Ducks Weather Storm, Rally Late

By Adam Tenenbaum

The Ducks returned home after a three-game Western Canada trip and hosted the Carolina Hurricanes for the first of two meetings between the clubs this season. The Hurricanes come in 10-10-5, good for 25 points and seventh in the Metropolitan Division. The Ducks come in 12-9-5, good for 29 points and fourth in the Pacific Division. The starting goaltenders for the contest were Cam Ward for the Canes and John Gibson for the Ducks.

First Period

In the first, the Ducks would get an early penalty as Nick Ritchie was called for holding just 29 seconds into the game. The Canes did not score on their power play as the game remained scoreless. Later in the period, the Ducks would get a power play chance as Joakim Nordstrom was sent to the box for tripping. The Ducks did not score as each team failed to score on their first power play opportunity. Later in the period, Andrew Cogliano would get the Ducks on the board as he picked up the loose rebound off Ward and shot it into the net for a 1-0 Ducks lead. The lead did not last long as Teuvo Teravainen scored on the power play, following the tripping minor by Sami Vatanen, tying up the game at one. The score would remain 1-1 after the opening 20 minutes. Shots in the first period were even at 13 apiece.

Second Period

In the second, the Hurricanes took control of the game as they scored two goals in just over two minutes to take a 3-1 lead. The first goal by Lee Stempniak followed by a break-away by Sebastian Aho. The Ducks would answer three minutes later, as Stefan Noesen cut the lead to 3-2, with his first career NHL goal. The Ducks would attempt a late comeback bid at the end of the period, as Carolina gave the Ducks a power play, due to a bench minor for too many men on the ice. The Ducks would not score as the Canes took a 3-2 lead into the locker room after two periods of play. Shots in the second were even at seven shot a piece.

Third Period

In the third, Brett Pesce would rocket a shot from the point past Gibson, as the Canes regained their two-goal lead. Later in the period, the Ducks would score as Ryan Kesler tipped in a shot from Cogliano to cut the Canes lead to 4-3. The one goal lead did not last long as Teravainen scored his second goal of the night, and extended the Canes lead to 5-3. Late in the period, Nick Ritchie tipped in Cam Fowler’s shot from the point for a goal as the Ducks trailed by a goal again with just 3:59 left in regulation. Over a minute later, Corey Perry ended his goal drought with a dramatic game-tying goal with 2:28 left in the hockey game. The Hurricanes would later be called for high-sticking as the Ducks went on the power play with 33 seconds left. They did not score as the game headed to overtime tied at five. Shots in the third were 14 to 12 in favor of Anaheim.

Overtime:

In the overtime period, the Ducks would start on the 4-on-3 power play for just over a minute but would fail to score. The Ducks control the majority of the extra session as the Hurricanes registered just two shots on Gibson. Neither team would score after five minutes of overtime, as it went to a shootout.

Shootout:

First round:

Jakob Silfverberg miss

Sebastian Aho goal

Second round:

Ryan Getzlaf goal

Teuvo Teravainen no goal

Third round:

Corey Perry -no goal

Jaccob Slavin– no goal

Fourth round:

Ondrej Kase – Goal

Jeff Skinner- no goal

The Ducks were victorious in the shootout to earn the two points over the Hurricanes as the final score from Honda Center was 6-5 Ducks. It was the first time this season that the Ducks were able to come away with two points after regulation.

Key Player of the Game:

Ryan Kesler. His play was strong tonight as he registered a goal and assist and his line was by far the Ducks best tonight as they produced two of the five goals.

Key Play of the Night:

Corey Perry tying up the game at five was dramatic for a number of reasons. It not only tied up the hockey game to send it to overtime, but it lifted the monkey off his back as he snapped an 18 game goalless streak, his longest since he was a rookie.

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December 8, 2016

Filed under: Ducks News Tagged: #ducksnpucks, Anaheim Ducks, cam ward, carolina hurricanes, corey perry, john gibson, nick ritchie, ondrej kase, ryan getzlaf, Ryan Kesler, sebastian aho, teuvo teravainen