Written By: Mark “The Hard Hitter” Ritter
With a record of 6-8-3 through the first 17 games of the season, the Anaheim Ducks sit in last place in the Pacific Division, 14th in the Western Conference, and 26th overall in the NHL.
Given the Ducks' strong playoff performance and seemingly deep lineup, their record is both surprising and alarming. How could a team that took the Detroit Red Wings to a seventh game in last year's playoffs, essentially costing the Red Wings the Stanley Cup, be so mediocre to start the 2009-10 season?
There are several reasons for the Ducks' shortcomings, not the least of which is the loss of perennial All-Star defenseman Chris Pronger, who was a huge part of the Ducks' defense and, coincidentally, has single-handedly turned the Philadelphia Flyers' defense into one of the NHL’s best.
The loss of Pronger hurts; so too does the poor play of J.S. Giguere and the ordinary play of Jonas Hiller.
Obviously, Giguere has endured some injury problems and has not been that big of factor in the Ducks shortcomings, but Hiller, who was huge for the Ducks last season, has taken a step backwards and that has cost the ...
Read Full Article at Bleacher Report - NHL
Article written by Mark Ritter
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November 14th, 2009 by Mark Ritter Leave a reply »
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