Pucks of a Feather
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Anaheim Ducks at San Jose WCQF Game 3 Preview– Alice in Chains Edition

By Ed Stein

ANAHEIM, CA - APRIL 14: Jakob Silfverberg #33 of the Anaheim Ducks reacts to scoring a goal as Justin Braun #61 of the San Jose Sharks looks on during the first period in Game Two of the Western Conference First Round during the 2018 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at Honda Center on April 14, 2018 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)
ANAHEIM, CA - APRIL 14: Jakob Silfverberg #33 of the Anaheim Ducks reacts to scoring a goal as Justin Braun #61 of the San Jose Sharks looks on during the first period in Game Two of the Western Conference First Round during the 2018 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at Honda Center on April 14, 2018 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images) /
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Game 3 of the WCQF series between the Anaheim Ducks and San Jose. We have your game day preview with a little help from Alice in Chains.

The Anaheim Ducks face a 0-2 series deficit heading into tonight’s crucial Game 3. The fans have dug their lucky jersey from the closet and knocked on as much wood as they could find. For luck, we are going to change up our preview. It’s Alice in Chains day at Pucks of a Feather.

Name that Tune

Down in a Hole – The Ducks dropped Games 1 and 2 at home, and now must do it the hard way (win on the road) to advance.

Check My Brain – The Ducks have spent far too much time in the sin bin. The dumb penalties must stop. I’m looking at you, Nick Ritchie and Corey Perry.

More from Pucks of a Feather

Man in the Box – It’s time for the Anaheim Ducks top line to break out of the box San Jose has them in. To be successful the Ducks need more offensive production from Ryan Getzlaf, Corey Perry, and Rickard Rakell.

Don’t Follow – We have seen precious little of the Ducks “A” game so far in this series. They need to play their game and not play like they have in games 1 & 2.

Stone – San Jose goalie Martin Jones is not a stone wall in front of the goal. Its imperative for Anaheim to gain the offensive zone and get more shots on net.

Ducks @ San Jose

The sense of urgency Ducks Nation has been waiting for may finally be ready to come out. The comments coming from practice yesterday are very encouraging. Here are some of those comments, courtesy of Ducks.com:

“We’ve been down [0-2] before. They have to win four. The series isn’t over.” – Brandon Montour

“This is definitely a building (SAP Center) where they thrive from the energy of the crowd. We have to come prepared. Can’t sit back and watch them play. Need to be the team that’s pushing right from the start.” – Jakob Silfverberg

“We do it all the time. When you play 82 games, there are a lot of reset buttons that have been hit over the course of a season. We understand the desperation that is going to be necessary for us to go in and play well in their building.” – Randy Carlyle

The only change in the expected Ducks lineup is Jason Chimera tagging in for Antoine Vermette as the left wing on line four. Carly plays his goaltending choice close to the vest, but there is no reason to expect John Gibson to come out of the lineup.

Forwards

Rakell-Getzlaf-Perry

Cogliano-Kesler-Silfverberg

Ritchie-Henrique-Kase

Brown-Grant-Chimera

Defensemen

Lindholm-Manson

Montour-Beauchemin

Bieksa-Pettersson

Goalies

Gibson

Miller

Next: Ducks 3 Stars of the Week (April 9-15)

The Wrap

I have a feeling we won’t see the Ducks fall two goals down Again. If they do, it will leave a bad taste in Ducks fans mouths, kind of like a Rotten Apple. It would leave them feeling Hollow. Anaheim has No Excuses tonight. So I say the season is not Over Now. That’s it in a Nutshell.

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