As great as the game was against San Jose on Sunday night, there was still a heavy cloud hovering over the Ducks.  The Ducks are currently 10 points out of a playoff spot and both Ryan Getzlaf and Teemu Selanne were injured during the game.

The good news was that Selanne practiced with the team on Tuesday.  His diagnosis was a sore shoulder and a bruised spot on his head that he got when he careened into the boards early in the third period.  Luckily he did not go head first, or it could have been a more serious injury.

Selanne is a "distinct possibility" for Wednesday night against Chicago.  Since he scored #599 on Sunday, the next goal is a big one and in an ideal world, he would like to score #600 at home in front of the fans.  But reaching that milestone is not his motivation to get back into the line-up.

"We still have a chance to make the playoffs," said Selanne, always the optimist.  "I want us to have a chance.  You never know what's going to happen.  That's the main thing.  As an individual you want to try to help as much you can.  This situation is like a playoff run.  You've got to find a way to play."

Getzlaf, who did not skate with the team, was also antsy about returning to the line-up.  He re-tweaked his left ankle, but it is not as bad as his original injury was back in February.   He will be assessed tomorrow to see if he is able to go.

"It's definitely a strong possibility that I will be playing," said Getzlaf.  "Especially with the situation that we're in.  We're fighting for our lives right now and I'm going to do whatever I can to help tomorrow night. We're in a situation where we need to win hockey games and obviously we'll do what's best for the team and that situation that we're in."

If neither Getzlaf nor Selanne are available, Kyle Calder was recalled on an emergency basis from the Toronto Marlies and would be available to play.  Because he is on an emergency recall, he did not have to clear re-entry waivers.

On Sunday, the Ducks were described by San Jose coach, Todd McLellan, as being a "grumpy, growly team."

After practice, coach Randy Carlyle described the Chicago Blackhawks as "very grouchy," due to losing their past two games.  Grumpy, growly or grouchy, teams wanting to break a losing streak are dangerous teams.

"For us to continue to take steps forward, we're going to have to play the game to a higher level than we played the other night," said Carlyle.

First step was San Jose.  Next step Chicago.   Don't step back.

Sunday was CHOC Night at the Honda Center and after the first period, it appeared that the medical staff brought their electro shock paddles and gave the Ducks a wake-up jolt.  For a team that looked like it was dead after losing five games in a row, there was still a little bit of life in them.

The Sharks had played the night before in San Jose, but this was the first time in four games that the Ducks took advantage of a tired team and finished off what they started.  San Jose might have dominated Anaheim all season, seemingly extra motivated after losing to the Ducks in the first round of the playoffs last spring, but tonight the Ducks changed direction.  A 4-2 victory prevented a San Jose sweep of the season series, something that had not happened since the 1997-1998 season.

Corey Perry put the Ducks on the board at 3:27 by lifting the puck up and over Evgeni Nabokov.  Bobby Ryan had his shot stopped by Nabokov's blocker pads and the goalie had already fallen backwards into the net, thinking the puck was underneath him.  Perry swooped in and finished things off.  It was the first lead in three games for the Ducks.

At 7:40, Teemu Selanne got goal #599 with a beautiful finish (Finnish?) of a Saku Koivu pass.  He tried valiantly to add #600 and came close at least three times.  After catching an edge in the third period and landing awkwardly, Selanne did not return to make the milestone in this game.  He was diagnosed with an upper body injury and will be evaluated further on Monday.

"We've got to find a way to keep playing like that," Selanne astutely commented between the first and second periods.

They did.

Selanne also added an assist on the third goal of the first period, assist #646 of his career for 57th best.  The assist came on Lubomir Visnovsky's third goal as a Duck, but the credit all goes to Dan Sexton.

Big Sexy finally got off the third and fourth line and found his spark again on the second line.  Regardless of what he's listed at, 5'8" 170 pound Sexton had a humongous hip check sending 6'4" 230 pound Joe Thornton topsy turvy into the boards.  Sexton then chased down the puck, speeding in on Nabokov.  He picked up the puck and tossed it back to Visnovsky, who was in the middle of the blue line.  Visnovsky let off the shot, which hopped past Nabokov at 19:05, sending the Honda Center into a frenzy and causing concern in overconfident Sharks fans.

"I saw (Thornton) coming and just tried to put a hip into him," said Sexton.  "Wasn't expecting to knock him down.  Usually I'm the one that goes down.  I guess it looked better than it probably was.  We scored right after that.  I guess that's a little more important!"

San Jose, who might have underestimated the Ducks just a teensy tiny bit, found their second wind in the middle period and starting throwing everything at Jonas Hiller.  Hiller either saw everything or had the shots blocked in front of him.

The Sharks refused to give up and finally put one behind Hiller at 9:06.  Jamie McGinn got the puck out from behind he net and Thornton came screaming down the slot to finish it off.  3-1 Sharks and suddenly the San Jose contingent in the building work up.

 An empty net goal from Ryan seemed to put the game away at 18:47, but McGinn made it 4-2 at 19:04.  The Sharks threw everything at Hiller, but he saved everything else to preserve the win.  The first win since February 14.

"We've got to play that way every time," said Hiller about the aggressive game.  "Staying back is not working for us.  We have to have the emotions.  We have to play physical.  Then we'll get our chances."

Now the key is for the Ducks to play like that for the remaining 14 games in the season.  They are not mathematically eliminated, but they are still eight points out of a playoff spot and unlikely to make them up.  If they play like this the rest of the way, the Ducks can certainly make it interesting.

In other notes:  Ryan Getzlaf re-tweaked his ankle during the game and left during the third period.  He is listed as day-to-day and will be re-evaluated tomorrow as well.

CHOC Night was a success overall, honoring Anaheim's partnership with the local Children's Hospital.  Special autographed jersey CHOCO bears were on sale for $60 each.  You could text "CHOC" to 90999 on your phone to donate $5.00 to the organization.  The entire dasherboards were devoted to CHOC for the evening, something that all the other advertising sponsors happily agreed to do and the first time ever in NHL history.   CHOC patients skated out and stood with the starting line-up of players during the National Anthem.

Five losses in a row.  Not a single win in March.  The Ducks got the wrong memo.  They were supposed to finish the final 20 games strong and make it into the playoffs for the fifth consecutive season.  There are 15 games to go, and the only description for Anaheim is lame Ducks. 

Nashville, a team that has struggled in Anaheim, managed a 1-0 shutout thanks to a 31 save performance by goaltender Pekke Rinne. 

"It's not an easy place to play," said Shea Weber, who had the game's only goal.  "They've always had good teams in here.  It's tough but we did a good job of limited them and getting the goals we needed."

The Ducks?   Not so good tonight.  Again. Couldn't find the net and couldn't find enough emotion to make a difference.

"As a group, we don't seem to be engaged emotionally in the hockey game," coach Randy Carlyle said, clearly disappointed in his team's effort.  "There is for spurts, but not for 60 minutes. That's what's really been frustrating for everybody.  The bench is quiet, the room is quiet.  It's like we're waiting for something bad to happen."

The Ducks certainly got their chances.  The problem was they went smack into Rinne's glove, went wide or just generally were kept out by a strange force field protecting the Nashville net. 

The Predators, who were shellacked 8-5 by the Sharks on Thursday, did not meet up with a similar fate.  Then again, having a 5 on 3 advantage usually makes it much easier to score on your opponent.  Shea Weber did just that at 17:54, giving Nashville a 1-0 lead.

Ryan Getzlaf, who seems to be making as many errors as good moves of late, was the second man in the penalty box when he took a high sticking penalty.

"I think a lot of it has to do with lack of moving his feet," was Carlyle's analysis.  "He's making more plays standing still.  I think that was more of a frustration thing (the high sticking penalty)."

Getzlaf acknowledged his culpability.

"The penalties hurt us. It wasn't like we thought it was going to be the deciding factor, but everything can be.  That is something that we have to realize as a group, myself included."

Now the Ducks have to face San Jose on Sunday.  They haven't won a single game against their Pacific Division rival and things don't appear likely to change in the final meeting between the two teams this season. 

The focus on Sunday will be CHOC night.  Autographed Choco bears will be on sale for $60 each.  All the signage on the boards will be highlighting CHOC hospital. 

Maybe CHOC can do some triage on the team and see if there is a pulse.  It is difficult to discern any life at this point.

The Ducks have been dismal since the Olympic break ended.  After their most recent loss to Columbus on Tuesday, they took the day off on Wednesday to regroup, refocus and put the past behind them.

"Our group seemed to be worn down, from a physical standpoint and a mental standpoint," said coach Randy Carlyle.  "So we thought we'd take yesterday and then some video before practice of some areas for improvement and an understanding of the way we were playing and how we have to change."

The day off seemed to have done the job and the players seemed to have more energy in their hour-long practice.

"I thought it was a good group today," Bobby Ryan commented after practice. "Guys were a little lighter, it was a loose atmosphere and that's important.  We addressed some issues on the ice that we needed to work on, but we still had some fun and got some things done."

One of the things the Ducks were working on in preparation for Nashville tomorrow night was the power play and the penalty killing.

In the past three games, the Ducks have gone 1 for 15 on the power play.  In the past four games, they have only killed 13 of 19 penalties.   Something clearly isn't working.

"It's a huge concern for us," said Carlyle.  "Probably two months ago, we changed up our neutral ice and we tried to become more aggressive.  It has worked well at times.  Then in other games it's really cost us and a thorn in our side, specifically these last four games."

Specialty teams should help you out when things are going bad.  In this case, specialty teams are just part of the problem.

"Our overall play isn't where it needs to be at this point," Carlyle observed.  "If everybody could improve 10% - 15%, then collectively we would play much stronger, give ourselves more of a chance."

Right now the Ducks seem to have the proverbial snowball's chance in you-know-where of making the playoffs.

But never say never.  And righting the ship can begin tomorrow night against Nashville, who currently resides in 7^th place in the Western Conference.   Like Columbus, Nashville will also be on the second of back-to-back games.

"It's a four point game and two points we desperately need," said Ryan bluntly.  "It's important to take advantage of them early.  Get in there and let their D know it's going to be a long night.  Hopefully get a lead before they find that second wind and that adrenaline that comes about halfway through the second."

Not only do the Ducks need to get the lead (they had a 2-0 lead against Colorado and a 3-0 lead against Montreal before blowing them), but they also need to keep the lead and finish off the game.

With a fresh perspective and renewed energy, the Ducks seem ready for the task.  The real test though, comes not in practice, but in practical application.   Tomorrow night will determine if the Ducks were prepared.

The Columbus Blue Jackets are out of the playoff picture.  They played the night before, whereas the Ducks were rested.  They had their butts handed to them, 6-0, by the Kings.  They put in a back-up goaltender.

All systems go for the Ducks to get a critical win at home, right?  WRONG!

Historically, the Ducks have played to the level of their opponents.  They seem to be able to elevate their game against a stronger opponent, but they sink to the level of a lesser foe.  They have struggled against back-up goalies as well.

In last night's 5-2 defeat, the Ducks really were the lesser foe.  It did not help that Mathieu Garon was stellar for the Blue Jackets in net.  Jonas Hiller?  Chased from the net after the third goal went in.

The Ducks were flat, once again, from the start.  And unlike the last game where they gave up a lead, this time they never even had one to protect.

Derek Dorsett put the Blue Jackets on the board at 8:55 on a delayed penalty call.  With the extra attacker, Columbus stormed the net and Dorsett picked up the loose puck and stuck it behind Hiller.  Dorsett then proceeded to the penalty box after taking on Matt Beleskey in a fight, just the beginning of the animosity between the teams that led to a combined 76 minutes when all was said and done.

The Ducks could have had a 2-1 lead going into the second, but Garon made two impossible saves.  The first on Dan Sexton, the second on Bobby Ryan.  Both times players swore they were goals, only to be cruelly denied.  Fans knew things were not going well and booed Anaheim loudly after the first period.  Never a good sign.

Jakub Voracek made it 2-0 on the power play at 8:14 of the second, catching Hiller "guessing" what he was going to do, rather than reacting.  The Swiss goalie, who has looked tired since returning from the Olympics was further left out to dry by teammates when Fedor Tyutin scored at 13:07.  That was it for Hiller and Curtis McElhinney, acquired at the trade deadline from Calgary, was sent in.  Hiller's look of disgust on the bench said it all.

The Ducks finally got a little spark of frustrated life when Lubomir Visnovsky scored at 9:11 of the third period.  Visnovsky, also acquired at the trade deadline, got his second goal in as many games and seemed to take things into his own hands when his new teammates refused to get the job done.

Ryan Getzlaf brought the Ducks to within one goal at 14:56 to give him the Gordie Howe hat trick.  He had an assist on Visnovsky's goal and got into a stupid fight with Tyutin at the end of the second period, which kept him off the ice for the first five minutes of the final period.  Sitting in the penalty box won't help your team one iota.

The Ducks kept pushing, something they should have been doing since the opening face-off, but a hooking penalty from Saku Koivu led to goal number four for the Blue Jackets, a power play goal from Antoine Vermette at 18:02.   Derek Brassard added the icing to the Columbus cake with a final tally at 19:43.  It was ok.  Everyone left the building after goal #4 went in.

Playoff hopes?  While not mathematically eliminated, they might as well be.

"The odds aren't in our favor," Ryan said. "There was a time where we could have controlled our own fate, but that might not be the case now. We're not in the driver's seat anymore."

Ryan, who still is young enough in the league to not give pre-recorded answers to media questions, went on to give a blunt assessment of the Ducks four-game losing streak.

"You can't come out of a break and lose four straight. It's unacceptable. Nothing's gone well. The power play hasn't clicked, and we're not getting the proper level of execution that we should be accustomed to with this lineup. It's been ugly."

Ugly indeed.  But the team only has itself to blame as it continues to self-implode.

Nashville comes to town on Friday.  They are fighting to maintain a playoff spot.  The Ducks?  Should be fighting to regain their dignity because these post-Olympic efforts have been embarassing.

 

For a team that is supposed to be fighting for a playoff spot, this is not the way to get things done.  On Sunday night the Ducks blew a 3-0 lead only to lose 4-3 in a shootout to Montreal.

That is the second time in a week that the Ducks have blown a lead.  They blew a 2-0 lead against Colorado last Wednesday as well.  This is getting to be a bad habit.

Against Montreal, they only got one point for their efforts, which was more than they got against Colorado.  And at this time of year, every point is critical.

Since coming back from the Olympic break, the Ducks are 0-2-1.  Prior to the break, they were just three points out of a playoff spot.  In this short time, the Ducks have slipped to 13^th in the Western Conference and are now six points out of a playoff spot.

The Ducks had a franchise-record 11-game winning streak at home and they would need to continue that dominance to have a chance at the playoffs for the fifth year straight.  So far the Ducks have looked mediocre in their own building.

There are 17 games left and the Ducks are at 30-27-8 with 68 points.  Realistically, they still would need 95 points to assure themselves of a playoff spot.

Want to do the math?  The Ducks need 27 points in 17 games to reach 95 points.  That is 27 out of 34 points.   Or 13-4-1 to end the season.

"Where we are at in the standings right now and the points that we needed, we can't lose any extra points here," said Saku Koivu.  "We have to be ready for the next one.  These next two weeks are going to be critical for us. We can make a difference and make a push if we're successful on this one and that's what we're looking for."

While not impossible, don't go to Vegas with those odds.  No wonder the Ducks only want to look at one game at a time.  It is a daunting task ahead of them.

Everyone keeps talking about how the Ducks are a great team in the second half and how well they do at the end.  They certainly did that last year, just squeaking into the playoffs at the last moment.  Even GM Bob Murray showed his faith in the team's ability by making minor tweaks at the trade deadline, rather than selling off assets.

Perhaps what the Ducks truly need to learn is how to be a great team in the first half of the season as well.  Right now, the hole that they dug for themselves at the beginning of the season really might be too deep to climb out.

It really is "must win" against Columbus this evening.  If they can't even defeat Columbus, who is playing the second of back-to-back games, who isn't even in playoff contention, in their own building, then the Ducks should just tank from here on out and go for a higher draft pick.  Anything other than a win will be unacceptable.

 

 

Although the Olympic hangover seems to be finally gone, a 4-3 shootout loss to the Montreal Canadiens did not help the Ducks in their quest to earn a playoff spot.  Only one point earned is not enough and the Ducks let another one slip away.

Both teams played the night before.  Anaheim was shut-out in Phoenix and Montreal defeated the Kings in Los Angeles.  While the Ducks got the start they wanted, Montreal came back with a vengeance at the end of the game.

After two trips to the penalty box by Scott Niedermayer and Steve Eminger, Corey Perry turned things around with a goal at 8:54 that just made it to the far post behind Carey Price.   Defenseman Aaron Ward earned his first point as a Duck with one of the assists.  It was just the third shot on goal for the Ducks.

Fellow newbie, Lubomir Visnovsky, showed what he can do on the power play by stickhandling through significant Canadien traffic and finishing things off at 12:54.  Seeing as the Ducks neglected to convert on seven power play opportunities the night before, it was about time one went in.  First point for Visnovsky as a Duck as well.

With time running out, Niedermayer made it 3-0 at 19:07.  Ryan Getzlaf got the puck from the boards to Niedermayer, who was right in front of Price.  Price finished off the period, but that was it for the netminder.  Jaroslav Halak finished off the job for the Canadiens, instead of having a well-deserved night off.

The Canadiens got on the board in the second period thanks to a turnover by Getzlaf at the blue line.  Josh Gorges intercepted Getzlaf's pass and sent it to Tomas Plekanec, who streaked off down the ice and put the puck neatly over Jonas Hiller's shoulder at 7:48.  Hiller got to see another one of those shots from Plekanec later in the game in the shootout.  That one proved the end of the game.

Despite giving the Canadiens three power plays (with a 31.1% success rate on the road, that should have been good enough for one goal for Montreal), the Ducks were able to kill every one of them.

Montreal persisted and hung in there, taking advantage of turnovers and mistakes.  Brian Gionta brought the Habs back within one goal at 18:50.  Can you say nervous moments for the final 1:50 of the game?

With Halak vacating the net for the extra attacker, the Ducks could not hit the empty target, but Andrei Markov did what all Ducks fans did not want to see - tie up the game.  Only 10.7 seconds remained.  Shades of Wednesday's game against Colorado, when the Ducks blew a 2-0 lead.  Only the Ducks did not even get a point out of that one.

Overtime was not a dull, staid affair.  There were plenty of shots (5 for Montreal, 6 for Anaheim) and plenty of chances for each side to forgo the shootout.  Neither Hiller nor Halak refused to budge, so a shootout it was to determine who would get the extra point.

Getzlaf had the only goal in the shootout for the Ducks.  It appeared that Hiller was going to be successful in stopping all three Montreal shots until one of the strangest things occurred.  Hiller seemed to stopped Gionta's shot, but did not know where the puck was.  In standing up and lifting his arm, the puck fell out of his equipment and went into the net behind him.  It was actually reviewed and determined that indeed, the goal was good and the shootout would continue.

James Wisniewski, who had been successful in his two previous shootout attempts, perhaps had a bit too much baby powder and didn't even get his shot off.  Plekanec, who already had one roofed shot behind Hiller, put in the second to end the game.

This is not what the Ducks had in mind when they were aiming for a playoff spot, and are now six points behind the 8th and final spot and slipping further.

In other notes: It was the first game for Saku Koivu against his former team, after spending 13 seasons in Montreal, 10 of them as captain.

 

 

 

After a 4-3 loss to Colorado on Wednesday, the Ducks have had a couple days to think it over.

Olympians finished off their media obligations on Thursday, something that coach Randy Carlyle was thrilled about.

“From this day forward, that’s something in the past," said Carlyle.  "We’ve got to focus on our task at hand. Get everything put by the wayside today and come to work tomorrow. That will be the end of it. That’s the last we’re going to talk about it.”

So while yesterday's practice was missing several key players, it was a first look at the two newest defensemen joining the team. Neither Lubomir Visnovsky nor Aaron Ward could make it in time for Wednesday's game.  By the time they landed and arrived at the Honda Center, even the media crew had gone home.

On Thursday they got an introduction to the Ducks system.

"There wasn’t a whole lot of pressure today," said Ward.  "It’s a good chance to familiarize myself. I hadn’t played in 72 hours. I just need to get a little bit out of my legs. It wasn’t my best performance, but I felt like it was good. I got the jitters out."

Visnovsky seemed thrilled to be in Anaheim and the prospect of playoff hockey once again.    He hasn't seen the post-season since 2002, the last time the Kings made it in.

Both players were treated to a practice with the full roster on Friday morning before heading to Phoenix for Saturday's game.  Another day to get their legs under them and figure out exactly what it is that Carlyle expects out of his defensemen.  It also gave Carlyle another day to figure out potential defensive pairings.

“We’re going to try to fit some people together that are going to give us the best chance,” Carlyle commented. “We think we’ve played Niedermayer and Wisniewski too much in the past little while. Hopefully some of these new guys and the guys we have here will come in and take some of those minutes away.”

The Ducks will have their hands full in Phoenix.  The Coyotes have been a formidable team this year and made several moves at the trade deadline that should only make them better.

After the listless effort against Colorado, the Ducks need to move forward and put on their "A" game in the one brief game on the road before coming home to eight more games in a row at the Honda Center.

“Right now every game is important,” said goaltender Jonas Hiller. “We have 19 games left and we still have a lot of chances. We have to believe and we have to play better next game.”

Having a full complement of defensemen will help.  And one can only hope that by the time Saturday rolls around, the Olympic hangover will be a distant memory.

The Avalanche made a visit to the Honda Center for the first time this season. After losing the past five meetings with the Ducks, Colorado wanted to end that statistic. If they could end the Ducks 11 game home winning streak, all the better. Coming back from a 2-0 deficit to defeat the Ducks in their own building with a final score of 4-3 was great for Colorado. Not so good for the Ducks.

"We played one period of hockey and we didn't play very well after the first period," said coach Randy Carlyle. "They turned it up. We stopped doing what we needed to do. We started to get cute, too soft around the puck. We didn't get into the dirty areas. And some individuals had bad nights."

The Ducks had a good first period, outshooting the Avs 14-2. Even more important was the Ducks had the lead. They were ahead 1-0 thanks to a power play goal from Jason Blake at 16:11. Bobby Ryan got the puck to Blake, who was positioned right next to the net and was able to jam it in behind Craig Anderson.

Teemu Selanne extended Anaheim's lead to 2-0 at 4:37 of the second period. Blake got the puck to a wide open Selanne and goal #598 went in the net. Two more to go to 600.

After that, Colorado decided enough was enough and turned things around in their favor with a very strong period. They took advantage of two power play opportunities to tie up the game. First Paul Stastny got his pass through James Wisniewski's legs to Chris Stewart. Stewart had a wide open net and put the puck behind Jonas Hiller at 9:10, just :15 seconds into their power play.

Later in the period, John-Michael Liles did an excellent job keeping the puck in the zone, diving to prevent it from clearing. Peter Mueller, just acquired from Phoenix in the Wojtek Wolski trade this morning, grabbed the puck and took a long shot from the blue line that made its way past Hiller at 15:43.

Those two goals sucked much of the life out of the Ducks and the crowd.

The Ducks might have fared better if they could have stayed out of the penalty box. A delay of game penalty for a puck out of play gave Colorado their sixth man advantage. Matt Duchene, nephew of Ducks assistant coach, Newell Brown, got his 21st of the year at 8:09. Not so great penalty killing by the Ducks, giving up 3 of 6.

Not so great goaltending, either, by Hiller, who seemed to have some lingering fatigue after playing in the Olympics. He let in goal number four, this one not a power play goal. T.J. Galiardi picked up a juicy rebound from Stastny's breakaway attempt and lifted it up and over Hiller's shoulder at 9:19.

Can you say rusty?

Speaking of Rusty, Ruslan Salei took a double minor for high sticking late in the third period. Anderson did a superb job of stopping an onslaught of Ducks shots. The one one he couldn't stop was Scott Niedermayer's deflection off of Scott Hannan's skate to make at 4-3 at 16:55. There was only :23 seconds left in the power play.

The question that remained was could the Ducks tie things up in the remaining minutes? Answer - no.

"It's disappointing when you come out like that and it ends up this way," Niedermayer said.

End of franchise winning home streak. No two points in the standings. Not the way to begin the final 20 games.

"Right now every game's important," said Hiller after the game. "It's tough. We had a 2-0 lead and we give the game away. There are 19 games left. We have to play better the next game."

The Ducks now head to Phoenix on Saturday before they have another seven games at home and a chance for a new winning streak.

In other notes: The Ducks used only five defensemen after trading Ryan Whitney earlier in the day. Neither Aaron Ward nor Lubomir Visnovsky were expected to join the team until Thursday.

Dan Sexton also played in his first game since being recalled from Manitoba.

Every year there is concern that there won't be much movement at the trade deadline.  Every year those fears are unfounded.  Somehow, even in this salary cap era, there are plenty of deals to be made.

GM Bob Murray, who stated yesterday that he "liked the atmosphere in the room," also admitted that he would likely make a few tweaks to the roster to improve things.  Two of Murray's criteria were "how much sense does it make economically?" and "how good is it for the organization?"

Murray decided there were a few defensive moves that would be good for the organization, but he left the forwards alone.  The biggest trade was sending defenseman Ryan Whitney and a sixth-round draft pick to Edmonton in exchange for Lubomir Visnovsky.  If Visnovsky is paired with James Wisniewski, broadcasters everywhere will have a lot of fun with that combo.  All they need to do is bring back Vitaly Vishnevsky and you can have Vishnevsky, Visnovsky and Wisniewski.   Almost sounds like a law firm.  Visnovsky, a former King, had to waive his no movement clause, which apparently was not a problem.

The Ducks also picked up another veteran d-man in Aaron Ward.  In exchange, they sent the Carolina Hurricanes minor league goaltender, Justin Pogge and a 4th round draft pick.

Pogge's AHL position was quickly filled by Joey MacDonald, whom Anaheim acquired from the Toronto Maple Leafs.   He was purchased with a 7th round draft pick in 2011.

Vesa Toskala, who was obtained in the Jean-Sebastien Giguere on January 31, did not stay in Anaheim long enough to even change his pads and helmet.  Toskala, 32, heads back up to Canada, this time to the Calgary Flames, in exchange for a younger back-up in 26 year-old Curtis McElhinney.  Toskala will rejoin Miikka Kiprusoff after having both been part of the San Jose Sharks organization.

Because neither new goaltender could be in Anaheim by the puck drop this evening, the Ducks recalled Timo Pielmeier to back up Jonas Hiller against Colorado.

In a final and late move, the Ducks sent Petteri Nokelainen to the Phoenix Coyotes for a 6th round draft pick.  Nokelainen had been obtained last year at the trade deadline, but had been a healthy scratch of late.

One thing is certain - the annual team photo tomorrow morning will be a bit different than it would have been this morning!