Ducks struggle in neutral zone, misplays cost them chances. Senators' strong forecheck and puck possession shut down Anaheim's offense.
The Anaheim Ducks continued their four-game road trip with a matinee matchup against the Ottawa Senators on Saturday.
The Ducks entered in first place in the Pacific Division, but were coming off a 6-4 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs, where special teams proved to be the deciding factor in the outcome.
The Sens saw their three-game winning streak snapped on Wednesday and were five points back in the race for the second wild card spot in the Eastern Conference.
The Ducks were without their captain, Radko Gudas, who was serving the first game of a five-game suspension for kneeing Leafs’ captain, Auston Matthews, on Thursday. John Carlson and Troy Terry remained out of the Ducks’ lineup, and Frank Vatrano was re-inserted on the fourth line after serving two straight games as a healthy scratch.
Here’s how the Ducks lined up to start this game:
Kreider-Carlsson-Gauthier
McTavish-Granlund-Sennecke
Killorn-Poehling-Viel
Vatrano-Washe-Harkins
LaCombe-Trouba
Zellweger-Moore
Mintyukov-Helleson
Ville Husso was given the start in this game, the first of a back-to-back, with Lukas Dostal likely receiving the start on Sunday. Husso saved 27 of the 29 shots he faced in this game. Husso was opposed by Linus Ullmark in Ottawa’s net, who shut out the Ducks with 23 saves on 23 shots.
Game Notes
This game could be filed into the “tight checking” or “low event” categories. The majority of this game was played in the neutral zone and on forechecks, with one-and-done opportunities in each offensive zone sprinkled in. The Ducks misplayed a handful of reads in transition, which led to the majority of Ottawa’s opportunities, and was the difference in game flow for this one.
The Sens accounted for the majority of the chances through the first two periods, and the Ducks pressed in the third in a “too little, too late” effort to climb back into the game. At 5v5, the Ducks lost the shots on goal battle 20-13, the shot attempt battle 45-40, and the expected goals battle 3.21-2.67.
Rush Offense: The Sens deployed a relatively passive neutral zone forecheck, effectively clogging the middle of the ice and denying Anaheim entry. The Ducks prefer to enter the offensive zone with possession, connecting on short passes up ice to afford themselves options after the offensive blueline.
Anaheim forwards were flying the zone a bit too quickly, forcing defensemen to make longer outlet passes to neutral ice, and the Sens often disrupted those passes and turned them into odd-man rushes the other way.
Neutral Zone Forecheck: After changes and with pucks deep in the offensive zone, the Ducks would often leave too much space between their F1 pressuring the opposing puck retriever and their F’s 2 and 3, who were patrolling close to the red line. This allowed Ottawa to connect and build plays from their end of the ice with speed heading downhill. When they were able to gain the red line, they opted for dump-ins and did well to establish pressure in the Ducks’ end for extended periods.
Leo Carlsson: Carlsson has continued to evolve his rush attack, learning how to navigate through layers of defenders and make the most optimal play given the situation in front of him. If he doesn’t have linemates with him or a lane to cut back across the middle, he uses his speed to get a quality shot off, and if his shot doesn’t find the net, he doesn’t waste a stride getting to a loose puck rebounded to the perimeter.
Zellweger-Moore: With Gudas out of the lineup, the easy adjustment on the blueline was to insert Ian Moore into his spot next to Olen Zellweger. The Ducks’ young pair was their best in this game, and during their 9:38 TOI together at 5v5, they accounted for 56.2% of the expected goals.
They’re both the most dynamic skaters on the Ducks’ blueline, and did well to play off each other, getting to most loose pucks in their end and reading one another’s activations. They can each eliminate any amount of time and space for opposing puck carriers in all three zones. If their chemistry can be further fleshed out, this could become as dynamic a shutdown pair as any in the NHL.
The Ducks will look to wrap up their road trip with a win and a .500 record as their trip concludes on Sunday afternoon against the Montreal Canadiens.