Ducks up 2-0, keep Flames in check again
Despite Karri Ramo’s best efforts the Ducks earned a 2-0 series lead with a win in Game 2. (USATSI)
Every night during the Stanley Cup Playoffs, Eye On Hockey writers Adam Gretz and Chris Peters will bring you up to speed everything you need to know about all of the action around the NHL.
Anaheim Ducks vs. Calgary Flames, Game 2
Ducks 3, Flames 0 | Ducks lead series 2-0 | Game 3 Tuesday
Game 2 in a nutshell: A hot start from the Ducks put the Flames on their heels early and allowed Anaheim to grab a 1-0 lead in the first period. The Flames hung around, however, thanks in large part to the play of Karri Ramo in net. Another late goal from the Ducks, plus an empty netter were enough to put the game out of reach as Anaheim took a 2-0 series lead.
Turning point: The Ducks’ unrelenting pressure in the first period paid off in Matt Beleskey‘s goal to make it 1-0. Early in the game, Anaheim was simply dominant. They put shot after shot on Karri Ramo, who made some huge saves early. There were just too many chances for them no to score, though. That’s when Ryan Kesler delivered a perfect feed for Beleskey, who fired the puck home to make it 1-0. That goal stood as the game-winner.
Three things we learned
1. The Ducks are not invincible, but they’re darn good. They’ve also won their first six games of this postseason. That’s no small feat. In fact, only one other team has done that since 2004-05. After running away with Game 1, the Ducks figured they’d be in for a tougher Game 2 and they were right. Good goaltending from Ramo and a much better Flames squad than the one they saw in Game 1 made sure that nothing came easy to Anaheim. The first period was a steamrolling, but the Flames were able to hang around and it really wasn’t until the Ducks scored the empty-netter late that the game felt fully secure.
2. The Flames put up a lot more fight in Game 2. After getting brutally outshot in the first period 20-9, things started evening out. The Flames actually started getting the better of the possession over the last two periods. It turned out that the first period is the one that really did them in. The good news for Calgary fans is that the team wasn’t intimidated as much in this game. The bad news is that Calgary really needs to start games better. Even going back to the last game against the Canucks, the Flames have played poorly in the first period and that has given them holes to try to dig themselves out of. The Flames have been capable of doing it in the past, but the Ducks aren’t playing like a team that’s going to give much.
3. Ducks goaltender Frederik Andersen earned his first career playoff shutout. The Ducks goaltender stopped all 30 shots he saw. Not a ton were of great quality, but he gives the Ducks another layer of defense, which is good because they’re not always a possession juggernaut. Andersen is now 6-0-0 in the playoffs and has a .941 save percentage. The team in front of him has played extremely well, but Andersen has still seen an average of nearly 29 shots per game. His play can give the Ducks a ton of confidence, which is something they didn’t have as much of last season when the team went through three goalies in the playoffs. The 25-year-old Dane is doing his part to help the Ducks excel in the postseason.
Video of the game: The passing on what turned out to be the game-winner was absolutely beautiful. Ryan Kesler dished a great feed to Matt Beleskey, who provided the finish. Also, don’t sleep on the creativity the Ducks used to gain the zone on that play. Three different players touch the puck before it ends up on Beleskey’s stick for the goal. Also, Ramo had stopped a 2-on-1 shot from Ryan Getzlaf earlier in the game as he is very strong laterally. This time, Beleskey’s shot was better than the Flames goaltender.
Matt Beleskey’s 1st period goal still the difference in #ANAvsCGY #StanleyCup https://t.co/KteboI8t1J
— NHL (@NHL) May 4, 2015
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