Posts Tagged ‘Matt Beleskey’

Post game injury report

Posted: 04/03/2013 by bc in Uncategorized
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First, the captain is okay. “He got hurt a little bit, came back out,” Coach Boudreau said. “When he scored the goal I said ‘That’s it for you, let’s rest it here.’ That’s why he went back in to get it iced. He’s sore. He’s going to be OK but he’s sore.”

If you saw the stick Matt Beleskey took to the eye, oh man, I worried he lost his eye. Turns out,  “It’s another black eye for the season, I guess,” Beleskey joked after the game. “It’s all good, just some stitches. I got lucky it didn’t hit my actual eyeball. How it wasn’t a penalty, I guess they missed that one too. It’s part of the game.”

I wasn’t too worried about Getz’ injury because he didn’t twist the knee but rather went back on it a bit. That usually causes more sprain and strain with swelling symptoms. It’s painful as all get out but recovery is measured in days.

It’s when you twist the joint while putting the pressure of your own weight on it is when you suffer the pops that are diagnosed as torn ligaments. So yeah, credit an excellent athletic feat by Ryan Getzlaf and his incredible strength to maintain while all of his momentum was forcing the weight of his body to go against the natural movement of his knee-joint.

I suppose we should all call Getz out for stepping on the stick in the first place, (((DOH))) One second klutz the next he’s Michelle Kwan.

We dodged a couple of bullets tonight.

Ducks believe at mid-season – Part I

Posted: 03/11/2013 by bc in Uncategorized
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At the mid-point you have to say that 18-3-3 is no longer a great start. It’s a great half-season. In an 82 game schedule our Ducks would be just rounding the quarter pole. The season is different. It’s a sprint rather than a grind.

At the team barbecue last summer Ryan Getzlaf talked about it taking a team to win. On the day he signed his new contract Bob Murray talked about how Getz has grown into the role of captain. No doubt Ryan Getzlaf is now showing the promise of realized potential. If it weren’t for that pesky Sidney Crosby, Getz would or should be the leading Hart/MVP candidate.

As he said himself, it takes a team to win. While Ryan Getzlaf is the most dominant force our send over the boards, he is only part of what makes this Ducks team the most successful, in terms of won/lost record.

The goaltending tandem of Jonas Hiller and Viktor Fasth have kept our Ducks in games and given them a chance to win every time out.

“It’s a 180 degree turn from last season,” Hiller noted, “Last year we played not to lose. This season we’re playing to win.”

Playing to win is an attitude missing from our Ducks since the 2009-10 season. That Cup team had a swagger to it. This team is more humble. It’s a quiet confidence reinforced by the belief in a record of 18-3-3 and trust in your teammates.

Our Ducks Cup team played aggressive in your face hockey. As the brash Chris Pronger said of opposing teams and their fans, “(We like to) Send ‘em home cryyyyying.” This team issues a “Show us what you’ve got” challenge then proceed to pick the opposition apart with quick strikes before working the clock and shutting down the opposition.

Getzlaf calls it boring hockey. Purists would agree. To fans, winning is never boring.

Corey Perry deflected the temptation to “think bigger” when prodded by OCR beat reporter Eric Stephens. “I think we take it one game at a time. I mean we’re at the half-way point and we still have a lot of hockey left. If we keep continuing to play the way we are, we’re going to put ourselves in a good position.”

Perry added, “We play our system. Everyone in here knows what’s going on, what they’re role is and adapting to it.”  That sounds remarkably close to Ryan Getzlaf’s summer, “It takes a team” mantra.

Probably the guy most responsible for our ducks newly earned self-confidence is coach Bruce Boudreau. Upon arriving in December of 2011 “Gabby” found a room disheartened as though the life had been sucked out of it, as one former Duck described it.

Coach knew the team had the top end talent to compete with anybody. He set out to find out if the team had the necessary complimentary and supporting role players. Immediately the new coach set about to rolling four lines and spread the TOI more evenly throughout the lineup. Nothing changed in that first month as our Ducks continued to lose. Then along about Christmas of 2011, starting with Saku Koivu and Jonas Hiller and spreading one by one throughout the roster our Ducks began to buy into the new program.

The team went on an incredible run that ended with a thud the moment the trade deadline came and went.

During the financial season GM Bob Murray set about to make our Ducks more like the Big Bad Ducks of the Brian Burke era. The incoming included the underrated Daniel Winnick, a rejuvenated Sheldon Souray, match-up specialist Bryan Allen and enforcer Brad Staubitz.

The last main ingredient is the infusion of youth that Bob Murray either drafted or acquired by trade. The maturation of Nick Bonino and Matt Beleskey as reliable and trusted everyday players, is complimented by the breakthrough of Kyle Palmieri. Luca Sbisa seems to have discovered the secret to consistency. The shuttle from Anaheim to Norfolk is paying dividends as prospects such as Emerson Etem, Peter Holland and Pat Maroon have exhibited measurable growth with every trip to and from.

In part two I’ll take you through the change in the system. An excellent primer is to start here, where Scott Cullen uses advance stats to prove that center lane drives, or carrying the puck over the blue line results in measurably more shots and scoring chances than the dump, chase and cycle attack.

 

Ducks lose another SO point

Posted: 03/04/2013 by bc in Uncategorized
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For the second consecutive game our Ducks failed to protect leads in the third period. Tonight we failed to protect two third period leads. It’s the first sign of adversity our Ducks have been challenged by this season.

Ducks drew first blood at 10:12 of the first period when Matt Beleskey scored on a twisted wrister from the top of the slot.

Antoine Vermette answered fifty-nine seconds into the second. Six and a half minutes later Keith Yandle blasted one past Hiller to put the Coyotes up 2-1. Phoenix continued to dominate the period but somehow failed to build on their lead.

Suddenly, Ryan Getzlaf, who is playing his best hockey since that 26 game stretch and playoff run back in 2009, got to a Corey Perry chip in and fired one past Smith to tie the game.

Right then and there Ducks color-man Brian Hayward calls the goal a momentum changer. a tad premature but Hazy might be telegraphing exactly what is wrong with our Ducks right now.

Corey Perry got the first go ahead goal of the third at 1:56 on a tip in of a Ryan Getzlaf feed. Cam Fowler, who is showing some great reads and decisions on when to join the rush earned the secondary assist on the play.

Just 11 seconds later Ben Lovejoy got caught flat-footed at the blue line and gave up a Doan/Chipchura 2 on 1. Doan buried it behind Hiller for the tie.

Bobby Ryan  put us up with his first goal in 8 games. Once again the Coyotes tied it up just 1:18 later. Our Ducks, bottled up in their zone, turned it over to Chipchura who got it back to Michael Stone at the right point. Stone slapped one through Hiller. The scorekeepers gave it to Stone, then said Matthew Lombardi had tipped it then reversed again giving the goal back to Stone.

Ducks lost two in a row for the time this season. True they got the sister-kisser points for the regulation tie but we have to come expect more from a team off to its best start in franchise history. Such is the impact of rising expectations.

Tonight it looked like we were still congratulating ourselves for taking the lead long after the refs dropped the puck to start the next play. Brian Hayward knows better than to call declare a goal a momentum changer. Momentum change is something you note after the fact, not in the moment.

Turned out Hazy’s foresight was spot on though. Perry put us up 3-2 just inside the third period. And that’s when we went to sleep and let the ‘Yotes tie it back up. Ben Lovejoy may have bought himself a ticket to Norfolk tonight.

And again, we let down after Bobby Ryan’s go ahead goal when a Corey Perry turnover led to the second tying goal of the third period.

Maybe it’s part fatigue. Maybe it’s a result of early success. maybe it’s in part the inability to play solid hockey for 60 minutes. Whatever the cause or reason our Ducks are facing their first adversity of the season. The inability on two consecutive nights to protect a lead in the third period of a hockey game.

It looks like we anticipated outcomes before we actually earned it.

From personal experience I will share that when this happens, even during the game, the player or player’s know it. You have to re-focus. Maybe eat a little humble pie and talking yourself down back into the moment. It’s born of over thinking and expecting the desired outcome forgetting that you first have to earn each and every point.

And yeah, sometimes the Refs drop the puck before you’re quite ready.And yeah, getting ready is the player’s responsibility.

Jonas Hiller accepted responsibility for his part. “Two or three of the goals were bad goals and you want to get them back,” Hiller said. “These things find a way through even though you think you’re there and playing big.”

While our goaltending was troubling in Phoenix, the Coyotes also exposed some slow feet along our blue line. It was the combination that led to the usually low scoring Coyotes offensive surge.

This is the adversity that can make or break a hockey team.

Ducks hang on for win

Posted: 03/01/2013 by bc in Uncategorized
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Ducks dominated period and took a 2 goal lead off a tap in by Ryan Getzlaf and a backhander from about 15 out by Teemu Selanne. The goal was T’s 669 moving him past Luc Robitaille for 11th all time.
Matt Beleskey played perhaps the best game of his career. He toughed out a fight, scored what proved to be the winning goal,  the winner, toughed out a fight with Stoner, blocked 2 hots and recorded 3 hits.

It’s hard to say how or why but after building a 3-zip lead our Ducks rolled up into a shell and played D. It’s something that happens to teams on occasion. There’s no rhyme or reason for it. Coaches hate it and rail against it. It’s unspoken but it’s like a veil comes over the team and they play inside it.

Thank goodness Jonas Hiller was brilliant. If not for Hilly we would have paid a high price for playing half a game. By half a game, we quit forcing the play. We quit forechecking. We sat back and let the Wild attack. We played the defensive half of the game.

Tonight our guys got away with it. Most nights they won’t.

 

Ducks can’t match Kings intensity late

Posted: 02/26/2013 by bc in Uncategorized
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In a game of follow the leader the L.A. Kings picked it up a notch after captain Dustin Brown went top shelf on Viktor Fasth to tie the game at two. The Kings would score twice more during a during a nine minute barrage whereupon they simply raised the tempo and physical compete level.

Our Ducks didn’t match. We didn’t get a bounce during the onslaught. We got into penalty trouble. We got caught running around in our end. Kings just flat-out took over and didn’t let up.

Slava Voynov got wide open in the left face off circle when Matt Beleskey made a bad read and chased the puck. Voynov ripped one 5-hole on Fasth that just had enough velocity to get over the goal line.

Kings continued to dominate beating the Ducks to most if not every loose puck. Kings defender Jake Muzzin took a feed from Anze Kopitar, stepped in from the blue line a few feet, showed some mis-direction faking a cross ice pass to Justin Williams and placed a wrist shot that again beat Fasth high glove side.

A week or so ago, either here or Twitter I began questioning Fasth’s soft 5-hole and top shelf exposure. Tonight the Kings showed that they saw it too and exploited it. Now and going forward we’ll begin to learn if Viktor Fasth is real deal or not. Great goalies improve in their weak areas. you can expect Fasth to be tested 5-hole and top shelf during at least the next few games.

This was also a game where our best players were not the best players on the ice last night. We got the secondary or depth scoring from Cogliano and Koivu but nothing from the big four and nothing from blue line. Kings got 3 assists from Anze Kopitar and goals from Brown and Jeff Carter.

In the middle of 5 games in 7 days, Ducks have absolutely no time to dwell on this one. Next up are the Nashville Predators who are struggling of late.

Postgame: Columbus 2 Anaheim 3

Posted: 02/18/2013 by bc in Uncategorized
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Did anybody else miss Phil Hulett call “AnaheimDucksGoaaaaaaaaaal” while the guys were on the road? We marvel at the stamina of our Ducks grinding out 6 games in 11 days. Quietly and without as much fanfare, Hulett leaves the Honda Center PA booth, catches a few zzzz’s and awakes the Southland at 5:00AM from the broadcast studio at KFWB. The guy is a stone cold pro.

Our Ducks started out flat-footed against a spirited effort by the game Blue Jackets. It’s a good thing Jonas Hiller got to work on time because the shots were 9-0 Columbus at the 7:05 mark of the first period.

A hockey newbie could see Jonas was fighting the puck a bit in his first start in ten days. Like Hulett, Hilly looked like a another unassuming pro just doing his job. He battled through, relied on his teammates when a less seasoned goalie might have tried to do too much. And as Coach Boudreau said after the game, “He made saves that are impossible to make.”

Blue Jackets were first on the scoreboard when former Duck Vinnie Prospal got in behind the D to Hiller’s glove side. Prospal stopped a puck with his head that rebounded off his glove and he somehow managed to tip in off his stick. It’s a new on me. I’ve never seen a tic tac toe goal scored by just one guy.

Peter Holland got it back for his first of the year. It was a PPG that started when Ben Lovejoy pickpocketed the puck off a Blue Jacket, head-manned the Bobby Ryan who hit Holland leaping out of the sin bin. The rookie went in alone on Bobrovsky and wristed one through the Blue Jackets goaltender.

And then, just 21 seconds later Ryan Getzlaf would battle not one but two Blue Jackets in succession along the boards. Getzy came out with the puck and executed a crisp give and go with Matt Beleskey who well was positioned above the hash marks. When Getzlaf got it back he fought off Blue Jacket protecting the puck with his body, then another and finally using that long reach deposited the biscuit in the Columbus.

It’s a goal that defines Ryan Getzlaf as much that goal two seasons ago in Nashville defined the talent of Bobby Ryan.

Corey Perry scored the winner in typical Corey Perry fashion. He’s battling in the low slot, slashed, gashed, bashed and trashed, finds the puck, elects to shoot rather than pass across the crease and as puck goes into the net Perry is dumped head over heels onto his butt against the end boards. As Perry gets to his feet, shaking off the effects of the abuse, ever-present infectious Perry grin. Remember the kid on your block who you could beat on all day long and he’d just laugh at ya and frustrate ya? Meet Corey Perry.

Our Ducks will be taking a day or two off before heading back to work Thursday. I’m going to join them. Enjoy the break.

 

The day after six games in eleven days

Posted: 02/17/2013 by bc in Uncategorized
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Viktor Fasth is earning converts with every game. Every goalie competes with the guy at the other end of the rink. Last night Fasth was one shootout save better than Pekka Rinne, arguably the best goalie in the world right now.

Fasth is a perfect 8-0, 1.78 GAA and a SP of .933. Good enough to share the league in wins with Montreal’s Carey Price. Good enough for a league 7th best GAA among goalies who have played 4 or more games. His SP is 8th best among goalies who have played 4 or more games.

Obviously he’s become a solid Top Ten goalie in the NHL from the get go. He brings intangibles such as a calm composure and patience. Among the first things all goaltenders are taught is to wait for the shooter to make the first move. This gives him preemptive save ability. He pressures the shooter to go first.

I’ve noticed of late opposing teams are starting to go upstairs consistently on him. This is also true of all great goalies of this generation. It also plays into our Ducks NHL 7th best shot blocking record. It’s much easier for a player to block a high shot than a lower shot.

Last night was all about Fasth and the no-quit effort of the team in front of him.

Notes: Matt Beleskey has been giving Ryan Getzlaf a mid-slot passing target of late and it is paying off. Let’s hope The Twins have finally found a winger. Right now the job is Matty’s to lose, though Gabby is quick with the hook…Peter Holland is looking closer and closer to making the squad as a top six forward. He didn’t look out of place during two games with Ryan and Selanne….Ducks have 9 players with 4 or more goals 13 games into the season. More to come…

 

Postgame: Anaheim 5 Detroit 2

Posted: 02/15/2013 by bc in Uncategorized
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One marker in a successful season is when a team begins to do things it hasn’t done of late. In other words, successful teams begin exorcise their demons. Until tonight our Ducks hadn’t won a game in Detroit since February 10, 2008. Our Ducks teams have been a woeful 2-25-1 in our last 28 games at the Joe.

As has begun to define these Ducks in this special season it was a come from behind win. Jimmy Howard stood on his ear while stopping 14 Ducks shots in the first twenty minutes of play. The Red Wings responded with six shots. The difference, eight shots, is indicative of the wide territorial advantage our Ducks earned throughout the game. Howard was particularly sharp while robbing Ryan Getzlaf point-blank with a stunning glove save.

Detroit scored first at 3:01 of the second when Joakim Anderson wristed one over Viktor Fasth’s elbow. Our Ducks responded 26 ticks later when Matt Beleskey took a no look behind the back feed from Ryan Getzlaf and blew one past Howard.

Ducks continued to press but Howard stood tall. With Peter Holland in the sin bin for delay of game, Tomas Tatar swung into a juicy rebound that rested six feet out center slot.  Detroit’s second lead would last for 1:05 when a Matt Beleskey rebound deflected off a Detroit player’s broken stick that Corey Perry snagged and tucked in around a sprawling Jimmy Howard. It was Perry’s first goal in regulation or overtime in twelve games.

The second would end locked at 2 all.

The no quit Ducks continued to press in the third and got rewarded for the efforts.  At 1:02 Andrew Cogliano tipped in a slick Saku Koivu for his third goal in three straight games. Forty-eight seconds later Bobby Ryan went to his to paste his own rebound through the Detroit netminder.

Ducks then went to work on the clock. They frustrated Detroit by getting to and controlling loose pucks, intercepting first pass after first pass forcing the Red Wings to play deep in its own end.

Andrew Cogliano put the game out of reach when Ryan Getzlaf forced a neutral zone turnover and Corey Perry pushed the puck to Cogs who turned on the jets creating space between himself and Wings defender Niklas Kronwall before scoring into the open net.

The game might have been a laffer if not for the heroic play of Wings goalie Jimmy Howard.

Our Ducks take their 4-1 road trip record into Nashville for the final game of Anaheim’s longest away stretch of the season.

Post Game: Minnesota 1 Anaheim 3

Posted: 02/01/2013 by bc in Uncategorized
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Another great effort by a team that keeps its feet moving. Good things happen when you keep the legs moving. This is three solid games in a row. Skating is the basis for our Ducks success to date.

When you’re skating, you’re advancing the play. You’re moving forward and less likely to stop, retaliate and take a stupid penalty. It goes hand in hand.

Following effort, the trust Coach is showing in his players as well as what he’s asking of them is paying dividends. Fowler and Vatanen manning the points on the PP in the waning minutes of a 1 goal game? Sheldon Souray logging more time on the PK (1:15) than on the PP (0.57) Really? The Twins killing the waning seconds of penalties? Bobby Ryan moves back to center and his line produces all 3 goals. Ryan Getzlaf is team leader in FO%. Our checking line is one part smooth, one part speed and one part grit. Not the usual grind it out checking line.

By trusting his players and expecting them to perform in all situations is what leads to the effort and result we witnessed tonight, and in recent games. Coach Boudreau is asking our guys to be complete players. Obviously, they are responding.  Our Ducks were so dominant hockey’s hottest line was held without a shot on goal until a PP late in the third.

As Gabby has said, 3 consecutively consistent games is too soon to make conclusions. Let’s see if they can do it through a very demanding stretch in the schedule, which is upcoming. Three consistent games is a start. It’s also three games in seven days with little travel.

The defense is consistent. The offense right now is a different line every week or game. Tonight it was Ryan-Palmieri-Selanne who lit the lamp. Jeez though, if not for miracles performed by Saint Backstrom between the Wild pipes, Beleskey, Etem, Bonino and Fowler would have scored goals too.

As with each of our Ducks recent games the score was closer than the scoring chances and territorial play indicate. IF they can keep it up, we’re in for an exciting and successful season.

 

Ducks after five

Posted: 01/30/2013 by bc in Uncategorized
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There’s simply no arguing with success. Ducks are 3-1-1 with a .700 P%. while it’s totally unrealistic to expect our guys to maintain that torrid pace, it isn’t too early for some point form impressions:

Even Strength Dominance:

Ducks have earned a noticeable territorial advantage in play, eve including the humiliating 5-0 bad joke performance in the home opener. Primary reasons include a surprisingly 50.3 in FO%. Hockey is easier when start with the puck more often.
Another is the guys are buying into Coach Boudreau’s system. The forwards are coming back in support of the D. This makes for an all important shorter gap between the forwards and D. This helps in a couple-few areas; (1) match or outnumber the opposition at the puck more often, (2) We’re picking up more loose pucks, (3) Shorter passes in transition from defense to offense, (4) in the o-zone, we’re playing and executing 3rd man. Notice the more ticks on the clock between the departure of Randy Carlyle and the arrival of Bruce Boudreau that cz posts less often about us putting 3 guys below red line in the o-zone? This is why! we’re playing 3rd man high. It’s also why we have a guy coming back in support when we commit a turnover.
The team is making the transition from Randy Carlyle to Bruce Boudreau.
This isn’t to suggest you won’t see a Hail Mary pass or one of the Big D stepping up in the neutral and rocking the world of oncoming opposition rusher or even attempts at pressuring the puck carrier. The difference between RC and BB is we don’t try to manufacture those long shot plays. How we pressure and support the puck is radically different. Frankly, Gabby’s is the more traditional approach.

We’re bigger faster stronger than our Ducks of last season. Daniel Winnick is the closest thing to Sammy Pahlsson or Rob Neidermayer we’ve had in Anaheim since they departed. BTW, Pahlsson signed a 3 year contract with MODO of the Swedish Elite League last June. Winnick is exactly what we hoped for in Brad Winchester. Souray and Allen have put the snarl back on the blue line.

Individual efforts:

Ryan Getzlaf is moving his feet and dominating slot to slot.

Viktor Fasth, for one game at least, provided the solid backup goalkeeping missing last season.

Rickard Rakell looks like a keeper and may move up the depth chart or earn more TOI as the season rolls along.

We may have a Kid Line, which are always fun, in Rakell-Palmieri-Etem.

Matt Beleskey is looking more and more like the complete hockey player I hoped he’d become. Like Winnick and Kunitz, Homey’s game doesn’t change regardless of where he’s put in the lineup.

While the results aren’t showing yet, Corey Perry is buzzing around the opposition net and making things happen in the 0-zone. It’s only a matter of time.

Another in the not seeing the results show up in his offensive stats department is the steady play of Cam Fowler. We’ll take plus/minus 0 as a huge improvement.

Speaking of Cam, give some credit to the quietly and less noticeably effective play of Bryan Allen.

Between the individual efforts and more traditional positional structure we can count on most of the above impressions to be a staple of this condensed season.

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