Penalty Shot: And Then There Were . . . Still 26

ARTHUR:
Anaheim calling to the hockey world...

Ryan Donally and Justin Pogge were sent to San Antonio to join Mark Mitera yesterday. Kyle Calder and Jassen Cullimore were released. And The OC Register reports Troy Bodie will be re-assigned today.

That leaves the Ducks with this roster going into tonight's game:

Forwards:
Artyukhin, Bodie (pending reassignment), Brown, Carter, Christensen, Ebbett, Getzlaf, Koivu, Lupul, MacMillan, Marchant, Nokelainen, Parros, Perry, Ryan, Selanne

Defense:
Boynton, Brookbank, Eminger, Mikkelson, Niedermayer, Sbisa, Whitney, Wisniewski

Goaltenders:
Giguere, Hiller

Carlyle has, perhaps, eased the tension in the battle of the blueline by saying it was "imperative to have a defenseman or forward that can interchange positions." The logical choice there is Brookbank (having played right wing for the Devils last season), but the Ducks opted to experiment with Mikkelson's skating ability at wing in Friday's game against the Sharks.

An 11-forward/7-defenseman lineup may also ease the tension in the contract situation. Of the remaining skaters, only Mikkelson, Sbisa, Ebbett and MacMillan are on two-way deals, and cutting Mikkelson/Sbisa would seriously diminish the skating ability of Anaheim's blueline.

For the final cuts, I predict MacMillan will go next, which is a shame since he could really benefit from playing in the Ducks system, but he hasn't dressed much this pre-season. Then I'd wager a farewell to Ebbett, but only because it's probably too soon to waive/trade Christensen.

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Penalty Shot: Ducks/Nucks Pre-season II

ARTHUR:
It sounded like a great game for the Ducks tonight.

Anaheim got on the board with a pass by Brendan Mikkelson into traffic (and Corey Perry's stick) in the slot and a rocket from the point by Ryan Whitney. The Canucks answered with a tough play in front of the net, created by Michael Grabner and cashed in by Matt Pope, and a last minute desperation blast by Shane O'Brien.

In overtime, Selanne took a pass from Koivu and sniped his way past Andrew Raycroft from the shallowest of angles. Ducks win.

Wood and Carroll gushed about Hiller's performance; the netminder seemed to face a train of scoring chances on minimal shots. And the broadcasters were also impressed with the line combinations of Ebbett/Koivu/Selanne and Nokelainen/Marchant/Artyukhin. But the play of Getzlaf and Mikkelson seemed particularly noteworthy throughout the broadcast.

Mikkelson was confident and aggressive before and after he created the first goal of the game, and needed only one serious bailout from Eminger. Getzlaf, in his first action this year, had the top line buzzing and sounded downright chippy between plays.

Dan Wood turned in a couple of great interviews with Hiller and Giguere. The former reported that he's kept his conditioning the same and is experimenting with new carbon fiber masks (meaning we should look forward to more terrific helmet saves this season), and the latter spoke of a sweet home life and a laid back training schedule this offseason.

This was Anaheim calling to the hockey world...

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Penalty Shot: Continued Cuts

ARTHUR:
The Ducks cut seven more from the roster today, sending Brandon McMillan back to Kelowna and shipping Shawn Weller, Brett Festerling, MacGregor Sharp, Maxime Macenauer and J.P. Levasseur to San Antonio.

Interestingly, Brian Salcido was assigned to Manitoba. Randy Carlyle and Bob Murray have a history with the Moose and the Canucks organization generally, and I'd venture a guess that the move is a goodbye to Brian Salcido. It should result in a minor trade, though the OC Register reports he'll have to clear waivers to assume a post in Manitoba. This is at odds with initial reports that Salcido signed a two-way renewal in July. Despite favorable opinions from the front office (which is really the only reason he made my Top Prospects list), Salcido has completed three full seasons in the AHL and was due for a change of scenery if he couldn't crack the Ducks roster this offseason.

Fellow blueliner Brett Festerling, who signed a two-year renewal this summer, is the first defenseman headed to Texas in the Ducks defensemen melodrama. Despite being the first cut from the D-corps, Festerling's 40 NHL games and 1 playoff game last year make him logical trade bait.

This was Anaheim calling to the hockey world. Keep your eyes on the minor trade news tickers.

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Penalty Shot: Rookies Get The Broom

ARTHUR:
Anaheim calling to the hockey world...

The Sharks rookies finished a sweep of their Ducks counterparts last night at Sharks Ice. The 5-2 victory came on the heels of a 5-0 win in a series that hadn't been close since the shootout that concluded Game 1.

The coaches insist that the junior Ducks looked good in the first and third game, and Dan Sexton attributed the losses to a Sharks group that seemed to gel from the start of the tournament.

Pielmeier performed well in the first game (though he was out-dueled by a Sharks tryout goalie), but the superstar netminder of the series appears to have been Alex Stalock, my preferred goaltender in the Sharks pool who justified my laughing out loud at his Hockey's Future profile. Following up on their performances in rookie practice, Nicolas Deschamps, Dan Sexton and Maxime Macenauer scored for the Ducks with Josh Brittain knotting two assists. Deschamps scored a second goal in Game 2, but the puck deflected off his skate as he opened his body for a one-timer, and the referees promptly waved it off.

Below you'll find links to the scoresheets, as well as a brief list of the scorers and fighters in each contest.

Game 1 Scoresheet
Your Goal Scorers:
Nicolas Deschamps (J. Brittain)

Your Glove Droppers:
Matt McCue
Scott Valentine


Game 2 Scoresheet
Your Goal Scorers:
NONE

Your Glove Droppers:
Matt McCue
Stu Bickel
John de Gray
Matt Clark


Game 3 Scoresheet
Your Goal Scorers:
Dan Sexton (J. Brittain, S. Warg)
Maxime Macenauer (UNASSISTED)

Your Glove Droppers:
Mike Stuart
Matt Clark
Logan MacMillan
Brandon McMillan
Maxime Macenauer
Stu Bickel

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Penalty Shot: ...It's In The Game (Unless It Plays In Anaheim)

ARTHUR:
Anaheim calling to the hockey world...

Daniel's been rather forgetful with our posting schedule (to the point that I'm thinking of making amends with my old editors, Step 9 style). But rather than be his Deadline Den Mother, I thought I'd ease the pressure on the boy and alternate between a full post and a Penalty Shot post for the rest of the offseason. Here we go:

In May, Anaheim's Corey Perry visited the EA Sports studios to record some motion capture for NHL 10 (ensuring this year's game will feature a toe-drag mode). At the time, Perry seemed a likely candidate for the game's cover, as this year's iteration of EA's hockey series will feature more physical play and after-the-whistle-play, and Perry was the only player to score 72 points, serve a four-game suspension and get speared in the delicates by Rob Blake in his 2008-09 campaign.

However, a month later, Electronic Arts named Patrick Kane the NHL 10 cover athlete. The young Chicago superstar is not a bad choice by any stretch of the imagination, but it makes you wonder if Anaheim fans missed their chance to see a Duck on the US/Canada cover-- Selanne graced the cover of the Finnish editions of NHL 07 and 08 --of a hockey game.

Now, you may think that this as a minor issue, unrelated to actual hockey, but need I remind you that your own beloved Earl Sleek was drawn to the game of hockey by a video game? Oh, yes, it's true. Imagine the next Earl Sleek perusing the aisle of his local Orange County video game vendor. He sees Corey Perry on the cover of NHL 10, and he thinks, "Hmm, a Duck. Maybe I'll buy that game. After all, last year's game won 10 Sports Game of The Year Awards according to EA's yellow journalistic marketing department." The boy takes the game home, and through the first-person fighting, physical intimidation and chippy after-the-whistle play, he finds a brand of hockey eerily similar to the one played down the street on Katella. He becomes a lifelong fan whose razor sharp wit and lucky green shirt benefit the Ducks organization for years to come.

Only . . . Corey Perry won't be on the cover. Patrick Kane will. We just lost the next Earl Sleek. Take a moment to wipe the tears away before you continue reading.

From a marketing standpoint, Patrick Kane is a great choice. The young 'Hawk draws American interest in an Olympic year, something the video game series has recently ignored. In fact, he will be the first American born player to grace the EA NHL cover since John Vanbiesbrouck in 1997. Kane the cover athlete also capitalizes on the success of the 2009 Winter Classic, which drew an 11.8 rating in Chicago, the nation's 3rd largest television market. Then you consider the fact that he's an exciting young player who had a good year and a great playoff run, and you've got this year's "face of the game."

I would have no complaints if EA chose its cover athletes with that sort of sound and measured reasoning. But they don't. They use players from expansion teams, from the sunbelt and from the lower 15 of the First Round Draft Picks (not to mention goalies). But never Ducks. The last two choices, Eric Staal and Dion Phaneuf, seemed to violate conventional cover athlete reasoning, the former a seemingly conscious decision to avoid putting a Duck on the cover after Anaheim won the Cup.

But, maybe, if Kane works out, we can get Bobby Ryan onto the cover of NHL 11. High draft pick? Check. Large television market? Check. American born? Check. Exciting young player? Check. Great second season in the NHL with a deep playoff run? . . .

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Penalty Shot: Peter In

ARTHUR:
Anaheim calling to the hockey world...

Today, the Ducks officially named Pete Peeters as the team's goaltending consultant.

This has become an important post for the Ducks. The team must choose between its two starters this coming season and pick a successor amongst a handful of mid-level prospects in the near future, while still scouting top level goaltenders each year. It is possible that Allaire's absence will be felt on every front.

Peeters served as the goalie coach for the Edmonton Oilers during the MacTavish regime, overseeing Tommy Salo, Ty Conklin, Dwayne Roloson, Mathieu Garon, Jussi Markkanen and various others. Before his time with the Oilers, he ran the netminders at the Winnipeg Jets from 1993-97, at one point serving with Randy Carlyle in Terry Simpson's staff. Notable goaltenders Nikolai Khabibulin, Tim Cheveldae and Bob Essensa played for the franchise during those years.

Peeters' ability to choose between goaltenders
While Peeters was confronted with the two-headed crease monster this year, it is difficult to gather anything from his decision, as some attribute it to a publicized conflict with Garon, involving the goalie's use of outside consultant Lyle Mast. However, Garon denied the reports of tension between the parties or extensive consultation with Mast.

If there truly was no argument between the two, Peeters' decision to go with Roloson implies he prefers the more seasoned goaltender. Though, in the case of Anaheim's two-helmeted dragon, it is difficult to say how much Allaire's presence influenced the desire of either to stay with the Ducks, and more difficult to say how receptive Peeters will be to the prospect of working with a goaltender fully developed under Allaire's system.

Peeters' ability to develop goaltenders
During his time in Winnipeg/Phoenix, Peeters was credited with the construction of the Bulin Wall, building the netminder's confidence and encouraging him to challenge more shots.

In his early years in Edmonton, Peeters worked with a post-playoff era Tommy Salo, but was able to develop backups Jussi Markkanen and Ty Conklin. The developments of prospects Devan Dubnyk and Jeff DesLauriers were on the horizon, but Dubnyk completed only his first full season in the AHL this year and DesLauriers played only his first 10 games in the NHL. However, Peeters was very optimistic about the latter.

Peeters' ability to scout goaltenders
Insomuch as Draft selections indicate SOME scouting input by the goaltending consultant, these are the goaltenders drafted during Peeters' career with Edmonton and Winnipeg/Phoenix.

1993 - (31st Overall) Scott Langkow - played 20 NHL games
1994 - (143rd Overall) Steve Vezina - played 0 NHL games
1994 - (212th Overall) Henrik Smangs - played 0 NHL games
1995 - (121st Overall) Brian Elder - played 0 NHL games
1995 - (136th Overall) Sylvain Daigle - played 0 NHL games
1996 - (139th Overall) Robert Esche - played 186 NHL games

2001 - (133rd Overall) Jussi Markkanen - played 128 NHL games
2002 - (31st Overall) Jeff DesLauriers - played 10 NHL games
2002 - (148th Overall) Glenn Fisher - played 0 NHL games
2004 - (14th Overall) Devan Dubnyk
2004 - (274th Overall) Bjorn Bjurling
2006 - (133rd Overall) Bryan Pitton
2009 - (133rd Overall) Olivier Roy

And finally, a brief bio of Peeters' career as a player
Pete Peeters had two immensely successful seasons in the NHL. In his rookie year with the Flyers, the team went 35 straight games without a loss, and Peeters contributed 22-0-5 to that record. Then, in his first season with the Bruins in 1982-83, Peeters notched a 26-0-5 streak, finishing with a 2.36 GAA, 40-11-9. The performance earned him the Vezina honor for the year, as well as runner-up in Hart Trophy voting.

Unfortunately, the '80 and '83 seasons were solid years in a statistically checkered career. Peeters' performance in Philadelphia declined, and an alleged off-ice incident may have contributed to his trade to Boston. Then, in his last full season with the Bruins, Peeters was posterized by Mario Lemieux, who pickpocketed Ray Bourque and deked Peeters onto one knee on the first shift/shot/goal of Super Mario's NHL career. This would be the second poster (following the Stanley Cup overtime game winner in 1980) to feature Peeters, and the image was emblematic of the goaltender's 19-26-4, 3.47 GAA performance that year.

Peeters played with the Capitals for four seasons before signing with the Flyers in 89 and retiring two seasons later. End Bio.

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Penalty Shot: Headlines From Under the Radar

ARTHUR:
Anaheim calling to the hockey world...

I just wanted to post some Duck-relevant news that may have flown under the radar.


-There will be no prospect Conditioning Camp for 2009
According to official Ducks blogger Adam Brady, Anaheim will be skipping the prospect Conditioning Camp this year. Last year, the development camp was held the weekend before July 4th at Anaheim Ice, and it showcased the Ducks' enitre 2008 Draft Class, as well as a number of other key prospects. However, this year, the organization has decided not to host the camp.

It's possible that many of the prospects will be invited to Training Camp at the end of the summer, though Igor Bobkov, who was slated to miss camp due to visa issues, may still be unavailable.


-Travis Moen signs with the Canadiens
The terms of this year's trade with San Jose state that if San Jose re-signs Moen or Huskins, and Anaheim does not sign the other player, then the Sharks must turn over their Fourth Round pick in 2012. As the Sharks signed Huskins and the Canadiens signed Moen, Anaheim finds itself with another draft pick in a couple of years.


-Two Ducks Games on the Kings' Preseason Schedule
The Ducks have yet to release their pre-season itinerary, but they appear twice on the 8-game slate that LA announced on Wednesday. One game will be at Staples Center (Sept. 19), the other at Honda Center (Sept. 27), which is rather surprising, considering the Kings will be playing almost half of their pre-season games in non-NHL cities: Kansas City against the Islanders, Las Vegas against the Avalanche and Ontario (CA) against the Sharks.


-Major Change Brewing in The Minor League?
Lee "Hacksaw" Hamilton of San Diego News Network reports that talks have resumed between former San Diego Gulls owner Ron Hahn and the Anaheim Ducks regarding the possibility of a San Diego AHL affiliate for the 2010-11 season. The San Diego Tribune had previously reported discussions between the parties in March of 2008.

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Penalty Shot: Allaire Joins Toronto

ARTHUR:
Anaheim calling to the hockey world...

This afternoon, CKAC reported that Brian Burke and the Maple Leafs had obtained the rights to negotiate with François Allaire. Shortly thereafter, the Maple Leafs released a statement (available on their website) confirming that Allaire had signed with Toronto, and featuring a quote by Burke, who personally thanked Anaheim for making the goaltending consultant available to them.

Update: 8 p.m. Pacific Time

I had really hoped there was more to this story, but nothing more seems to have emerged. The OC Register quotes a team official as saying that Allaire wanted to be closer to Montreal, and the Ducks gave him permission to speak with Toronto. However, none of this is new information when you consider that 10 days ago, Allaire told Marc de Foy of Rue Fontenac that he had asked the Ducks if he could speak with other teams, but his request was denied.

The elephant in the room seems to be: Why not Montreal? When the Habs fired Melanson on June 1st, the pursuit of Allaire seemed to be the next logical step. And if Allaire had expressed a desire to pursue other offers in May, maybe even offers closer to Canada, why didn't the Ducks grant his wish then? Was there really so much deadlock at the bargaining table that they needed an extra two weeks to determine they couldn't sign him?

Also, why does Burke beat Montreal to the punch here? Were the Canadiens not interested, or was Burke VERY interested? When the story first leaked, it sounded as though the Ducks had received some compensation for allowing Toronto to speak with Allaire, but no such compensation has been reported. It could be that this was just a favor between Burke and Murray, but then again, it could be that this is setting the stage for something much bigger. A Maple-Leaf-shaped pillow on which Giguere can fall, perhaps? The idea isn't so far-fetched.

Ultimately, we appear to have lost Allaire because he wanted to go back to Canada, and I'm OK with that. However, I should note that the organization did not negotiate with Allaire during the regular season, leading the coach to express some uncertainty in regards to Anaheim's interest. A similar drama played out with Beauchemin after his injury. And now, it seems we'll be getting back neither of the two French Canadians. Sometime, in the near future, I would like to see a Ducks GM that pursues the people that really count in this organization, whether they're going to get a superstar contract or not.

You doubt that Allaire counts? When Brian Hayward asked Jonas Hiller how François Allaire was preparing him for the Sharks series, the young netminder replied that he was taught what to expect from every aspect of the game: pre-game preparation, in-game, overtime and post-game-- right down to the questions to expect from the media. Normally, I assert that a goaltending coach can only do so much and can't make a fragile player mentally strong, but I guess Allaire had that covered, too. François Allaire, tu nous manqueras vraiment.

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Penalty Shot: What About Bob?

ARTHUR:
Anaheim calling to the hockey world...

Daniel has returned to California. We'll let him unpack. In the meantime, I thought we could take a look at Bob Murray's Draft history.

Using the information on hockeydb.com, I've constructed a simple chart of Murray's draft choices in Chicago. I've included his three years as GM (97-99), as well as the preceding years, where he served as Director of Player Personnel for the Blackhawks (91-96). This is, by no means, an indication of the players that Murray is likely to draft-- just a bit of information to round out your expectations of Bob Murray when he's the Triggerman on Draft Day.

However, for any fans expecting a continuation of the Burke administration's Drafts, I would like to point out that Murray set himself apart from his predecessor at the Trade Deadline (a holiday from which Burke regularly abstains), and that there are some new faces and some old faces with louder voices whispering in Murray's ear this year.

First, note that the Ducks have a new Director of Amateur Scouting this season: Martin Madden. Former Director, Alain Chainey, has stayed on as Asst. Director, but there IS a new sheriff in town. Madden's quite partial to The Q(mjhl), and I'm sure he'll make a mark on this year's selections-- the Ducks wouldn't have hired him otherwise. Also note that David McNab may have more pull than he's had in recent seasons. I see more NCAA Penalty Kill posts in my future.

On to the chart. For some draft board perspective, it should be noted that: Daniel Cleary was selected ahead of Brenden Morrow in 1997. Mark Bell was selected ahead of Nik Antropov, Alex Tanguay, Simon Gagne and Scott Gomez in 1998. And in 1999, Steve McCarthy was the second to last defenseman drafted in the 1st Round, BUT he was drafted ahead of 2nd Rounders Jordan Leopold and Mike Commodore.

Information compiled from Hockeydb.



Information compiled from Hockeydb.

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Penalty Shot: Joel Stein Needs Your Vote

ARTHUR:
The NHL has finally reached a point in its media coverage where it depends on its knowledgeable fans. During this year's playoffs, we've seen an effort to bring the game back to the mainstream: ESPN producers put hockey talking points in the second (and sometimes FIRST) segment on shows like PTI and Around The Horn. Yet, the panelists are rather blunt about their oblivion in regards to the sport, reinforcing the idea that it's acceptable to dismiss it, as though it were curling or a pool trick-shot competition. And at the end of the day, these lukewarm stabs at relevance do so much less for hockey than an honest evaluation from a true fan. That's why hockey needs Joel Stein on the front lines.

You may remember Stein as the man who told you that you didn't deserve the Ducks. When he wrote that, he was particularly critical of print media, as the LA Times, to which Stein is a regular contributor, no longer followed the Ducks or Kings on the road (and have since consolidated the beat into one writer). "Hockey cuts" are a pandemic in the print world, and Joel now finds himself fighting off the infection.

TIME.com's managing editor, Josh Tyrangiel, recently banned Stein from writing about hockey, declaring the sport "not relevant enough to be in a mass-circulation magazine." The fate of hockey in TIME, the same magazine that once put Bernie Parent on its cover, has been put to a vote. Please vote if you haven't already (please say you have; this story is two weeks old). California and New York have contributed the most voters with an overwhelming stay of execution.

Joel loves hockey, and he's fighting to keep it on the national stage. And having a hockey fan on the national stage is so much more important than having the national stage mention the sport in passing. It's nice to have Wilbon and Kornheiser say a few favorable words about hockey, but ultimately, we know they're not fond of it and can't talk about it intelligently. We don't need those voices, effusing about as much joy and intellect as Bob Costas covering a tractor pull. We need to hear from the people who love hockey, and are dying to tell you about it.

At first blush, that may sound like a blogger call-to-arms. It isn't. Despite the fact that I decided to co-write a hockey blog, I don't think blogs should be the future of NHL coverage. I just think we can do without the sports talk-show hosts nervously discussing hockey out of obligation, as though it were the Kentucky Derby or The Olympics. We need real hockey fans talking about hockey, and we need to support them, far more than we need to clamor about getting onto PTI or the Sportscenter Top 10.

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Penalty Shot: 3-1 On The Number 1

ARTHUR:
Anaheim Calling to the hockey world...

Game 5.

The Ducks MUST close this team out. While 3-0 is a dominating force that only two NHL teams have ever overcome, 3-1 is a bit of a manageable beast. NHL teams are 20-230 in series where they were down 3-1. A long shot sure, but as recently as 2003, the Minnesota Wild did it TWICE (to COL and VAN) to reach the Western Conference Finals.

The Ducks have a 10-2 record when closing out a series, and are 2-1 in games where they own a 3-1 lead. The Sharks are 6-12 when facing elimination, and 1-1 in games where the opponent holds the 3-1 edge. But don't forget that this is essentially the same team that forced Dallas to six games (and a bounce away from seven) last year after the Stars went up 3-0 in the series.

The Ducks are 3-2 at HP this year, and Sleek has broken down the Sharks' general home record for you. Suffice to say, the Ducks aren't afraid of The Tank, but the Sharks might have reason to be.

A Mover And A Shaker - A note on Game 4:
I prepared some earthquake info on my way home from the game, but decided to post about the empty seats at Ponda instead. Rather than waste the information, I thought I'd tack it onto the end of this short post.

Daniel and I attended the January 8th game at The Staples Center (Bobby has since signed this game program for me, though the Kings charged me $5 for it) where a 5.0 earthquake gently rocked the stadium at 7:15 of the 1st Period. After a scoreless 1st for the Ducks, Bobby Ryan opened the floodgates at 19:14 of the 2nd, closing them at 1:35 of the 3rd with a Denis Savardian spin that tied the game and capped off a natural hat trick. We were sitting up top, center ice and I wasn't wearing a hat, but I was screaming for Kings fans to throw theirs.

Then on Thursday, the aftershocks of a 4.0 hit The Ponda Center during the 1st intermission of a scoreless 1st. I had my feet up on the rail in front of me and noticed that my legs started to sway gently. Bobby Ryan scored 6:33 into the 2nd and after a 15-minute delay to fix the glass, found the net again at 10:13 of the 2nd. I was so amped, I climbed the very same rail that had made me question its structural integrity just minutes earlier.

Give him a rattle and a 15-minute break, and you basically pull the pin out of the grenade. Must be the spores in the air or something. Check this kid for milky tears!

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Penalty Shot: Empty Seats

ARTHUR:
I was in the queue for the bathroom during the first intermission last night when a group of Sharks fans decided to get in line and talk trash. Normally, I wouldn't mind it. We were an 8 seed up 2-1 in the series. If anyone was going to feel self-doubt after hearing a little trash talk, it would be a San Jose fan. But these fans weren't calling out the Ducks. They were calling out Ducks fans, and the number of them that did and DIDN'T show up.

Neither Game 3 nor Game 4 sold out. And though the Ponda Center was by no means half-empty, the 200-300 levels (the TV levels) were heavily checkered. Game 3 seated 16,277 in a building that holds 17,174. And two nights later, 344 cushions remained vertical.

Now, lest you San Jose fans buy into the East Coast bias and Kevin Lowe hate on the Anaheim hockey market, I remind you that Anaheim sold out its entire schedule last season and seven straight rounds of playoff play before Tuesday night's game. The Kings haven't sold out an entire season since 1991. And the Sharks, good as you were this season, were one game short of selling out all 41.

So, why the empty seats this week? A lot of people will tell you that fans were home watching the Laker game or attending the Angels game. Or maybe that playoff ticket pre-order was poor because sales opened when the Ducks had yet to clinch a playoff spot. I don't buy any of that, really. Even if there were no scheduling conflicts and the team clinched a spot earlier (provided it was still 8th), I'd guess that the games still wouldn't sell out. The economy has been roughing up the Ducks' ticket sales all year.

I point you to the attendance numbers for Anaheim and San Jose for the past two seasons. You'll notice that Sharks average attendance increased by around 70 from last season to this season, while Ducks average attendance dropped by 200 in that same time frame. Before you go and attribute those changes to fan enthusiasm, I now point you to the Sacramento Bee unemployment map. As you can see, the Bay Area is a healthy green (only Santa Clara and Alameda are experiencing double-digits), while Southern California is hit much harder. A green Orange County is surrounded by much larger counties that are experiencing 11.3% (LA), 12.5% (San Bernardino) and 13.2% (Riverside) unemployment.

So, all of you Sharks fans that were heckling attendance? You were basically laughing at people that lost their jobs. Classy.

On the bright side, if we do eliminate you, I think we'll find some of that fan enthusiasm you accuse us of lacking.

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Penalty Shot: François Allaire, Le Guru des Gardiens

ARTHUR:

Update to this post available here.

The Ducks have yet to renew the following multi-year contracts: Francois Beauchemin, Todd Marchant, BOTH Niedermayers and François Allaire. That's right. François Allaire. For those of you who don't know who that is, SHAME ON YOU!, but also, here's a brief biography of his hockey career:

In 1975, a 17-year-old Allaire travelled the world to research and develop a systematic approach to the Butterfly goaltending style. A decade later, François found his prized pupil, Patrick Roy, with whom he fine-tuned his theories and methods at the American League and NHL levels of the Montreal Canadiens' system. Their work together filled Allaire's four tomes on the art of goaltending and produced multiple Cups and Conn Smythes for Roy. Allaire's butterfly method emphasizes consistent positioning, skilled skating and the proper use and application of equipment.

After Roy was traded, Allaire did not renew his contract with the Habs. In 1996, then Ducks GM, and former Canadiens scout, Jack Ferreira extended an offer for Allaire to come to Anaheim. When the goaltending guru looked at backstop Guy Hebert, who had trained under goalie coach and former Allaire pupil, Brian Hayward, François commented that the Ducks' goaltender looked "tout croche" (a Quebecois-ism for 'all crooked'). He straightened him out, and Hebert was selected to the NHL All-Star game that year.

Allaire maintains an influential presence in the goaltending community through his globetrotting camps and seminars, his work with École de Hockey Co-Jean and the continued success of his pupils at the NHL level, especially the Ducks' netminders. End Bio.

Now, I think of this man as family at this point, but for anyone that doesn't plan to riot if his contract isn't renewed, I thought I'd give my three reasons why we need to keep François Allaire:

1) Undeniable Guru-ness. Through Roy, Allaire revolutionized goaltending. And in that new era, only one goaltender turns his back on the coach's methods altogether: Martin Brodeur. That's actually a good thing because it means the only person who doesn't need Allaire's help is the most talented goaltender of all-time. The way François thinks the position is uncanny and unmatched. The NHL still turns to his old ideas to increase scoring. At the end of the day, every Ducks goaltender since '96 has had the benefit of learning from the master.

2) Effective coach and productive coaching plan. The Ducks have had a number of goalie controversies since Allaire came on board. And to quote Marlo Stanfield, "That sound like one of them good problems." It is. And it's a direct result of Allaire's effectiveness as a coach and his belief that every team should develop two goaltenders at once. What many teams do with scouting, the Ducks have managed to do with effective coaching. Gerber and Bryzgalov are certainly great talents, but they lost much of their shine just one year removed from training under Allaire. He's shown the ability to develop talent quickly, and keep players productive in the long term.

3) Valuable scouting and recruiting tool. Jiggy doesn't deny that Allaire is an important factor in his choice to stay in Anaheim. He trained with him as a child, and frankly, so did many of the league's better netminders. Hiller and Gerber were scouted through Allaire's work in Switzerland, and Hiller credits the goaltending consultant as one of the major reasons he chose to sign here. The Ducks have an anemic prospect pool compared to the top teams in the league. This is no time to get rid of a peerless talent hound, not to mention a REASON why goalies want to play for Anaheim.

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Penalty Shot: Legion of Ducks?

ARTHUR:
Anaheim calling to the hockey world...



Welcome to the Penalty Shot, a new segment I'm creating for the month of April. It'll basically just be me taking a look at some piece of Ducks news. Hopefully it will ALL be objective reporting, but I'll warn you if I plan to get opinionated. Here we go.

Before the Oilers game that opened the Ducks recent road trip, Coach Craig MacTavish compared the Ducks top line of Perry, Getzlaf and Ryan to the Legion of Doom. As MacTavish played with the famed Flyers line for both the shortened 94-95 season and the 95-96 season, the press core took note of his comments. But what, other than scoring and physical size, do the lines really have in common? Let's look at the story of the Legion of Doom.

It was 1994, the last year of the NHL's then still functioning CBA, and despite a productive season from Flyers rookie Mikael Renberg (38G 44A), superstar Eric Lindros (44G 53A) and the always reliable Mark Recchi (40G 67A), Philadelphia missed the playoffs for the fifth consecutive year.

Opening day for the 94-95 season came and went, and Bettman and Goodenow descended into three months of deadlock. When they returned, the Players Association gave ground on the free agency issue, the NHL inked a TV deal with FOX and the WHA ex-patriots (excluding Edmonton) began to maneuver their way out of their respective cities. With the theme of change dominating the "new" NHL, Flyers GM Bobby Clarke made a blockbuster trade about a dozen games into the shortened season, sending Mark Recchi to Montreal in a six player deal that brought John LeClair to the Flyers. LeClair played well for the Habs. He was consistent and poised in the playoffs, but he only flashed the scoring brilliance that would define his time with Philadelphia.

In 37 games, the trio of Renberg, Lindros and LeClair chalked up 176 points, and the Flyers laid claim to the Atlantic Division. Their skill was rooted in their ability to own the puck in the offensive zone. They cycled and pressured until they ground down the opposing team, and they were the only line to seriously challenge the budding neutral zone trap that won New Jersey a Stanley Cup that season. Philadelphia announcer Gene Hart jumped on the nickname "Legion of Doom," and with national broadcasts courtesy of FOX, the name stuck, pasted to every highlight, replay and roundtable discussion. Unfortunately, the Legion of Doom never played an entire 82 game season together.

Mikael Renberg missed 30 games of the 1995-96 season, though the members of the line still managed to record 121 goals and 134 assists. Their time together was again shortened in 96-97 by a 30 game injury to the Flyers' captain, but that year, the line would put together one of the most impressive playoff runs in recent memory, shutting down Lemieux's Penguins and the Gretzky/Messier Rangers en route to the Stanley Cup Finals. However, despite looking unstoppable going into the series, Detroit swept the Flyers, and managed to hold Lindros to a single meaningless goal. The Red Wings, who were defeated by the Devils' Neutral Zone Trap two years prior, dismantled Philadelphia by utilizing the Left Wing Lock. Against the Lock, the Legion of Doom appeared to lack creativity and skating ability. They were exposed for their tendency to abandon defensive assignments. They watched from the boards as every game was won in the middle of the ice. Many viewed that Finals as a seachange in hockey.

Conventional hockey wisdom dictates that any single line should be composed of one speedster, one hitter and one finesse player. For fans of Nintendo's Ice Hockey, that's the skinny guy, the fat guy and the medium sized guy, respectively. The Flyers had been exposed for taking the ice with three fat guys in a game where the Western half of the league was increasingly dominated by puck movement and playmaking. Many Eastern Conference teams would de-emphasize physical domination in the following years. The Doom was dismantled when the Flyers swapped free agent Renberg for then "future of hockey" free agent Chris Gratton, only to trade the players back when Gratton was busted by pressure and Renberg by injury. Lindros continued to play the power forward until he was concussed out of the NHL with failed campaigns in Toronto and Dallas. LeClair had another 50G season followed by two 40G seasons, and kept plugging away until he hung them up in Pittsburgh.

When I first saw Penner, Perry and Getzlaf play together, I remarked on the spitting image of 90's Eastern Conference hockey-- the ability to own the boards, skate full speed into the net and stand tall in the crease, facing the goaltender. I would describe THAT line as the Legion of Doom. Bobby Ryan, tough though he may be, reminds the fans of how good all three players can be when away from the boards. There are fewer garbage goals with this line than there were with Penner. There are fewer power moves out of the corners. Ryan is more timid on the cycle, more likely to send the puck back to the point. And every time they take the ice, they remind you that each of them has a speed, finesse and hitting element to his game.

I will give MacTavish this, though. Just the image of three 6ft+ 215lbs+ guys swatting defenders off of them with some of the sweetest hands on God's green earth should be enough to draw the comparison. It's a rare treat in hockey.

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