Ducks make a trade
Today the Ducks acquired left wing Rene Bourque from Montreal in exchange for defenseman Bryan Allen. The deal should be good for both players who could each benefit from a change in scenery. Allen, who was the odd man out when everyone was healthy, had been passed on the depth chart by rookie Josh Manson recently. His Ducks “swan song… the past few games signaled the the pending end to the Anaheim portion of his career.
Rene Bourque is a gritty, hard hitting forward. He had his own issues recently in Montreal and had fallen out of favor with the coaching staff. When healthy, he is an agitator with a good offensive upside. Think Tim Jackman with the ability to score goals.
Game night in Vancouver
The Ducks look to right their leaky ship tonight as they face the Canucks in Vancouver. Ryan Kesler spent 10 season in Vancouver until his trade to the Ducks in the offseason. It will be interesting to see how the crowd reacts to him tonight.
Francois Beauchemin returns to Anaheim's lineup and will rejoin his usual defense partner, Hampus Lindholm. Devante Smith-Pelly also returns to action and he will start the game on the 4th line. William Karlsson is still out with flu-like symptoms and Tim Jackman is a healthy scratch. Tonight's lineup should look like:
Forwards Maroon-Getzlaf-Perry Beleskey-Kesler-Palmieri Cogliano-Rakell-Sifverberg Etem-Thompson-DSP
Defense Fowler-Vatanen Beauchemin-Lindholm Stoner-Manson
Goalie Andersen LaBarbera