Ducks, Jets expect playoff series to get more physical
The teams combined for 83 hits in Game 1 and think the number will increase.
After it is all done, after they shake hands, will everyone involved in this DucksJets series look like Michael Frolik?
The affable Jets winger was wearing Game 1. A puffy eye and some stitches were the accessories from Winnipeg’s 4-2 loss to Anaheim on Thursday in the Western Conference quarterfinals.
“That’s playoff hockey,” said Frolik, standing in the hallway at Honda Center on Friday. “There’s going to be a lot of bruises, cuts. That’s part of the game. If you’re going to win the game, you’re going to have to pay the price.”
Hitting, not dancing, in the opinion of Ducks Coach Bruce Boudreau. “I don’t think Winnipeg or us are going to turn into a bunch of ballerinas,” Boudreau said.
There were a combined 83 hits in the series opener with the Ducks holding a 46-37 edge. Anaheim finished strongly, outhitting the Jets, 14-5, in the final 20 minutes.
The consensus in both locker rooms was that the number of hits would increase, rather than decrease, as the series moves forward. Game 2 is at Honda Center on Saturday night. Why not triple digits? “I’m sure it could get closer to 100 by the end of this series,” Ducks forward Matt Beleskey said. “It’s just the way playoffs are. That’s the way they play, the way we play and it’s going to be fun.”
Said Ducks defenseman Francois Beauchemin: “No, if anything, it might be more physical. It’s only going to get harder as the series goes on. We’ve just got to make sure we’re ready for it, ready to respond the right way and try to stay out of the box as much as we can.
“As long as we play five on five we’ve got better chances to win, and that will be a key for us.”
Frolik, for one, was lacame menting the outcome of the third-period penalty he took. He went off for boarding Ducks defenseman Clayton Stoner and Ducks captain Ryan Getzlaf converted on the power play, at 16:55, to make it 4-2.
“I don’t think it was really anything dirty,” Frolik said. “I think he just tried to play the puck and I just tried to finish my check. Those kind of things happen and I definitely felt bad. But I think you don’t want to take away those kind of hits from the game.”
Not all hits are created equal. Ducks wing Chris Wagner made an impact in his NHL playoff debut, putting up four hits in less than 10 minutes of ice time.
He had a funny line when it to confronting the likes of the mountain known as Dustin Byfuglien of the Jets.
“I took a pretty good run at him and I think he barely moved,” Wagner said. “Hitting a brick wall, pretty much.”
Wagner said he was not nervous but excited for his playoff debut.
“That was probably one of the most comfortable games I felt since I’ve been up here,” he said. “My legs felt good and my whole body felt good. I felt pretty calm, I guess, would be the word.”
Game 1 was almost tougher on his family and friends on the East Coast. Wagner is from Wellesley, Mass.
“Some people sleeping in on the East Coast today,” he said. “The 10:30 games kill them.”
Not much is expected to change for Game 2. The one potential tweak could come from the Jets side. Center Mathieu Perreault, the former Duck, took part in Friday’s optional skate in the afternoon. Winnipeg Coach Paul Maurice offered no update regarding Perreault’s status and had considered him a game-time decision leading into the opener.
Perreault had 18 goals and 41 points with the Jets this season and sat out the final game of the regular season because of a lower-body injury suffered April 9 at Colorado.