Well the Wild stay undefeated and we are still trying to figure out what to do as a team to put some wins in the bag. Well I've got game coverage and unfortunately that does include Bertuzzi being out with a concussion. We will know more tomorrow. Here is the game coverage.
Photo of the game
Gina Ferrazi/LA Times
Official Ducks Game Report with video highlights
Official Ducks Coverage
The Ducks are missing a few pieces from the team that took out Minnesota in last year’s Western Conference Quarterfinals. And although they got one of them back, it wasn’t enough to deny an undefeated Wild team looking for revenge.
Ducks goalie J.S. Giguere made his first start of the season after sitting out the first six games while recovering from sports hernia surgery, and took the 2-0 loss in front of a sellout crowd of 17,174 at Honda Center.
"I felt pretty good," Giguere said. "I felt pretty strong, you know pretty good shape. The timing was a little bit off, every once in awhile, that’s going to come as you play. I’m kind of a little bit behind the eight-ball right now with everybody else, but I think if you have good practice habits and you work hard, these things should resolve themselves."
Minnesota’s two second-period goals by Mark Rolston and Mark Parrish were all they needed, as backup goalie Josh Harding stopped all 37 Anaheim shots he faced. Harding got the start since it was the second game in as many nights for the Wild, who won 3-2 in Phoenix behind No. 1 netminder Nicklas Backstrom on Saturday.
"Obviously Josh played a great game over there and we got to tip our cap to him ," said Anaheim's Ryan Getzlaf, "and we just got to do a better job of getting to that net and getting in front of him so he can’t see that puck."
Read the rest here - Link
The OC Registers's coverage of the game
The Ducks might as well have been searching for long-lost treasure buried beneath the Honda Center ice surface. As much difficulty as they’re having producing goals, they certainly weren’t going to unearth any offense against the NHL’s stingiest team, the Minnesota Wild.
Despite generating a season-high 37 shots on goal, including 33 in the opening two periods, the Ducks came up empty against Minnesota backup goaltender Josh Harding, who was flawless in his season debut as the Wild gained a 2-0 victory and a measure of redemption for last season’s opening-round playoff loss to the Ducks.
Twice the Ducks failed on a five-on-three manpower advantage, the most painful part of their 0-for-8 power-play performance, and each time Minnesota responded by converting an odd-man rush into a goal of its own. Wild winger Brian Rolston blasted a wicked slap shot past Ducks goalie Jean-Sebastien Giguere on a two-on-one at 2:04 of the second period, and Mark Parrish capped a pretty three-on-two at 11:50 of the middle session.
“When you have a good chance to score goals, and you don’t, it starts to get a little frustrating,” Ducks center Ryan Getzlaf said. “That’s the way most of the game went. Everything seemed to be just like a little bit off -- one inch here and there. And we gave up a couple of goals that were mental breakdowns on our part.”
Minnesota thrives on exactly such rope-a-dope tactics. The Wild, which boasts the NHL’s only perfect record at 5-0, entered having surrendered four goals in four games. The club’s league-leading goals-against average is even better now, a miniscule 0.8.Read the rest here - Link
AP Coverage of the game via the LA Times
Brian Rolston and Mark Parrish scored second-period goals and Josh Harding posted his third career shutout with a career-high 37 saves tonight, leading the unbeaten Minnesota Wild to a testy 2-0 victory over the defending champion Anaheim Ducks and spoiling goalie Jean-Sebastien Giguere's season debut.
Minnesota's 5-0 start leaves the Wild as the NHL's only team without a loss, and puts them one victory away from matching last season's squad for the franchise's best winning streak from the start of a season. Three of the wins have been shutouts.Giguere, who recorded a franchise-record 36 victories last season and 13 more in the playoffs, faced 24 shots. He sat out the first six games after undergoing surgery on Aug. 6 for a sports hernia.
Giguere's anticipated duel with Minnesota goalie Niklas Backstrom did not take place, however. Backstrom, who had a league-leading 1.97 goals-against average and .929 save percentage last season as a rookie, got the night off after allowing just four goals in Minnesota's first four games and posting shutouts against Chicago and Edmonton.Read the rest here - Link
MVN Coverage of the game
The NHL was relatively quiet on Sunday evening, leaving the action solely in California. While the Kings faced off against the Red Wings, the Ducks opponent for Monday evening, the Ducks took on the undefeated Minnesota Wild. It was the first meeting of the teams since the first round of the playoffs last spring. The best news of all was that goaltender Jean-Sebastien Giguere was back in goal for the first time since the Ducks won the Stanley Cup in June. Giguere spent the past two months recovering from sports hernia and groin surgery. A loud roar greeted welcomed him back in net. The big surprise was that instead of standout Nicklas Backstrom, who played last night in a win over Phoenix, the Wild gave him a rest and put Josh Harding in goal. Maybe it was a nod to Mrs. Harding, just one of the hockey moms on the three game road trip with the Wild.
Unlike Wednesday, there was no banner raising or distracting ceremonies to delay the start of the game. In fact, the banners have been moved to their permanent spot alongside the other Ducks banners from 2003. The first period saw plenty of specialty teams as both teams kept a steady stream to the penalty box. Neither team seemed interested in improving their power play percentages even though the Ducks had three opportunities, including :26 seconds of 5 on 3 action. Chris Pronger could not keep the puck in at the blue line and that was the end of that chance.
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The Star Tribune has a little article on the Boogard/Parros Boogard/May matchups
Derek Boogaard eventually fought Anaheim's George Parros -- early in the second period -- during the Wild's 2-0 victory Sunday night, but when Parros challenged the Wild's enforcer in the first period, the Boogey Man avoided the fight.
He had a different target in sight.
During the ensuing TV timeout, Boogaard switched to right wing to line up across from Brad May. Boogaard bent down next to May's ear, and May knew what he had to do.
"I just said, 'We're going to fight. I owe you one,'" said May, 35, who after 16 years knows that the code says he had to fight the Wild's toughest combatant.
In April, it was May who suckered non-pugilist Kim Johnsson at the end of Game 4 of the Western Conference quarterfinals.
"Brad, he answered the bell," Wild forward Brian Rolston said. "He did something he knew wasn't probably right. It was a cheap shot. Tonight, when Boogey lined up with him, he fought him and the drama with that ended quick."
Immediately after the puck dropped, Boogaard and May dropped their gloves. May landed one shot to bloody Boogaard's nose and did a good job tying him up so he could only land kidney shots.
Finally Boogaard, while swinging May around, landed an over-the-top right to cut May for essentially a draw.
Bertuzzi out with concussion via MVN
Todd Bertuzzi is out with a concussion that occurred during the first period of the Ducks game against the Minnesota Wild. Derek Boogaard, all 6′7,” 258 nasty pounds of him, went a little out of his way to make sure he hit Todd Bertuzzi in the Wild’s zone and his shoulder and arm made full contact with Bertuzzi’s head. Bertuzzi fell the ice and took a while to get up, looking a little dazed. He skated gingerly over to the bench and was immediately attended to by the trainer. Bertuzzi headed to the locker room soon after.
He will be evaluated tomorrow to determine the seriousness of the concussion, but at this point, Bertuzzi is rather woozy in the head.No players were expected to be called up for tomorrow’s game, but coach Randy Carlyle stated that Drew Miller would be inserted into the line up against Detroit. Whether or not another player is called up from Portland will depend upon the results of further testing on Bertuzzi.
Read other game notes here - Link
