Game 14: Ducks Look To Better Start Against The Sharks

By Michael Walters

The Anaheim Ducks(6-6-1) take a break from their homestand and head to San Jose for one game against the Sharks(7-5-0). The game starts at 7:30 PM PT and will be on Prime Ticket locally and AM 830.

Anaheim Outlook:

The Ducks lost last night to Nashville 5-3 and have no time to dwell on it as they face San Jose today. The Ducks did see the return of Kevin Bieksa last night, but will still be without Ryan Getzlaf tonight as he will be re-evaluated on Monday. Ryan Miller should get the start on the tail end of back-to-backs tonight. Reto Berra cleared waivers today and has been assigned to San Diego.

Milestone Alerts

Corey Perry will play in his 900th career NHL game tonight, all with Anaheim. Andrew Cogliano will play in his 800th consecutive NHL game, which is fourth all-time in league history. Tonight’s game will by Randy Carlyle‘s 800th game coached in the league.

Keys To The Game

The Ducks can’t afford to get down early especially having played last night. The lineup seems to change daily, if not hourly, with all the injury issues and it’s made life difficult for Randy Carlyle. Finding chemistry amongst the forward lines with Getzlaf, Patrick Eaves, and Ryan Kesler all out has been difficult for the coach. The Ducks are creating chances each game, but the number of quality scoring chances needs to increase.

Anaheim’s Projected Lineup:

Offense
Ondrej Kase – Rickard Rakell – Corey Perry
Andrew Cogliano – Derek Grant – Jakob Silfverberg
Nick Ritchie – Antoine Vermette – Chris Wagner
Logan Shaw – Dennis Rasmussen – Jared Boll

Defense
Hampus Lindholm – Josh Manson
Francois Beauchemin– Brandon Montour
Sami Vatanen – Kevin Bieksa

In Net
Ryan Miller, 1-0-0, GAA 2.77, SV% .919 (Probable)

San Jose Outlook:

The Sharks are currently tied for third in the Pacific Division with Calgary and Vancouver at 14 points. Logan Couture is leading the way with eight goals. Joe Pavelski and Joonas Donskoi each have four goals. Martin Jones should get the start in net tonight.

Keys To The Game

The Sharks have the second-best penalty kill at 89.4%. They are ranked 12th in the league at 19.2%. They are also tied for second in face-offs at 52.6%. The Sharks have scored three or more goals in nine of their 12 contests. They are 7-2-0 when they score three or more goals, so if they get three tonight then they have a good chance at earning two points.

San Jose’s  Projected Lineup:

Offense
Kevin Labanc – Joe Thornton – Joe Pavelski
Melker Karlsson – Logan Couture – Tomas Hertl
Joonas Donskoi – Chris Tierney – Mikkel Boedker
Timo Meier – Ryan Carpenter – Joel Ward

Defense
Joakim Ryan – Brent Burns
Brenden Dillon – Justin Braun
Dylan Demelo – Tim Heed

In Net
Martin Jones  6-3-0, GAA 2.12, SV% .927 (Probable)

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November 4th, 2017

Filed under: Ducks News Tagged: Anaheim Ducks, ducksnpucks, san jose sharks