Ducks shutout Red Wings

The Anaheim Ducks seized the opportunity of running the boards at the Honda Center Wednesday night. They stayed ahead of the Detroit Red Wings to shut them out 2-0 in their second win of 2017. Goaltender John Gibson scored his second shutout of the season while hand Detroit their second straight loss.

The Red Wings tough loss at the Centennial classic had to be brushed off as they continued west for their lengthy road trip. Going against the Anaheim Ducks meant that their struggling power play had to gain momentum in the success level. The Ducks are in a similar situation since losing to the Philadelphia Flyers on Jan. 1. Captain Ryan Getzlaf suffered an injury and was not expected to play. While both carry a long list of injuries, they come into their match against one another with fighting chances.

The Ducks took a big jump to start the game setting the pace much faster than the Red Wings were ready for. Through the opening five minutes, Anaheim outshot Detroit by more than half and continued on the pace. A bad turnover in the Detroit zone resulted in a quick attack by the Ducks. They took two scoring chances on net with the final one going in by Nick Ritchie on a rebound for his ninth of the season.

It got worse for Detroit as they took a bad penalty that put the Ducks back on the offensive rush. Though they didn’t get another goal notched to the score, their attacks helped later on the defensive end. The Red Wings slightly picked up the pace but not enough as Anaheim’s defense took point in the late minutes. After 20, the Ducks had outshot Detroit 10-6 while delivering plenty of hits to begin the game.

The second started much better for Detroit who came out fighting with one big play occurring in the Ducks crease. Niklas Kronwall’s pass out front got to defenseman Brendan Smith who was in front of Gibson to take a shot off the post and make the stab that crossed over by Gibson. Anaheim coach Randy Carlyle challenged the goal due to goaltender interference by Smith. After a review of the play, referees determined that interference was caused taking Smiths third of the season away from him.

It was Detroit’s best chance of the night as they chased the Ducks who carried the majority of puck possession and shots to the net. Detroit attempted to push their way into the game with shots in close proximity to Gibson in net but their scoring chances were less than to be desired along with their lack of scoring on the power play. The Ducks finished off the remainder of the period 9-8 with Smith unlikely to return to the bench.

The third was Detroit’s best push to get deep into the offense but the Ducks were there standing in the way. Though they made a more progressive stance in the offensive zone, Gibson and the Ducks defense stopped their attempts with blocked shots and clearing of the puck. Time played a factor for Detroit who clearly ran out of time and only a goal to overcome. The final minutes only saw Anaheim increase the goal margin with Ondrej Kase taking a good shot on Detroit’s Petr Mrazek which gave him three on the season.

Their two goals were enough to hold back the Red Wings to a strong point that held on for the final minutes ending the game. Gibson picked up a well-earned shutout making 23 saves on the night for his 14^th victory. The Ducks get to spend a day off before taking on the Arizona Coyotes on Friday. The Red Wings aren’t so fortunate as they prepare for a Thursday night match against the Los Angeles Kings.