The Anaheim Ducks begin their 2017-18 regular season tomorrow night, October 5th, at home against the Arizona Coyotes.
Here are a few things to keep an eye on while you are watching the game...
Response to Adversity
It is the first game of the season so the Ducks will be dealing with the typical nerves and rust that naturally come with kicking off a new year. Luckily, every team will be dealing with this in some form. Being a veteran team, the Anaheim should actually do better with this than some of the younger teams in the National Hockey League.
What Anaheim will have to deal with that may be different than other franchises is the injuries that are keeping key members of their core sidelined for quite some time. The Ducks have the depth to keep the losses from becoming too detrimental but it will be interesting to see how the team does without them right out of the gate.
Underestimating the Opposition
As I already mentioned, the Ducks will be playing the Coyotes in game one. In the past, this could be a team that others could take lightly and get away with it. However, that is no longer the case. Arizona has made the right moves recently to be competitive in the Pacific Division.
Now is this a playoff-caliber team just yet? I don't think so but they are also not the same team that used to churn out disappointing season after disappointing season. Anaheim will need to take their season-opener opponents seriously or they could wind up starting the year on the wrong side of .500.
Making a Statement
It is no secret that Corey Perry had himself an off year in 2016-17. Scoring just 19 goals in an 82 game season is just something we have not grown accustomed to seeing with him. Unfortunately, that is what happened last year and now people are starting to wonder if this is new Perry.
The 32-year-old forward is going to want to come out on opening night hot, hoping to prove that last season was just a hiccup and it's not the new reality. I would not be surprised at all if Perry contributes one or more points to tomorrow night's contest.
My Prediction
The beginning of the season could prove to be quite challenging for the Ducks. Starting off the year with big injuries is not a place any team wants to be and it could take a toll on Anaheim. However, I do expect the Ducks to come out and claim a victory over the Coyotes on Thursday. I am predicting that they ride the hot goaltending of John Gibson and come away with a 3-1 win.