Anaheim Ducks: Is Preseason a Cause for Concern?
The Anaheim Ducks preseason kicked off on September 18, 2018. Over the course of the preseason, they will face off against three of their Pacific Division rivals. However, things have not gotten off to the best start. Is this cause for concern?
The Anaheim Ducks have yet to win any of their preseason games. Although it is only preseason, this has offered nothing but discouragement to Ducks Nation. We went into the preseason expecting everything we were promised to come to fruition. However, as the week has progressed, we’re seeing another situation a la Chris Kelly and Jason Chimera 2018.
Ducks Nation has been promised numerous times an energetic, speed driven, and a more accountable team. Nevertheless, we have seen anything but. Of course, we’ve seen sparks of a new team, but the sparks are easily snuffed out.
However, there are still multiple factors we have to take into consideration. First of all, the Anaheim Ducks don’t have the best preseason record, to begin with. In fact, in the last five years, they have lost more preseason games than they have won. The 2015-16 season was the last time they had any success during their preseason matchups. Nevertheless, despite their lack of success, the Anaheim Duck haven’t missed the playoffs in six seasons.
Secondly, preseason is the only time Randy Carlyle can experiment with his team without it hurting them in the long run. He has the freedom to switch up lines, take a chance on prospects, and figure out how to effectively use the players on his roster. Since the beginning of preseason, we have yet to see any semblance of the regular season lineup.
Lastly, Ducks camp started on September 14th. That has given our players only eleven days to learn the ropes of the new system. They haven’t had the chance to play together as a team in months. Plus, with such a large roster going into camp, they haven’t had the consistency that is needed to find success with this new style of hockey. This is going to cause a lot of hiccups, but it’s good that it’s happening in the preseason. We need to give them time to figure things out and let everything click.
Anaheim Ducks vs San Jose Sharks
September 18th marked the 25th Anniversary of the Anaheim Ducks first preseason game. Twenty-five years ago, they faced off against the Pittsburgh Penguins, losing 5-2. However, they opened the preseason this year with a contest against their cross-state rivals, the San Jose Sharks.
Their preseason opener at the SAP Center ended in defeat. The Anaheim Ducks suffered a tough 4-1 loss at the hands of the San Jose Sharks. However, there are some positives that we can take away from this game.
Anton Rodin put the Ducks on the board first, with a goal early in the second period. Rodin’s goal came on the Ducks third power play of the evening. Although it is only one power play goal, we should celebrate the small victories when we see them. The Ducks have struggled on the power play, and it seemed as though they have taken significant strides to try and improve it.
The Ducks found a little more success in Game Two. However, they fell short again, losing to the Sharks 7-3. Ondrej Kase was paired with linemate Adam Henrique. It wasn’t long before the two of them found their chemistry again. Kase netted two goals for the Ducks, with Henrique on the assist.
Jakob Silfverberg scored the Ducks second goal of the night during his preseason debut. He was paired with rookies Maxime Comtois and Isac Lundestrom. Amidst rumors that the shutdown line was no longer, Silfverberg reassured Ducks fans that the “Silfverbullet” can still play a good game of hockey.
Anaheim Ducks vs Arizona Coyotes (Game 3)
After they suffered two unfortunate defeats at the hands of San Jose, the Anaheim Ducks packed their bags and headed for the desert. Prior to Game 3 in Phoenix, the Ducks reduced their roster to 50 players. Ducks Nation hoped their team would walk into their contest against the Coyotes with a fresh mindset. However, again, the Ducks were defeated, 6-1.
Jakob Silfverberg was the hero of Game 3. The Ducks were down 6-0 late into the third. A preseason sweep definitely looked plausible. However, Silfverberg scored the Ducks lone goal on Saturday night after his snapshot made it past Antti Raanta with 3:45 left in regulation.
Ryan Miller had a decent night as well. I was quick to be critical of Miller because he allowed Arizona to score six goals. However, he still ended up saving 31 of 37 shots. The entire team as a whole had a hard time being cohesive on the ice. Granted, Miller is certainly responsible for a few unanswered goals, but all in all, he had a decent night.
The Ducks head into Game 4 tonight with a smaller roster, having made even more cuts this morning. Tonight’s lineup includes quite a few familiar faces. However, there is still room for a few of the new acquisitions and rookies to make an impression.
Looks line this is potential lineup for Ducks tonight vs. Coyotes:
— Eric Stephens (@icemancometh) September 24, 2018
Rakell-Getzlaf-Terry
Cogliano-Steel-Perry
Gibbons-Lundestrom-Sherwood
Blandisi-Rowney-Tropp
Fowler-Sustr
Pettersson-Montour
Mahura-Schenn
And it seems John Gibson will get his first action of preseason.
I, for one, am excited about tonight’s lineup. Although I have been pushing for “Duckling” line during the entire offseason, I could easily be persuaded otherwise if tonight’s top six is similar come October 3rd. Plus, an appearance from John Gibson is a sweet treat after Saturday’s loss!
Roster Moves
Like I said earlier, preseason allows the coaching staff to get a better look at the prospects and experiment a little bit. Unfortunately, not every prospect has left an impression. There is still a lot of development that needs to take place and not all of them have what it takes to make it in the NHL. At least, not yet. Two rounds of cuts have already been made, narrowing down the team to a 43 man roster. An updated version of the training camp roster can be found on the Ducks NHL website.
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Assigned to San Diego (AHL): Terrance Amorosa (Defenseman), Alex Dostie (Center), Chris Forney (Defenseman), Scott Moldenhauer (Defenseman), Julius Nattinen (Center), Tyler Soy (Center), Ben Thompson (Left Wing), Giovanni Fiore (Left Wing), Mitch Hults (Center), Jack Kopacka (Left Wing), Angus Redmond (Goaltender), Deven Sideroff (Right Wing), Keaton Thompson (Defenseman)
Assigned to Juniors: Hunter Drew (Defenseman, Charlottetown of QMJHL), Benoit-Olivier Groulx (Center, Halifax of QMJHL), Antoine Morand (Center, Halifax of QMJHL), Kyle Olson (Right Wing, Tri-City of WHL), Roman Durny (Des Moines of USHL)
Assigned Overseas: Olle Eriksson Ek (Goaltender, BIK Karlskoga), Lukas Dostal (Goaltender, SK Horacka Slavia Trebic)
Released: Justin Ducharme (Right Wing, Chicoutimi of QMJHL)
Julius Nattinen has recently been placed on unconditional waivers to terminate his contract. The Ducks second-round 2015 draft pick has opted to return to his native Finland instead of returning to play in San Diego. Defenseman, Jaycob Megna, has also reportedly been placed on waivers.
The Ducks still have a lot of roster trimming left to do, with 20 cuts that still need to be made. However, there are still three preseason games left to evaluate the performance of each player.
Next. Anaheim Ducks Fan Stories: Meeting Francois Beauchemin. dark
Things are slowly coming together. Hopefully, sometime soon, we will be given a better picture as to what the Ducks roster will look like come October 3rd.