Page 4 January 18, 2018
Ducks Win
Battle of SoCal Hockey
By Adam Serrao
For now, though it may even only last
a week, the Anaheim Ducks have earned
bragging rights over the Los Angeles Kings.
With a 4-2 victory against their rivals last
Saturday night, the Ducks came out feisty
and ready to assert their dominance. That’s
exactly what they did. The Kings may indeed
be the better team in the standings, even with
the loss last week. Anaheim walked right into
Staples Center, however, and proved that it
is currently the team containing more fight.
Speaking of fight, there was plenty of it to
go around on the ice last week in Los Angeles.
Before even three minutes could tick off of
the game clock, the Freeway Faceoff rivals
would drop the gloves to go at it, as everyone
might have expected. What most may not have
expected, though, was that it would happen
two more times on each ensuing faceoff after
that. “That’s good hockey right there,” Ducks
captain Ryan Getzlaf explained. “That’s just
guys who are sticking up for each other. It
was good to see it on both sides.”
Perhaps nothing encapsulates a Ducks vs.
Kings game more than three fights taking place
over the course of four seconds of clock time
in front of a sold-out Staples Center crowd on
a Saturday night. Despite who landed more
physical blows to their opponent, Anaheim
proved to be the team to come out with more
fight in the game. With two goals in the first
period of play, the Ducks jumped out to a
big lead and took the air out of the building.
Though Los Angeles fought back late, the
damage had already been done as the Kings
were unable to mount a comeback after being
down 3-0 in the third period of play.
“It was obviously an emotional game,”
Kings captain Anze Kopitar said. “The start
was physical. With three fights in a row,
everybody got fired up pretty quick. I think
the first 40 minutes on our part were not to
the level that we want to play. Third period
we’re playing catch-up and with desperation,
which we should do the first two periods.”
Los Angeles didn’t end opposing goalie John
Gibson’s shutout bid until the third quarter
when Nick Shore snapped his 27-game goal
drought. Just a few minutes later, Kopitar would
scratch on a one-timer for his 18th goal of
the year to make things a bit interesting for
the first time all night. It was Corey Perry,
however, who would crush the hopes of the
Kings and their fans as he flung the puck
into an empty net from 170 feet away in a
play that proved to be a microcosm of the
Kings’ entire night.
The loss marked the third straight for L.A.
– a team that is once again falling victim to
what looks to be another rollercoaster type of
season. “I thought we had a lot of guys who
showed up ready for the physical challenge
-- we had some guys that didn’t,” Kings
coach John Stevens explained postgame.
“It cost us. It’s a good lesson for us. We
cannot win a game like that unless we have
everybody, and we needed more tonight.” The
Kings are going to need more if they wish
to stay near the top of the Pacific Division
standings. Since Dec. 1, Los Angeles ranks
dead last in the NHL in shots per game.
The Kings had 25 against the Ducks in
the game one week ago, but will certainly
need to manufacture much more offense in
the coming weeks as the schedule will only
continue to get harder and harder.
“I think both teams understand the
implications of these games,” Stevens went
on to say. “I think everybody’s coming to
the game knowing that the chips are on the
table and everybody’s going to be all in.”
The Kings will have to be all in the next
time they take on the Ducks, with a rematch
that just so happens to be this week. The
Ducks aren’t the only daunting team coming
up on the schedule for L.A., though, as the
Kings will also face off against the likes of
the Calgary Flames, Nashville Predators and
Tampa Bay Lightning in the coming weeks.
After winning the last five consecutive
Pacific Division titles, this season has been
somewhat trying for a Ducks team that
has been forced to deal with their share
of injuries to start the year. The team’s
victory against L.A. put it just four points
behind the Kings for second place in the
standings. With Anaheim’s history of great
play late in the season, one would have to
think that the Ducks are right where they
want to be heading into the latter portion
of the schedule.
The Kings, on the other hand, must get back
down to the details, eliminate self-inflicted
wounds and eradicate their tentative play
at the beginning of games. If Los Angeles
can learn to consistently put together three
periods in a row of high-intensity play, ditch
the rollercoaster and get back to winning,
then their playoff chances will certainly be
looking bright. For now, though, the Ducks
not only have bragging rights, but also
seemingly have all of the momentum that
they need moving forward into the second
half of the season.
– Aserrao6@yahoo.com | @UpandAdam6
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