First off let me apologize for the gaps in my blogs at times. Despite my uber-glamorous life as a hockey blogger, I do have another job and at times that other job gets in the way of writing and will, on occasion, suck my time away.
Anyway, thank you for understanding and now back to my regularly scheduled Anaheim Ducks drivel.
The Ducks went 0-2-1 on the road since my last post. Anaheim blew a two goal lead in Florida, before getting the snot kicked out of them in Tampa. Ryan Getzlaf missed both games in the Sunshine State with an upper-body injury and his absence was felt.
To me Getz is hands down the best all-around player in Anaheim. Over the last two seasons, Getzlaf has shown, time and time again, that he is the lifeblood of the Ducks. Corey Perry is the team's best sniper, but Getzlaf is the toatal package. (although Getzlaf can appear a wee bit heavy in the skates at times)
-The captain returned to the line-up in 3-2 shootout loss to the 'Canes, but did manage to secure his team leading 13th assist on Perry's 12th goal of the season in the first period of that game. It is remarkable how well those two play together. Now to sound to hokey and all but they do really complete each other's game.
- Both Getzlaf and Perry lead the Ducks in scoring with 23 points and each is averaging over a point a game this season. Not too shabby. They are definitely earning those big contracts up to this point.
- Besides losing Getzlaf, the Ducks have been under siege from a nasty case of the flu. Doing anything is painful when you have the flu. Imagine doing anything on skates while other people are trying to hit you? Most of us call out of work when we have the sniffles...well, except me.
The good news is that the bug seems to have moved along and it always nice to have a couple of days off in between games. The team should be healthy enough when they face the Pens in Pittsburgh on Monday before returning home to host the New Jersey Devils on Wednesday.
- Viktor Fasth is back. He took the SO loss in Carolina the other night stopping 21 of 23 shots. He did allow the Canes to go 2 for 3 in the exhibition round however. Fasth has been limited to just five games because of injuries and the Ducks ridiculous riches of talent in net.
Realistically with the emergence of Frederik Andersen plus Fasth and Jonas Hiller, the Ducks have sort of a 1/1A/1AA situation in net...if that's even possible.
- Teemu Selanne's farewell tour is - and don't take this the wrong way - turning out to be more like watching a sad funeral procession.
The 43-year-old's scoreless drought have reached seven games and his goalless drought is into double-digits at 10 games. I'm hoping a little home cooking serves old Teemu well. Anaheim has a couple of games at the Honda Center this week.
DID YOU KNOW: Selanne has scored 477 of his 678 career goals at the Honda Center, including his only three this season.
***
Anaheim makes a trade!
Ducks Acquire Blacker and two 2014 Draft Picks from Toronto in Exchange for Holland and Staubitz Ducks acquire Toronto’s 2014 third-round pick and reacquire the team’s original 2014 seventh-round pick.The Ducks have acquired defenseman Jesse Blacker and third-round and seventh-round selections in the 2014 NHL Entry Draft from Toronto in exchange for center Peter Holland and right wing Brad Staubitz. The third-round pick becomes a second-round selection should certain conditions be met. The 2014 seventh-round pick returns to Anaheim after originally being sent to Toronto with right wing Ryan Lasch in exchange for center David Steckel.
I guess I can say I'm a bit surprised, but I'm not. Although many of us believed Peter Holland would be part of the Ducks future, others didn't...namely the teams management. Holland had one goal in four games with Anaheim this season before being dealt. Having a very rich farm system can be both a blessing and a curse. While it's nice to have so many NHL caliber players - finding all of them playing time isn't.
In return the Ducks get a decent young defenseman. Blacker was growing within the Leafs organization but hadn't been able to make the leap out of the AHL. His future seems promising and grooming a young, mobile defenseman in your system is never a bad thing.
Talent analysis courtesy of Hockey's Future -
A solid talent with a ton of tools at his disposal, Blacker is a top end skater which allows him to cover his mistakes and also jump into the rush. His offensive ability hasn’t translated much into the pros, but he does show flashes on occasion. Defensively, he’s come along well and has been used in penalty killing situations. Issues with Blacker surround his ability to play at a high level consistently. He can also be prone to mental lapses; be it missed plays or a costly penalty.
***
Thank you for reading!
Follow me on Twitter! @StevePalumboHTW
On Facebook at StevePalumboNHL
Email me at StevePalumboNHL@gmail.com