I guess it doesn't really matter who you throw between the pipes these days for the Anaheim Ducks - they'll find a way to win anyway.
Bruce Boudreau opted to go with Jonas Hiller, over an undefeated Viktor Fasth, against the Columbus Blue Jackets and his team earned their twelfth victory in 15 games.
Corey Perry scored the game winning goal with under 10 minutes to go in the third. It was the All-Star wingers third goal of the season and second in the last three games. It was also his second game-winning goal of the season. His first came way back in the Ducks opening night rout of the Vancouver Canucks.
Winners of five straight and nine of 10, Anaheim is tied with the Chicago Blackhawks for most wins in the NHL with 12 and are just two point behind the Hawks for most overall points. The Ducks now have points in 13 of 15 games this season and are clearly one of the biggest surprises of the season - if not the biggest surprise.
Hiller was solid in winning his first game back from a lower-body injury, stopping 22 of 24 shots to improves to 4-2-1 on the year.
Through all the great story lines for the Ducks in this young season, (Daniel Winnik, Teemu Selanne, Sheldon Souray, Viktor Fasth, etc.) what stands out the most to me is the brilliance in which head coach Bruce Boudreau and his coaching staff are pushing all the right buttons.
A season after the Kings win the Stanley Cup and the Ducks limped to another missed playoff birth, the expectations for this season were optimistic, but much lower than in previous years. But, now the Ducks, backed by a brilliant and sometimes goofy coach have the rest of the NHL looking up at them.
Boudreau has seamlessly shuffled his lines and moved players in and out of the lineup and the Ducks still continue to roll. He has used 25 different players and 20 of them have at least a point.
He recently moved Matt Beleskey up to the first line with Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry - the result? Beleskey scored goals in consecutive games. He puts Patrick Maroon in the lineup to give a tired body a rest and what happens? Maroon scores his first NHL goal. He
His willingness to try different things is what has the Ducks playing their best hockey since the Stanley Cup season of 2006-07 and if they are going to keep playing at this pace he will have to keep thinking outside of the box. Somehow I don't think he has a problem with that though.
When asked about how he assembled the line of Andrew Cogliano, Daniel Winnik and Kyle Palmieri and now the insertion of Beleskey on the top line, Boudreau quipped,
"You just do what you think will work at that time. It makes sense," "but I can't be counted on to always do sensible things."
I have no problem with that, it makes perfect sense to me. A win is a win and that is the only thing that matters for the Ducks and their fans and at this point I see Bruce as a shoe-in for his second Jack Adams award (his first was in 2008 with Washington.)
Why not? that seems to be the only thing that makes sense for Anaheim this season.
San Jose Sharks Blogger • 
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