From March 14, 2006

As record low temperatures invaded Southern California Sunday, baseball fans bundled up and braved the elements at Angel Stadium for the second round of the World Baseball Classic.

With daytime temperatures in the 40s, gusty winds, and intermittent rain, fans dressed in the most unlikely of California clothing -- parkas, scarves, gloves, and even touques.

They were the lucky ones.

Across the 57 freeway, Anaheim Ducks fans entered their frozen arena for the 34th time in the regular season. And for the 34th time, the temperature was uncomfortable.

The Arrowhead Pond is known for poor ice, and in a largely futile attempt to improve the ice, Pond management turns the temperature down a bit further every season. With the lockout last year, the Pond seems to have made up for it by adding two seasons of cold this year.

The temperature is rumored to be set at 53 degrees Fahrenheit, roughly 12 degrees Celsius. However, with humidity and drafts, it feels significantly colder. In reality, the setting seems significantly colder than 53.

Conditions hit a new low -- literally -- on Sunday. After walking indoors from 40-something temperatures, fans were greeted by a concourse that felt colder than the outdoors. Still, the worst was yet to come.

When fans walked through the curtains in the tunnels leading from the concourse to the seating area, they felt like they entered a walk-in freezer. A sudden blast of arctic air, reminiscent of a winter afternoon in Saskatoon or Yellowknife, greets fans along with a frozen-looking usher.

There is no need for such extremes, and it certainly hurts the Ducks' attendance. The ice is bad in the Pond, but the issue is not temperature, but rather, humidity. Soft drinks and beer condense shortly after purchase, a sure sign the dew point is well above freezing.

The ice in most NHL arenas is kept in the low to mid 20s Fahrenheit, and to maintain good ice, the dew point must be below that temperature. When the dew point, the measure of absolute humidity in the air, is above ice temperature, condensation will form on the ice.

As anyone who has lived in cold climates knows, when condensation forms on ice, the ice gets softer. When the ice gets soft, it will chip easily, leading to the Pond's bad ice.

Seems simple, doesn't it?

Apparently not. Instead of working to decrease the humidity levels, Pond management just continues to make the arena colder and colder, driving fans to somewhere -- anywhere -- warmer.

The ice actually improves somewhat during the Santa Anas, a Southern California phenomenon that sees hot, dry air move in from the east. During these times, the outdoor dew point typically drops to the 20s, and the resulting effect inside is better ice.

Contrary to popular belief, when the Santa Anas are not blowing, Southern California is not dry. True, the area escapes the 70 and 80 degree summer dew points found in much of the United States, but the dew point is still in the 50s most days year-round.

Most of those areas with high dew points in summer also have cooler temperatures in winter. By nature, the dew point can not be higher than the outdoor temperature. In other words, if the outdoor temperature is 20, the dew point is still only 20 when the relative humidity is 100%.

In California, however, most winter days are in the 50s and 60s with dew points in the 40s and 50s. As a result, the dew point is significantly higher than the ice temperature inside an arena.

The solution? More dehumidification is needed, plain and simple. A 70 degree Pond with a dew point of 20 will provide better ice than a 53 degree Pond with a dew point of 40.

For the sake of all Ducks fans, let's hope someone in charge figures that out -- soon.

From March 30, 2006

For a game that featured few shots, fewer scoring chances, and one team playing the trap, Wednesday's Anaheim at Dallas game was strangely intriguing.

En route to a 2-1 win, the Stars outshot the Ducks 29-16 and spent much of the night playing a trapping style designed to stymie the potent Anaheim forecheck. Scoring chances were as rare as a Tim Horton's in Texas, yet the stat that tells the story comes a few columns later.

Hits.

Anaheim 49, Dallas 41.

The hits came early and often, and some of them were massive. Ducks' defenseman Vitaly Vishnevski threw 7 hits, while Dallas blueliner Philippe Boucher was credited with 10 hits.

The most significant hit in the game, however, came at the 15:39 mark of the second period when Boucher leveled Anaheim star Teemu Selanne at the blueline with a hard hit. With no enforcers on the ice, diminutive Chris Kunitz came to Selanne's defense, going after Boucher. Dallas tough guy Jeremy Stevenson stepped in, but Kunitz was undeterred, going into the face of both much larger players.

A scrum ensued, and referees Don Koharski and Dan Marouelli gave the extra minor to Kunitz. A questionable call? Perhaps. A bad penalty for Kunitz to take? Definitely not.

Kunitz sent a message to the Stars and the rest of the NHL heading into the playoffs -- touch Selanne, and you will pay. Even if there is no enforcer on the ice, the Ducks once again proved they will protect Selanne.

On the way to the bench after the scrum, Dallas defenseman Willie Mitchell had some words for Selanne from the safety of the Stars' bench. Mitchell was not nearly as talkative on the next shift when he was challenged by Ducks' heavyweight Todd Fedoruk. Mitchell and Fedoruk were given coincidental minors, and the specter of a more intense rematch remains with two more games between the clubs in the next week.

Although the Stars scored the winning goal on the power play following the penalty to Kunitz, the much bigger message was sent, and it needed to be sent. The Ducks will not be pushed around, and they will protect Selanne at any cost.

Nine days earlier, the Ducks proved that theory, once again in Dallas. When Joe DiPenta felt Steve Ott's hit on Selanne was borderline, DiPenta dropped the gloves with Ott. Although it was DiPenta's first fight of the year and Ott is a noted heavyweight, DiPenta fought Ott to a draw.

From that point on, the Ducks dominated the game, scoring two third period goals to win 2-1. There was another difference in that game, however, and that was the forecheck.

Anaheim was relentless on the forecheck all night, and it was the primary reason for the win. Samuel Pahlsson's forecheck caused Janne Niinimaa to cough up the puck with just over three minutes remaining in that game, and Pahlsson turned that miscue into the game winner.

Dallas made two adjustments this time around. First of all, Niinimaa was a healthy scratch, as he has been every game since the turnover. Secondly, the Stars played a trapping style, standing up the Ducks at the blueline and largely negating the Ducks' forecheck.

As a result, the game was devoid of the end-to-end action and scoring chances of Anaheim's game the night before in Colorado. Dallas' style of play Wednesday may have been boring to watch, but it was certainly effective.

When the two teams meet again Friday night at the Pond, it will be the Ducks' turn to make adjustments. Selanne got a measure of revenge on Mitchell as time ran down, giving Mitchell a thunderous hit to the left of Dallas goaltender Marty Turco. Another scrum ensued, and another message was sent.

Anaheim coach Randy Carlyle will almost certainly move Fedoruk back to the top line with Selanne and Andy McDonald. Fedoruk has seen limited action on that line since the Olympic break, and the trio has looked impressive. More importantly, Fedoruk acts as a protector for Selanne, much the same way Dave Semenko and Marty McSorley did for Wayne Gretzky.

If Fedoruk moves to the top line, look for Chris Kunitz to join fellow rookies Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry on the Kid Line. In limited action, that line has also been very impressive as a unit.

Regardless of any adjustments, two things are certain. One, the "Star"-Spangled Banner will not be played at the Pond, as the Ducks prefer to play America the Beautiful or God Bless America when the "Stars" are in town. The second certainty is another hard-fought, physical, battle in the trenches between these two teams.

The end-to-end rushes might not be there, but there is plenty of bad blood between the two teams. And when it comes down to it, either style of play creates excitement for the fans.