The Official 2022-2023 Anaheim Ducks Thread

[eaterfan]

13 hours ago, gotbeer said:

Well, in the early game, Columbus got taken to the woodshed by the Devils.  Let's hope Chicago and the Sharks fare better.

In actual playoff news, Pittsburgh says they aren't done.  Florida is holding serve.  

No help from everyone last night. Was hoping Pittsburgh would lose so there is a chance they could be eliminated before the end of the season. They have games against Chicago and Columbus remaining so it would have been nice if at least one of those was meaningless for them.

[deepdrive]

15 hours ago, gotbeer said:

I would guess Tuesday.  Sunday just seems to be too quick a turnaround.  But who knows, maybe he's excited to start his pro career and will be here on Sunday.  

Thinking about it, I don't think they would put him on the ice until he had at least one team practice. 

You don't know what frame of mind he will be in, either. Quinnipiac looked pretty solid in beating Michigan. It's going to be hard to beat them.

[deepdrive]

2 hours ago, eaterfan said:

No help from everyone last night. Was hoping Pittsburgh would lose so there is a chance they could be eliminated before the end of the season. They have games against Chicago and Columbus remaining so it would have been nice if at least one of those was meaningless for them.

We're to that point where every game means a lot regarding positioning. It doesn't seem like you can say what is going to matter past a couple days. It can change so much with the combinations of wins and loses.

One win for Anaheim, Chicago or Columbus could take them out of the top lottery spot and a win + tie  probably would. If SJ gets another point, they probably get stuck at 4.

[gotbeer]

6 minutes ago, deepdrive said:

We're to that point where every game means a lot regarding positioning. It doesn't seem like you can say what is going to matter past a couple days. It can change so much with the combinations of wins and loses.

One win for Anaheim, Chicago or Columbus could take them out of the top lottery spot and a win + tie  probably would. If SJ gets another point, they probably get stuck at 4.

I think teams will still try.  You have a lot of players on all of the bottom dwellers that are fighting for a spot on some team next year.  Hell, 1/2 of the Ducks we have right now, I can see not being retained next season.  They are playing to show off that they are valuable to their team, or other teams.  Comtois is a good example.  He's on the fringe being Steeled and Milano'd this offseason.  His producing at the end may gain interest on either retaining him or some team being interested in him.  But, not just him, you have guys like Grant, Megna, Shattenkirk, Beaulieu, Harrington all on expiring contracts.  I wouldn't even consider Jones, Carrick, Leason, White with a year remaining on their contracts to be safe either.  All these guys have a reason not to tank, and market themselves for next year.  And let's not forget the top guys.  Scoring more points helps them achieve a higher salary in the future.  Z and Terry at 60 points might not be looked at contract wise the same as if they produce 70 points.  

[eaterfan]

43 minutes ago, deepdrive said:

We're to that point where every game means a lot regarding positioning. It doesn't seem like you can say what is going to matter past a couple days. It can change so much with the combinations of wins and loses.

One win for Anaheim, Chicago or Columbus could take them out of the top lottery spot and a win + tie  probably would. If SJ gets another point, they probably get stuck at 4.

I'm saying it would be meaningless for the Penguins if they get eliminated before either of those games. Had they lost last night, it would have been possible. Having Pittsburgh coming off the emotional let down of not making the playoffs and possibly resting some of their starters would give Chicago or Columbus a much better chance of winning. That would help the Ducks.

Now it seems like the Pens will be playing tough until the end and that means they will probably beat Chicago and Columbus, unfortunately. 

[deepdrive]

23 hours ago, eaterfan said:

I'm saying it would be meaningless for the Penguins if they get eliminated before either of those games. Had they lost last night, it would have been possible. Having Pittsburgh coming off the emotional let down of not making the playoffs and possibly resting some of their starters would give Chicago or Columbus a much better chance of winning. That would help the Ducks.

Now it seems like the Pens will be playing tough until the end and that means they will probably beat Chicago and Columbus, unfortunately. 

Now watch Pittsburgh get beat by both of them. J/k. With Pittsburgh's veteran presence/culture and sound structure I think they would play as well against bottom teams regardless of playoff considerations. I don't think they will lose either game.

My point was based for the most part at looking at the bottom 4 (though, it does apply somewhat to the WC). It's hard to look forward more than a day or two. Each day brings the potential for big changes.

[deepdrive]

23 hours ago, gotbeer said:

I think teams will still try.  You have a lot of players on all of the bottom dwellers that are fighting for a spot on some team next year.  Hell, 1/2 of the Ducks we have right now, I can see not being retained next season.  They are playing to show off that they are valuable to their team, or other teams.  Comtois is a good example.  He's on the fringe being Steeled and Milano'd this offseason.  His producing at the end may gain interest on either retaining him or some team being interested in him.  But, not just him, you have guys like Grant, Megna, Shattenkirk, Beaulieu, Harrington all on expiring contracts.  I wouldn't even consider Jones, Carrick, Leason, White with a year remaining on their contracts to be safe either.  All these guys have a reason not to tank, and market themselves for next year.  And let's not forget the top guys.  Scoring more points helps them achieve a higher salary in the future.  Z and Terry at 60 points might not be looked at contract wise the same as if they produce 70 points.  

I see Grant and Shattenkirk maybe coming back on one year deals. It's not about wins, but it is about character. Verbeek doesn't want the clubhouse atmosphere to go bad. Which is why the Comtois decision won't come down to entirely his play. 2.5M is nothing to the Ducks payroll. Verbeek will decide by how much he wants the person back, does he need the roster position and the chances of Comtois having a good enough year to get something good in trade at some point.

I think Jones is definitely back and White is probable. Leason and Carrick, are probably about, who do you have to replace them. I would be concerned about the season I had if I was Leason. The guy right now looks expendable. But then so do two or three others.

[gotbeer]

9 minutes ago, deepdrive said:

I see Grant and Shattenkirk maybe coming back on one year deals. It's not about wins, but it is about character. Verbeek doesn't want the clubhouse atmosphere to go bad. Which is why the Comtois decision won't come down to entirely his play. 2.5M is nothing to the Ducks payroll. Verbeek will decide by how much he wants the person back, does he need the roster position and the chances of Comtois having a good enough year to get something good in trade at some point.

I think Jones is definitely back and White is probable. Leason and Carrick, are probably about, who do you have to replace them. I would be concerned about the season I had if I was Leason. The guy right now looks expendable. But then so do two or three others.

I'm actually surprised, no one traded for Grant.  He's the perfect 4th liner that can move up in the lineup if needed.  He's good at the PK.  He grinds.  He just seems like a great fit for a team that needs depth and trying to make a deep run.

[gotbeer]

@deepdrive  You were right.  Ek in goal.  Gibswim out with an illness.

[gotbeer]

Ducks going creative with 5 defenders.  With how bad our defense is, might be a good thing.

[gotbeer]

Max Comtois.  Yeah, can't hit the broad side of a barn.  

[gotbeer]

Uncle Rico!  Now everyone fly back to Anaheim and let the Coyotes win.

[gotbeer]

Looked like Strome got a Nolan Ryan grip on the Coyote.  

[gotbeer]

Gordie Howe hat trick!  

[gotbeer]

Come on Arizona.  Score.

[gotbeer]

sigh.   someone didn't get the memo

[gotbeer]

Could have been worse.  But didn't need the point.  

[deepdrive]

32 minutes ago, gotbeer said:

Could have been worse.  But didn't need the point.  

Ditto of my post.

You had to figure something was going bust loose eventually. No way I could see us losing out the season. Now it's just wait and see what Columbus and Chicago do.

[arch stanton]

So it looks like Francouz will start in goal against the Ducks in his first action in 2 months. At least it's not noted Ducks kliller Jonas Johansson. There will likely be no Makar and no Byram on the blue line

[gotbeer]

4 hours ago, arch stanton said:

So it looks like Francouz will start in goal against the Ducks in his first action in 2 months. At least it's not noted Ducks kliller Jonas Johansson. There will likely be no Makar and no Byram on the blue line

Your boys better not take tonight off.  We need an easy L.  

[arch stanton]

10 minutes ago, gotbeer said:

Your boys better not take tonight off.  We need an easy L.  

Even though they beat the Kings they played like ass. I think Nate and Mikko are gonna come out hot

[gotbeer]

1 minute ago, arch stanton said:

Even though they beat the Kings they played like ass. I think Nate and Mikko are gonna come out hot

Good.  Just give us one or two goals to make the crowd happy.

[deepdrive]

4 hours ago, gotbeer said:

Good.  Just give us one or two goals to make the crowd happy.

You have to keep up appearances.

Can't someone run into Henrique or something. This guy could single handedly blow our season.

[gotbeer]

Come on @arch stanton   We give you the gift of 2 hours worth of power plays, including 2 man advantages, and you can't do squat.  

[arch stanton]

Z has an interesting new way of defending with his ass. Looks like it’s not quite perfected