Anaheim Ducks vs Toronto Maple Leafs: Take It or Leaf It

The Anaheim Ducks take on the Toronto Maple Leafs tonight at Honda Center. The Ducks are fresh off a 5-0 shutout loss against the Vegas Golden Knights. We need to see a different team on the ice tonight if they have any hopes of defeating one of the top teams in the league.

Game 21: Anaheim Ducks vs Toronto Maple Leafs

Location: Honda Center — Anaheim, California

Time: 7:00 p.m. PST

TV: Prime Ticket

Radio: AM 830

Anaheim Ducks Injury Update

• Carter Rowney: Upper Body Injury. There is no timetable for his return.
• Corey Perry: MCL and torn meniscus injury, will be out for at least five months.
• Korbinian Holzer: Wrist injury, it is projected that he will be out until February.
• Max Comtois: Comtois is still listed on IR after sustaining a lower-body injury. He has been sent to San Diego on a long-term conditioning assignment.
• Patrick Eaves: It was announced earlier this afternoon that Patrick Eaves was suffering from back spasms. He is eligible to come off of IR as soon as Sunday. However, it has not been disclosed as to whether or not he will be healthy to play against Colorado.
• Cam Fowler: Fowler had surgery today to repair a complex facial fracture involving his jaw bone, cheekbone, and orbital bone on the right side. He has been placed on IR and there has yet to be an estimation of how much time he will miss due to his injury.

Leafing an Impression in Anaheim

The Toronto Maple Leafs have many players who have left an impression on the NHL world. It is more than likely that the Maple Leafs will leave an impression in Anaheim tonight, and not necessarily in the way the Ducks Nation would like. Tonight is going to be one of the Ducks most difficult games so far this season.

Unfortunately, one of their star players has caught the injury bug. 21-year-old Auston Matthews is out six weeks following a shoulder injury. This could prove to be beneficial for the Anaheim Ducks. Nevertheless, even without Matthews in the lineup, the Leafs are still a lot of depth offensively.

The Leafs still have a dominant top line with John Tavares slotting in at center. Tavares is on a hot streak with ten points in the past seven games, with a season total of 23 points (12g, 11a.) Mitch Marner, who is leading the team in points, alongside Tavares will be a deadly combination.

Zach Hyman is projected to play left wing alongside the pair. He hasn’t had the greatest start to the season, but the Ducks still need to keep an eye on him. Especially as he plays alongside Tavares and Marner.

Morgan Rielly, the Leafs top defenseman, is going to give the Ducks a challenge tonight. He is second in points for the Leafs, and it could be argued that he is one of the best offensively minded defensemen in the league. The state of the Anaheim Ducks defense tonight is concerning. The absence of Cam Fowler is an added blow to the already struggling blueline.

The Leafs also have a familiar face in the net, Frederik Andersen. I am of the opinion that John Gibson is a better goaltender than Andersen. I think it was the right decision for the Ducks to keep Gibby. Nevertheless, Freddy is still an outstanding goaltender and there’s no question that he’s going to give the Ducks trouble tonight.

The Anaheim Ducks Need to Practice Discipline

As of late, it has been noticeable that the Anaheim Ducks lack discipline when they are out on the ice. This is certainly due, in large part, to the lack of accountability the team has. The team has struggled during the month of November, taking way too many penalties.

They have taken 31 penalties in the last seven games. They are currently well above average in power plays against. The league average currently sits at 62, and the Anaheim Ducks have 74. Although the Ducks PK unit has been performing well this season, they cannot constantly rely on the PK unit to bail them out.

The Toronto Maple Leafs power play is sitting well above the league average. If the Anaheim Ducks take too many uncalled for penalties tonight, there is a big chance that the Leafs are able to capitalize on several of those opportunities.

Fortunately for the Ducks, Nick Ritchie isn’t the one they need to be watching out for. The bad news is, there are several players who are regularly taking penalties they have no business taking. Josh Manson is at the top of that list. However, it isn’t like the rest of the team is helping either.

Anaheim Ducks: Keys To Tonight’s Game

The keys to winning tonight’s game are exactly the same as they were when the Anaheim Ducks played against Nashville on Monday. However, I think it deserves at least a short recap

Key One- Defend Your Man: The defense needs to kick it up a notch, especially in the absence of Cam Fowler. John Gibson has proven that he is perfectly capable of holding his own. He has been phenomenal so far this season. Nevertheless, he shouldn’t have to do things on his own. The rest of his team needs to back him up.

The defense needs to maintain good positioning in front of the net tonight. As well as initiate good breakouts. The entire team needs to do a better job at connecting and making crisp passes to keep the puck out of their own zone. John Gibson should not be facing more than 30 shots on goal per night. That, my friends, is insanity.

Key Two- Speed: As I said last week, the Anaheim Ducks need to utilize their speed properly. They need to skate fast, yes, but they also need to make faster plays and think faster as well. They are never going to defeat a team if they’re always one step behind. Dump and chase is not going to win them this game, or any game for that matter.

More from Ducks News

• Who could the Anaheim Ducks consider presenting offer sheets to?
• Is Pierre-Luc Dubois on the cards for the rebuilding Anaheim Ducks?
• Making the case for the Anaheim Ducks to trade with the Edmonton Oilers
• Anaheim Ducks might benefit tremendously by trading John Gibson
• How close are the Anaheim Ducks to becoming contenders again?

Key Three- Shoot the Puck: The Ducks have done a decent job at leading in shots on goal during the past two games. Nevertheless, they need to keep at it. They cannot go back to having such a large shot differential.

Key Four- Keep the Momentum Going: The Anaheim Ducks cannot keep losing momentum during the second period. It has put them between a rock and a hard spot way too many times this season. This team has a talented group of players and it is sad to see them play such an uninspired game of hockey. They need to continue to be energetic and encourage each other to play to the best of their abilities.

Key Five- Stop with the Dump and Chase: I didn’t include this last week because it’s pretty much a no-brainer. Nevertheless, it seems as though the Anaheim Ducks forget this key too often. No explanation is really needed except for the obvious. Stop with the dump and chase!

Tonight’s game is going to be a challenge, but win or lose, Let’s Go Ducks!