The heading says it all, folks. There’s no better way to put it. The Anaheim Ducks nearly blew Game Four of their Western Conference Final against the Detroit Red Wings.
Sure, they emerged from the first period with a 3-1 lead, and ultimately won 5-3 to tie the series at two games apiece, but in the second period and the early minutes of the third the game nearly slipped away from the Ducks.
It was easy to see it in the second period, as the Wings came on with one of their most dominant periods in this series, second only to their blowout of the Ducks in the second period of Game Three two nights before.
And the scary part for the Ducks was, they gave it to the Wings. Served it up to ‘em on a silver platter.
After playing disciplined hockey in the first period, taking no penalties, the Ducks took five in the second, and that allowed the Wings, who had pressed the Ducks in the first and had stepped up the pressure in the second, to get back into the game with two powerplay goals.
The Ducks just sagged after that second goal, scored by the Wings Dan Cleary. They practically stopped skating, as the veteran Wings, sensing they had their opponent against the ropes, pressed the attack. Only goalie J-S Giguere, who was the goat on two of Detroit’s goals this net, kept the opportunistic Wings from taking the lead prior to the end of the second period.
Not two seconds into the third, and with his team already shorthanded,Anaheim forward Rob Niedermayer, who’d been jawing with the on-ice officials earlier in the game, took a cross-checking penalty, setting up a five-on-three powerplay advantage for the Wings.
That moment was the turning point of the game. Had the Wings cashed in, the Ducks already shaky confidence would’ve evaporated, and the series would’ve headed back to Detroit with the Wings holding a commanding lead and a chance to clinch the series.
But the Ducks killed off Detroit’s two-man advantage, and minutes later, with Cleary in the box for tripping, Ryan Getzlaf’s wrister from the point cleanly beat a screened Dominik Hasek, regaining the lead for the Ducks and holding up as the winner.
Give the Ducks credit, for they could’ve snatched defeat from the jaws of victory in this game. Instead, they rallied, drew inspiration from that key penalty kill and turned the tide of the game.
It was certainly a near thing, but with the series now knotted at two, there is no real certainty now as to which way this thing will turn. The Wings have proven much tougher than anticipated by both the Ducks and observers like myself, and suddenly the physical advantage that was supposed to tilt this series in Anaheim’s favor is no longer a factor.
Given the ebb and flow of this one, it’ll be interesting to see how both teams respond in Game Five.
Yes they did almost give it away. But they also got a much-needed victory with their best player wearing street clothes. That's what they'll tell themselves and it should get them past those shaky performances from game 4.
On the flip side, Detroit is the team that should be flogging themselves today. They wasted a golden oppotunity to push the Ducks to the brink while Pronger could only stand by and watch. The suspension ultimately did the Wings very little good.
1. Pronger is comming off 5 days rest. Thats like having an All Star break in the post season.
2. Todd Marchant The man played out of his mind last night unlike the first 3 games. When you have a long layoff like he did to injury it takes a few games to get back to game speed. Last night he looked like he was in midseason form. This will be the difference
Marchant hails from Williamsville, NY (suburban village outide Buffalo). I'd always hoped he would one day wear the crossed swords, preferably before he becomes washed-up. I wonder if he wishes that too?
Isn't it amazing how all roads lead back to Buffalo (wink)?
Something should be said of the terrible call which provided the power play on which Detroit tied the game. The crosscheck at the start of the third is also something which I think is not going to be called in 9 out of 10 games. All the way through these playoffs, I haven't felt that the officiating was of high enough quality to suit the play on the ice.
false_cause: I agree wholeheartedly. It seems to me that Rob Niedermayer has gotten a ton of bad calls on him in this series ... between that call, the ridiculousness of Niedermayer being called instead of Pronger on the Holmstrom hit, and a few other questionable calls ... this is getting pretty out of hand. (Disclaimer: I'm not at all condoning the Holmstrom hit ... it was dirty as hell ... but it was Pronger, not Niedermayer who was dirty there).
Neither one of those Neidermayer brothers has ever been considered a dirty player (I don't think). But it does seem like Rob is bearing the brunt of the officials' wrath.
Todd Marchant is among my favourite current NHLers. If only he had the hands to go with his breakout speed. He'd create some fabulous, highlight reel opportunities but would rarely finish them off (often because he was going too fast!). When he did connect -- like that 1997 Playoffs OT goal that eliminated Dallas -- they were things of beauty.
The Anaheim / Detroit series has become less about talent and more about will. You have two teams playing at the top of their game, and probably as evenly matched as possible. It's the mental errors and fatigue that are now the difference, and how each team reacts to adversity is the x-factor. If they can keep the rodeo sideshow acts under control, we should be in for a great three-game series.
The way you described Marchant bears an eerie resemblance to one Max Afinogenov. Blazing, game-changing speed with no real finishing ability to go with it. Max has improved marginally in that area but there are still too many times when he gets a breakaway or weaves his way in close and can't beat the goalie. And, like you also said about Marchant, when he does connect it's usually a SportsCenter highlight.
The Wings REALLY needed to win this game and since it's lost I'm not giving Detroit any chance of winning the series.
Pronger does everything and for everything he's done I'm sure that an extra days rest/having been suspended and cost his team what he did being out... he's going to be the man in game 5.
Senators and Ducks. Should be an incredible finals.
Both teams have had great goaltending for the most part. (I'd give Ducks the edge) The Ducks definatly have better defense, but the Senators still have a great, balanced group of defensemen. The Ducks have a pretty good group of forwards, while the Sens have a good checking line, and the best scoring line in the league today.
I'd say it's a pretty fair matchup and it should be a damn good Stanely cup finals. Since I'm a Heater fan I'd like to say "Let's go Sens!"
I'm Lyle Richardson, also known as Spector, Foxsports.com 's "Prince of Pucks".,which is based on the fact I live in Prince Edward Island, Canada and I couldn't think of a better byline. I've been an NHL hockey commentator since 1998 on my website, Spector's Hockey, and I'm a contributing writer for Foxsports.com , The Hockey News and Eishockey News. I'm also a regular on The Faceoff Hockey Show and a frequent guest on "The Late Crew" on The Team 1200 Ottawa.
