Baltic Gal
Moderator
Ducks VS Islanders
11/05/2014
In Anaheim, CA
@ 7:30PM Pacific Time
Preview:
11/05/2014
In Anaheim, CA
@ 7:30PM Pacific Time
Preview:
League-Leading Ducks Return Home to Face Struggling Islanders
ISLANDERS (6-5-0) at DUCKS (10-3-0)
TV: FOX SPORTS WEST, MSG PLUS
The Latest: The Anaheim Ducks (10-3-0, 20 pts.) open a four-game homestand Wednesday against the New York Islanders at Honda Center (7:30 p.m. PDT, FOX Sports West, AM 830). The Ducks, who became the first team to 10 wins and 20 standings points this season, have won 10 of their last 12 games (10-2-0) and five of six on the road (5-1-0). Through 11 games, Anaheim has tied for the most victories and allowed the fewest goals (22) in club history. The team is also tied for the most road wins through seven games at 5-2-0 (also 2012-13, 2008-09, 2006-07). The club ranks tied for eighth among NHL teams in penalty kill percentage (85.4) and has not yielded an opponent power-play goal in the last three games (12-for-12 in penalty kill situations).
Following tonight's contest, the Ducks will stay in Southern California for 14 days with six games at Honda Center and one against the Los Angeles Kings at Staples Center. In total, the Ducks will play eight home games in November, tied with January for their busiest month of the season at Honda Center.
Ducks-Islanders: The Ducks and Islanders open a two-game season series Wednesday at Honda Center. The Ducks have won three straight games over the Islanders and four consecutive at home dating to March 19, 2010 (5-4 overtime victory), both team records. Anaheim is 11-10-5 all-time vs. the Isles, including a 6-4-4 mark at Honda Center. Dany Heatley leads active Ducks skaters in career scoring vs. the Islanders, collecting 14-13=27 points in 28 games. These two teams will next meet on March 28 in New York for the season series finale at Nassau Coliseum (10 a.m. PDT).
Ducks team scope: Anaheim became the first team to reach double figures in victories by beating the Colorado Avalanche 3-2 on Sunday behind emergency starter Jason LaBarbera, who made 16 saves. LaBarbera got the start becauseFrederik Andersen couldn't play because of tightness in his leg and John Gibson was injured in warmups. The Ducks said Tuesday that Gibson will miss about six weeks with a groin injury and recalled Igor Bobkov from Norfolk of the American Hockey League.
Andersen skated at practice Tuesday and hopes to be able to play. "We want to make sure nothing is wrong," he said. "We want to make sure everything is where we want to be. It felt better today than it did this weekend. We'll see how it goes." Ducks head coach Bruce Boudreau said LaBarbera will start if Andersen can't play. LaBarbera welcomed the off day on Monday after playing three games in three nights over the weekend, two in Norfolk and one with the Ducks in Denver. “I got out of bed to get a Halloween costume, and then I went back to bed,” he said. “I got up around 11 in the morning, had lunch and then went back to bed until around six o’clock at night.”
On facing adversity, Boudreau says it's time for the team to rise to the occasion. “We have to suck it up,” he said. “I don’t see anybody crying for Columbus or other teams that have a lot of injuries right now. We have to do what we have to do, and we have to pick it up.
“You just have to deal with the adversity and if you take it as a challenger rather than a ‘Woe is me,’ you come away from it OK.”
Islanders team scope: After a three-day break, the Islanders bring a three-game losing streak to Southern California for the first of two games in as many nights; they visit the Los Angeles Kings on Thursday. New York has lost three in a row and five of seven after beginning the season with four consecutive victories. That includes a 3-1 loss to the San Jose Sharks on Saturday that dropped them to 0-2-0 on their five-game road trip. Defense has been a problem for the Islanders for most of the season. New York is in the bottom five in goals allowed with 39 in 11 games. However, the return of Travis Hamonic against the Sharks enabled the Islanders to play with their top-six defensemen all in the lineup for the first time this season, and the difference on the ice was noticeable. "We’re pretty confident in what we have back there," Hamonic told the team website. "We have a really solid [defense] corps and we have the depth now that we hadn't had in a long time. We all feel we can do the job."
Who the watch: Dany Heatley leads active Ducks skaters in career scoring vs. the Islanders, collecting 14-13=27 points in 28 games.
Corey Perry, who was named NHL’s First Star for the Month of October (Player of the Month), has 11 goals in 13 games this season, the most ever scored by an Anaheim player at this stage of a season. Perry currently leads the NHL in goals, ranks tied for third in power-play goals (4) and ranks fifth in points. Perry has nine points (3g/6a) in nine games vs. NYI.
Ryan Getzlaf, who is tied for fifth in the NHL in assists (11), has six multi-point games this season and ranks second on the Ducks with 14 points (3g/11a). Getzlaf recorded a hat trick and finished with four points in Anaheim’s 5-3 road victory against the Islanders last season, and has seven points (4g/3a) in nine career games vs. NYI.
John Tavares had multi-point games in each of the Islanders' first four games (2g/7a) from October 10-16. Tavares has six points (2g/4a) in six career games vs. Anaheim.
Kyle Okposo opened the season with a four-game point streak (2g/5a) from October 10-16 and had a four-game point streak (1g/3a) from October 21-28. Okposo has four goals and five points in five games vs. Anaheim.
In the circle: Anaheim enters tonight's game with the league’s fifth-best faceoff win percentage (53.2%) after finishing last season tied for 19th. Getzlaf ranks seventh among NHL leaders in faceoffs (58.0%) and Ryan Kesler is currently tied for 27th (53.9%). Nate Thompson is the third Anaheim center with a faceoff win percentage higher than 50%, coming in at 52.0%.
Behind the bench: Boudreau, who appeared in his 200th game with the Ducks on October 31 at Dallas, owns a 121-58-22 record in 201 games with Anaheim. On March 2, 2014 vs. Carolina, Boudreau became the fastest Ducks coach to 100 victories in 169 career games. With an all-time record of 322-146-62 in 530 career NHL games, Boudreau leads active NHL coaches in win (points) percentage with a .666 mark (min. 100 games).
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