On Top of the World
It’s the hardest trophy in all of professional sports to win. After a hard fought eighty-two game regular season the playoffs begin. To be given the title of Stanley Cup Champion you must win four best-of-seven series’. In better terminology: the first team to sixteen wins becomes champion. Year after year teams compete, giving it everything they have and more to win this coveted trophy. And every year twenty-nine teams fall short of this feat, but at the end of the day one team ends up on top of the world.
On Wednesday June 6th, there was only one team left standing after a hard fought season by all teams. This team was the Anaheim Ducks. During the season the Ducks showed their capability of capturing the cup with a marvelous 48-20-14 record and 110 points overall. This record lead them to their first division championship in team history and also the most points ever received by a Pacific Division team. Of course a team’s regular season stats have no effect when the playoffs roll around.
The Ducks’ first round matchup began on April 11th against the Minnesota Wild. It was clear from the start that this series would be a physical and defensive battle. We weren't proven wrong after predicting this either. The surprise at the start of the series was the use of Ilya Bryzgalov in goal for the Ducks. Jean Sebastian Giguere had some family issues he had to deal with. But he was put into the series at the end of game four and was able to help clinch the series for the Ducks.
Round two: Vancouver Canucks. The goaltending of Roberto Luongo had everyone hinting at the early Conne Smythe contender. One problem: they hadn’t made the finals yet. The Anaheim Ducks were anything but intimidated. Rolling over the Canucks 5-1 in game 1, and shutting down the fierce Sedin line. They also got in Luongo’s face. Players like Rob Niedermayer and Dustin Penner crashed the crease every chance they got. Luongo put up yet another MVP performance round but the lack of offense on the Canucks allowed the Ducks to advance to face the Detroit Red Wings.
Jean Sebastian Giguere put up one of his best playoff series performances against the Canucks and was a major reason why the Ducks got past Luongo and the Canucks. The matchup against Detroit was no different. Giguere made some big saves at crucial moments that allowed the Ducks to eliminate the Red Wings in 6 games; the most of any series the Ducks would play in this season. The checking line for the Ducks featuring Samuel Pahlsson, Rob Niedermayer, and Travis Moen also established themselves; more so than they had before. They shut down the top line of every team they played and deserve credit for helping the Ducks win the Stanley Cup.
The Ducks hadn’t really faced any real tests in the playoffs. Heading into the finals critics were picking Ottawa to win. But once again, the Ducks were not intimidated. Instead they physically dominated the Senators and were able to eliminate them in 5 games. Goaltending was a factor early on, but in the final games there was a scoring outburst. Ray Emery had a couple of his softest games, and Giguere also had soft games but came out with the victory. The Ducks won their sixteenth game of the playoffs on June 6th and with that sixteenth victory, they were Stanley Cup champions!
Many factors contributed to the Ducks’ domination. Ryan Getzlaf’s emergence of becoming a superstar; the play of the PPG line [Penner, Perry, Getzlaf]; goaltending of JS Giguere and also Bryzgalov against Minnesota; the defensive domination of Niedermayer, Pronger, and Beauchemin; the shutting down of every top line by Anaheim’s fierce checking line; and the clutch play of Anaheim’s top line: Selanne and McDonald. With only two key players without contracts for next season, watch for the Ducks to be a contender next year and maybe even get a shot at defending their championship.
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