On the evening of April 27, 2016, the Anaheim Ducks were eliminated from the 2016 Stanley Cup Playoffs in Game 7 by the Nashville Predators. They join the Detroit Red Wings, the Los Angeles Kings, the New York Rangers, the Philadelphia Flyers, the Minnesota Wild, the Florida Panthers, and the Chicago Blackhawks.
They are survived by Travis Moen of the Dallas Stars and Daniel Winnik of the Washington Capitals.
Unfortunately for the Ducks, there was no fairytale ending. For those with a weak stomach, the following may be disturbing. Reader discretion advised. The Ducks choked on a saber-toothed tiger.
And another game 7 collapse. They need someone to write a new ending, perhaps Disney? Prob not Boudreau… pic.twitter.com/hlnWibKeXp
— Kristi Loucks (@LoucksKE) April 28, 2016
Perhaps what is most glaring is the team seemed poised to take the playoffs by storm but only added to their Game 7 woes. Despite only winning a single game in the month of October, the team turned the tables with an especially impressive late push to secure the top seed in the Pacific Division. Losing this Game 7 to the Predators places the Ducks at 2-6 in Game 7s in their franchise history and 1-4 at home. Former head coach Bruce Boudreau (since fired) is now 1-7 in Game 7s in his coaching career.
What truly hurt the Ducks was the lackluster play from captain Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry. Getzlaf lead the team with five points (two goals and three assists), and Perry had no goals but four assists. Although Getzlaf may have tallied on the scoresheet, he never quite seemed to be running on all cylinders in the moments that mattered. Perry seemed tired and frustrated with his lack of goals.
Some may point to the number of penalties the Ducks took as part of their downfall. In total, the Predators were given 26 power play opportunities, but they only scored once. While taking 26 penalties over seven games is troubling, it is not the reason the Ducks lost. Their penalty kill had been effective enough to stop the Predators.
The brightest player to have emerged through the playoffs was Ryan Kesler. He scored four goals in the series, and they were often goals that came in crucial moments for the team. He pushed hard to bring the team within one in Game 1 and scored the lone goal in Game 7. In Game 2, Kesler was unable to get one past Pekka Rinne, but he provided the most offensive pressure. He looked like a player who realized that despite being the top team of the Pacific and playing the first Wild Card team was not a time to take the foot off the gas.
The other top player for the Ducks was goaltender Frederik Andersen, who played the last five games of the series after John Gibson failed to impress in the first two. In his five games, he posted a 1.41 GAA and a .947 save percentage. He had a 3-2 record, including a shutout in Game 3. Andersen never allowed more than two goals in any of the games he played, so the Ducks’ problem was not so much goaltending as it was an ineffective offense, which seems baffling for a roster that includes Getzlaf, Perry, Kesler, David Perron, Rickard Rackell, and Jamie McGinn.
The Ducks will have to make a decision at net with Andersen becoming a free agent this summer. Rumors are that the Ducks will part with Andersen since the rookie Gibson has shown signs of becoming an impressive starter. In the regular season, Gibson started 38 games, posting a 21-13-4 record, 2.07 GAA, and a .920 save percentage. However, he posted a 1-1 record, a 3.08 GAA, and a .900 save percentage in the playoffs. Of course, this is a small sample size, and the Ducks had the luxury of having two competent goaltenders.
But if the Ducks truly want to have postseason success, would it be wise to part with Andersen? Think about the Pittsburgh Penguins, a team that won the Stanley Cup with Marc-Andre Fleury in 2009 but has since warped into “derp mode” in the playoffs (with a couple of exceptions) despite his regular season successes. The second question might be can they afford to keep Andersen, who would be looking at a bigger payday.
For all those who had the Ducks and Capitals in the Stanley Cup Finals, RIP to your brackets (or at least half, for now). Fans are encouraged to express their condolences or final personal statements below or to @TheRealZatarain, founder and CEO of The AOSN, and huge Ducks fan. Quack, quack quack, indeed…RIP, Ducks.