Anaheim Ducks Daily Links: A Storm is Brewing in Anaheim

Good afternoon, Anaheim Ducks fans! After three (seemingly) long days, it’s finally time for the Ducks to return to action, as they welcome the Carolina Hurricanes to Honda Center. This will conclude a quick two-game set back home for the Ducks, while the Hurricanes continue their four-game road trip, which began with a 4-1 loss to the New York Rangers on Saturday. The Ducks’ last game was also a loss by the exact same score, which came against the Chicago Blackhawks on Friday.

Surprisingly, the teams had a fairly even month. The Ducks went 8-3-0 in the month of January, earning 16 points in the standings, but the Hurricanes also earned 16 points behind a 7-3-2 record. Despite that, the teams are in completely opposite positions in the standings: the Ducks are second in the NHL standings and are tied with the Nashville Predators for most points in the NHL (70, but the Predators have the better place in the standings because they have played one fewer game). Meanwhile, despite the Hurricanes’ strong January, they are still 28th in the NHL with 40 standings points, only ahead of the Edmonton Oilers (37) and Buffalo Sabres (31).

Part of the issue for the Hurricanes is that, despite a very talented roster, they are 29th in the NHL in goals scored (105). Only the Sabres (94) are worse. However, they scored 32 goals in the month of January (including two shootout goals), which means over 30% of their goal-scoring came in that month.

The biggest thing for the Ducks will be that defenseman Eric Brewer will be making his return from a broken foot. Brewer, who was acquired from the Tampa Bay Lightning in November, only played in two games before going down with the injury while blocking a shot on December 1st against the Boston Bruins.

More game notes will come as the time draws nearer until puck drop, but for now, here are some Ducks and NHL news for the day.