Anaheim Ducks

New Jersey 3, Anaheim 1

This one was classic Jaques Lemaire hockey.  New NHL or not there is almost zero chance of coming back two goals in the third period against a team with Martin Brodeur in the crease and Jaques Lemaire behind the bench.  The Ducks need to start games off better if they are going to rise in the standings. 

Corey Perry is playing like a house on fire, as is Mike Brown.  Perry’s play helps Bobby Ryan and Getzlaf, numbers wise and Getzlaf has been doing very well defensively.  When he has been in the lineup Wiz has been almost Beauch like, but the problem right now seems to be the cohesiveness, and consistency over 60 minutes. 

The only player that I would point to as a big disappointment this year has been Ryan Whitney.  He has shown glimmers of what he had two years ago in Pittsburgh, but his inability to hold the zone is infuriating.  The problem may be a subconcious comparison to Chris Pronger. 

The trade rumors that are starting to surround Jiggy and Scott Niedermayer are not serious in my view.  Jiggy is not the kind of guy to ask for a trade, if anything his comments are a testament to his competitiveness and how badly he wants to be the guy here in Anaheim.  As far as Scotty’s comment about a trade back to New Jersey being a “possibility,” that is all it is, and the only way that that is even true is if the Ducks are toast at the deadline.  It is far to early for this kind of reactionary trade talk.

I do see the Ducks getting it all together similar to the way that they did last year, but it might be more like St. Louis’ comeback from last year.  I don’t think that Phoenix and Colorado can keep it up for the long run, but there is also Detroit’s return to prominence that you have to watch out for in the West for the second half of the season.