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Ducks in need of quick tuneup, or the finals are over

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- Mighty Ducks head coach Mike Babcock has several catch phrases he uses as a sort of shorthand to emphasize his main points. One is playing "greasy" hockey, meaning getting your hands dirty by competing hard in all aspects of the game. Well, his team hasn't been greasy enough in the first two games of the final, but they sure are leaking oil.

Game 2 started out well enough, as Anaheim skated better than it did in the first contest. The Mighty Ducks moved the puck out of their zone more efficiently, supporting the breakout passes much better resulting in shorter, crisper exchanges. In so doing, Anaheim nullified New Jersey's forecheck and found some room to move the puck through the middle of the ice.

Not that it resulted in many scoring chances. The Devils played another impeccable game positionally. By the time the Ducks made their way into the offensive zone, they had little or no shooting angle, and virtually no time to get a good shot off. And that was when the Ducks were at their best.

Three Stars      SI.com's Jon A. Dolezar gives you his three stars of the Devils' Game 2 win.  Analysis and Opinion  • Darren Eliot: Ducks are leaking oil More Stories  • Game 2: Recap | Box Score • Ducks struggle in second again • Former Duck Tverdovsky breaks out • Stevens passes Robinson's record • Devils getting better of trade so far • Notes: Brodeur playing it McCool • Line Analysis: Mighty Ducks | Devils • Goalie Analysis: Giguere | Brodeur  Instant Poll  Will the Devils sweep the Mighty Ducks? Yes No View Results

But as was the case in Game 1, New Jersey started to take the game over in the second period. When the Devils scored the first goal of the game on the power play, you almost could see the tentativeness seep back into the Ducks' play -- completely cognizant of the fact that yielding the first goal of the game was tantamount to disaster.

And that's where the Devils' experience in the finals came into play. New Jersey pushed the pace the rest of the second period, while Anaheim looked to give the puck up at the offensive blueline instead of get the puck aggressively on goal.

Slowly, the gap widened between the passer and receiver for the Ducks, and the Devils swarmed. Another blueline blast from Oleg Tverdovsky with Grant Marshall in front screening goaltender Jean-Sebastien Giguere made the score 2-0 at the end of two periods and put the Devils in complete control.

The balance of this one was a fan fest, an opportunity to revel in the moment by chanting "Mar-tees bet-ter" in reference to Martin Brodeur's voluminous resume and second straight shutout performance compared with the heretofore darling of this spring's proceedings, Giguere. One sign summed it up when it comes to the first two games of the series: "For Brodeur, the puck stops here; For Giguere, the luck stops here."

The Ducks are hoping a change of scenery on home ice will reverse that trend beginning Saturday in Game 3.

Three Stars

First Star: Scott Gomez and linemates Marshall and Patrik Elias had a dominant game, stemming from Gomez's jump.

Second Star: Yes, Brodeur faced only 16 shots for the second straight game, but he was calm, cool, composed and in complete command throughout.

Third Star: Tverdovsky was inserted into the lineup by head coach Pat Burns to start this series, the former Mighty Duck paid that decision off by assisting on the first two goals with excellent work at the point.

Darren Eliot, a former NHL goaltender, is a hockey analyst for SI.com. Eliot will provide Stanley Cup Playoffs commentary throughout the postseason, and he is also broadcasting the Stanley Cup Finals for NHL Radio.

 

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