VIDEO: Late Surge Falls Short For Ducks

By Kyle Miller

SAN JOSE —In their first appearance since the All-Star break, the Ducks were unable to overcome a rough start at the SAP Center. Patrick Marleau and Stefan Noesen both scored twice en route to a 4-2 victory. Aaron Dell stopped 26 of 28 shots and earned his eighth win of the season.

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San Jose took very little time to register on the scoresheet Monday night. Former Duck Stefan Noesen tipped in the opening goal at 1:55 in the first period.

Patrick Marleau added to the San Jose lead just two minutes later after capitalizing on a turnover in the Anaheim zone. Ondrej Kase nearly cut the deficit to one, two minutes later, but was denied by the crossbar. The Sharks took a 2-0 lead into the locker room after the first frame.

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Kase revitalized the Ducks with a shorthanded tally at the midway point of the second, and the Ducks saw a flurry of chances following the opening goal, but none found their way into the back of the net.

Marleau ended the Ducks second period surge after burying a breakaway goal and restoring the two-goal lead. Tomas Hertl nearly added a fourth goal for San Jose but was denied by the quick reflexes of John Gibson.

Stefan Noesen rocketed a one-timer past Gibson to stretch the Sharks lead to three at the 2:28 mark in the third. Erik Gudbranson and Evander Kane then dropped the gloves late in the period. 

The Ducks made a late surge after Nick Ritchie scored on a power-play late in the final frame, but were unable to complete the rally in San Jose losing 4-2.

Analysis

Turnovers and missed opportunities would be my two biggest takeaways from this game. Anaheim shot themselves in the foot twice in the first period turning the puck over in their own zone. Both times, San Jose made no mistake and scored. On the other end of the ice, errant passes and bouncing pucks made life difficult for the forwards. A number of great opportunities were cut short because of an errant pass or shot. Ultimately, two goals ended up being the difference in this game.

Notes

Troy Terry and Nick Ritchie returned to the Ducks lineup Monday.

Jakob Silfverberg welcomed his second child last night and is expected to return to the Ducks lineup soon.

San Jose snapped a three-game losing streak with Monday nights win

Up Next

The Ducks head home to Honda Center to square off against Arizona Wednesday night at 7.

 

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January 27th, 2020