Anaheim Ducks Daily Links: Brief Respite, But Let’s Talk

Good afternoon, Anaheim Ducks fans! It was a dominant win over the Vancouver Canucks, in all facets. The Ducks established control of the neutral zone and dictated play throughout the night, holding Vancouver to seven shots on goal in the final two periods after allowing ten in the first 20 minutes. On a night where Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry were held scoreless, the other lines stepped up to fill in production, and the team’s power-play seems to be heating up (7/20 during the six-game winning streak).

Next up is a quick trip down from British Columbia to San Jose, where the Ducks will face the Sharks for the fifth and final time this season. The Ducks are 1-3-0 against the Sharks this season, salvaging an overtime win amidst three losses by a combined nine goals, none of which were remotely close. The Ducks hold a 14-point lead in the Pacific Division over the Sharks, but the goal is to get in the habit on consistent, strong play. It would be an especially welcome sight against a team that has given the Ducks fits this season, often spurring the Ducks into undisciplined frenzies.

Emotions are flying high with a great game after the All-Star Break, but it’s one game on a road left with many. The goal is continuous improvement: shift by shift, period by period, game by game, week by week, and on and on.

The team and fans should feel great about this win, but let’s talk about something a bit more serious. Today is the Bell Let’s Talk campaign, dedicated towards fighting mental illness and funding a way to help those suffering internally. Sharing the image off the Bell Let’s Talk Facebook page or using the hashtag #BellLetsTalk on a tweet is all it takes: Bell Media will donate five cents towards a cause.

Illness is illness, whether visible or invisible. We are all human: we are not invincible or immune to pain, whether physical, mental, emotional, or spiritual. Yet there are many who are afflicted by something that eats away at us internally but cannot express it to others. Join the cause. Bell Media raised over $5 million for the cause last year, and just as the team’s goal is always to aim higher, our goal should be to aim higher as a people. After all, at the end of the day, our allegiances as fans and our race, religious ideologies, political stance, and others all boil away, and we are all left as human beings in one race.

The hockey community has always been about unified support and being one family. The Ottawa Parliament Hill shootings come to mind, as does the Rich Peverley incident just last season. These conditions don’t arise just from concussions either: many of us battle our own internal demons from things in our own personal life, and this should be a reminder that we are here for one another, to listen and be supportive. I know I am and will be committed to that. Let’s do our part.

Here are some Ducks and NHL news for the day as well.

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