with the lead in the third period against Chicago, the same result will occur over and over.
Ryan Kesler said this morning that “We’re going to make the playoffs.” Well, not if this third period identity crisis continues.
The third period fix for the Ducks is simple. Continue to strive for smart play in the defensive and neutral zones, but do not sit back on your heels. Dump the puck in and continue forechecking. Err on the side of caution by making sure all three forwards do not get in too low and communicate when a defensemen (i’m looking at you, Kevin Bieka) decides to pinch. Continue to back-check and keep shifts shorter, but when you have an opportunity to push the puck up the ice, take it.
The Ducks are not far off from correcting their play with the lead, they just need to remember who they are, they need to stick to their identity.
The best defense is a good offense, very cliche I know, but the best way to defend a lead is to also spend a lot of time playing 200 feet away from your own net.
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The Ducks aren’t losing games because they’re making mistakes, they’re losing games because they are not staying aggressive and they are taking their foot off the opponents throats. Boudreau and the Ducks need to get off cruise control when they have a lead.