4. D3: 2007 Style
The Viking. That was the nickname that Samuel Pahlsson was given while on the Mighty Ducks roster. Pahlsson was on the 2003 team that went to the Stanley Cup finals. He was also on the ’07 team that returned to the Finals, this time as the powerhouse.
The 07 team was a team built on bullying the opposition and driving towards the net. Their style of play rose to the occasion multiple times in the ‘07 cup run, but in Game 2 of the Finals, the Anaheim Ducks played what I would call D3 style of hockey.
No, I don’t mean like division 3 style of hockey, but I’m referring to D3 as in the final movie to the Mighty Ducks trilogy, in which their coach, Ted Orion, was talking about shutout hockey. Well, in Game 2, the Ducks were playing that style of hockey and it looked like it would be going to overtime, but once again, the Viking rose to the occasion, set up by Rob Niedermayer and Travis Moen, broke the scoreless tie, and eventually gave the Ducks a 1-0 victory.
The reason why I mention him in my top 5 is that he played a role in the 2003 cup run, scoring twice and totaling six points during that cup run. Well, in the 2007 cup run, he had 3 goals and 12 points overall. He scored once in the Western Conference Semi-Finals against the Canucks in Game 5, as well as the clinching game against the Detroit Red Wings in Game 6. While both goals were key in their run, the game-winner against Ottawa in Game 2, particularly with overtime looming, Pahlsson scored the game-winner, giving the Ducks a 2-0 series lead, and netting him the #4 spot on this list.