The Anaheim Ducks, the NHL's equivalent of the walking dead, will do their darnedest to keep things close against the juggernaut-like St. Louis Blues tonight in the city under the arch.
To add insult to injury (pun intended), the Blues are getting healthier while the Ducks continue to drop like flies. Patrik Berglund who missed the first two months of the season while recovering from off-season shoulder surgery is expected to make his debut against Anaheim. Whilst the Ducks will be without Brandon Montour who will sit out with a sore elbow he sustained in that Chicago beat down.
Tonight's opponent has the potential to make that Windy City whooping feel like it was a one goal game. The Blues lead the Western Conference with 35 points and have a conference best +21 goal differential. Only Tampa in better in the whole league.
Beating STL has been a tall order for any team, but for an Anaheim team ravaged by injuries it may be downright impossible.
Anaheim is without its leading scorer in Rickard Rakell. He is dealing with an upper-body injury and isn't even on the road trip. Rakell leads the Ducks with 18 points (8g 10a). To illustrat how dire the injury situation is, consider that Ducks are missing five of their top nine forwards. None of them are expected back anytime soon.
In there absence, role players like Chris Wagner and Derek Grant are being asked to pick up some of the offensive slack along with a frustrated Corey Perry. Anaheim's offensive is so bad their top scorer (Rakell) ranks 75th in the NHL. Scary.
The Ducks are losers of four in a row (0-3-1) and barely look like an AHL team rght now. The Blues are playing like legit Cup contenders and are 7-3-0 in their last 10 game. Their offense is a well-oiled machine, scoring 47 goals over that 10 game span. BTW, that includes one game in which they were shut out. Very scary.
If the Ducks have any shot at earning points, they must dominate in their own end and for the love of money - HIT SOMEBODY. Even a depleted Ducks squad is tough to play against when they physically punish the opponent. Score first, hit somebody, pass with purpose and make a few saves. Seems simple enough, right? Yeah, not so much. Better check the TV Guide for other viewing options if this one gets out of hand.
Thanks for reading, Steve