Did you forget that Ryan Smyth was in the lineup? If so, you’re not alone. Smyth was a consistent scorer early in the season but lost out on the spotlight as of late. The gashes in the offensive line with Anze Kopitar and Justin Williams on IR have left room for Smyth to fill in the gap.
Smyth was assisted by Dustin Brown and Jarret Stoll in that first goal and though the Kings clung to that lead, they couldn’t hold out. Ducks veteran player 40 year-old Teemu Selanne scored in the second period to tie the game and again in the third period to seal the deal for the Ducks.
“It has been grinding for the last three months and I really believe this team deserves to be in the playoffs,” said Selanne. “That’s why this was a big step forward and now at least we can breathe a little bit.”
The Kings dropped from fourth to sixth in the playoff race and the Ducks secured a postseason spot for themselves. After winning the cup in 2008 the Ducks have since lost a lot of their swagger, not even advancing past the regular season last year.
“They needed those points to get in the playoffs,” said Wayne Simmonds. “I think we could have done a better job for ourselves … We kind of let our foot off the pedal halfway through the game there, and they kind of came on strong, and obviously that cost us.”
Topics: Anze Kopitar, Dustin Brown, Jarret Stoll, Justin Williams, Ryan Smyth, Teemu Selanne
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