Pucks of a Feather
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Note to the Anaheim Ducks: Beware of the Blowout Effect!

By Richard Spalding|

Do blowouts indicate a total mismatch?  Or do they actually work against the team who applied the beat-down?

Man, watching the Anaheim Ducks utterly destroy the Calgary Flames in Game 1 of their Western Conference Semifinals sure was fun, wasn’t it?

There I was, celebrating along with everyone as I live-Tweeted to the Anaheim faithful.  And boy, was it a feel-good affair – there’s a lot of confident Ducks’ fans after that blowout win!

Yep – we Ducks fans are feeling pretty good right about now; I mean, if Anaheim swept the Winnipeg Jets, who posed a legitimate test for the Ducks, what chance do the Flames have?

Hold that thought.  The Minnesota got smoked 6-1 in Game 4 of their first-round series against the St. Louis Blues, came back and won Game 5, and finished off the Blues in 6.

That game looked a lot like the Ducks’ dismantling of the Flames: St. Louis established command from the start, held a 3-0 lead after the first period, and chased Minnesota’s starting goaltender, Devan Dubnyk.

The loss didn’t send the Wild home crying.  It didn’t crush the players’ spirits.  And it sure as hell had no effect on the next game, which Minnesota won easily, 4-1.

Blowouts are fun for the fans to watch, and it’s probably fun for the victors, too.  But this is the Stanley Cup Playoffs, and every team that has made it this far has proven to be resourceful, resilient, and – let’s not forget this – a good hockey team.  Calgary got embarrassed in Game 1 – their pride won’t allow the Ducks to manhandle them that easily again.

If the Anaheim Ducks want to win Game 2 and take a commanding 2-0 series lead, they need to be ready for the counter punch that the Flames are surely going to throw, because this baby is just getting started.

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