THE MATCHUP
Anaheim Ducks: 46-23-13, 1st in Pacific
Calgary Flames: 45-33-4, 4th in Pacific
Anaheim: In Randy Carlyle’s second stint in Orange County as head coach, the Ducks seemed to have been infused with new energy, playing a fast and physical style of play. But when it comes to the Flames, there also is a revenge factor here for Anaheim. In the final regular-season meeting between the two teams on April 4, the Ducks were livid when the knee-on-knee hit by Flames captain Mark Giordano knocked Anaheim defenceman Cam Fowler out of the lineup for two to six weeks with a sprained right knee. With the no-nonsense Carlyle as their coach, the Ducks aren’t going to forget that incident.
Calgary: To see uber-skilled youngsters like Johnny Gaudreau, Sean Monahan and Matthew Tkachuk in the playoffs is not only a positive for a Flames management team that wants to see these kids keep developing, but also for hockey fans who get to watch this cache of up-and-coming stars. Unfortunately for Calgary fans, if the Flames cannot break The Curse of the Honda Center, they won’t be around long. The Ducks have beaten Calgary an astounding 25 consecutive times during the regular season in Anaheim, dating back to 2004. The Flames have a single win over that stretch, in Game 1 of the 2006 playoff series, which the Ducks won in seven. With Anaheim holding home-ice advantage, Calgary will have to win at least one more game at The Pond in order to advance.
Who wins? The Ducks have the perfect mix of hustle and muscle to go deep into the postseason this spring. A slumping Corey Perry finally seems to be finding his scoring touch late in the season, while ex-Dallas Stars forward Patrick Eaves was one of the best tradedeadline pickups made by any team. The young Flames are on the upswing; we’re just not optimistic this is their year. Ducks in 6.
Season series: Ducks, 4-1- 0 All- time playoff series: Ducks lead 2- 0
Anaheim’s key player: F Corey Perry. Perry finished the regular season one goal shy of the 20 plateau, but can make up for his off-year by driving the Flames crazy, both with his offence and with his shenanigans.
Calgary’s key player: G Brian Elliott. A mid-season swoon had the loyal Calgary fanbase sweating — and rightly so — but Elliott was back in form down the stretch. He’ll need to be just as good with Perry standing on his doorstep for much of the series.
Ducks lineup
Patrick Eaves, Ryan Getzlaf, Rickard Rakell
Andrew Cogliano, Ryan Kesler, Jakob Silfverberg
Corey Perry, Antoine Vermette, Nick Ritchie
Chris Wagner, Nate Thompson, Logan Shaw
Defensive pairings
Kevin Bieksa, Sami Vatanen Josh Manson, Shea Theodore Korbinian Holzer, Brandon Montour
Goalies
John Gibson Jonathan Bernier
Flames lineup
Matthew Tkachuk, Mikael Backlund, Michael Frolik
Micheal Ferland, Sean Monahan, Johnny Gaudreau
Alex Chiasson, Sam Bennett, Kris Versteeg
Lance Bouma, Matt Stajan, Troy Brouwer
Defensive pairings
Mark Giordano, Dougie Hamilton TJ Brodie, Michael Stone Deryk Engelland, Matt Bartkowski
Goalies
Brian Elliott Chad Johnson