The Ducks Might Let Their Third-Straight Game 7 Collapse Get To Them

Anaheim has fallen short in three straight Game 7’s at home — what’s the deal?

Chicago knew heading into Game 7 of this year’s Western Conference Final at the Honda Center that escaping without injury against the Ducks was going to be hard — but they found a way to emerge victorious.

The Blackhawks took full advantage of a flurry of early Duck defensive mistakes and jumped out to a big lead that they never relinquished.

Anaheim struggled mightily to contain Chicago’s own Jonathan Toews, as he scored two goals in another historic victory for him personally and also for the franchise.

More from LA Sports Hub

• Lakers: 5 Players to Target Through Trades to make another championship run
• LA Chargers: Week 8 against Denver Broncos is a must-win
• LA Rams: Jared Goff wants to keep the Los Angeles title streak going
• Lakers Rumors: Los Angeles Clippers interested in Rajon Rondo
• LA Chargers: Justin Herbert wins AFC Rookie of the Month

If anyone has found a way to dominate their respective sport, it’s the Blackhawks.

Chicago found themselves up 2-0 after the first period and 4-1 after two frames of play.

The Ducks are far from a come-from-behind kind of team, so after forty minutes you could really get the feeling that the end had all but come (again) for a team that can’t ever seem to find the answer.

Since the 2009-10 season, Chicago has won the Stanley Cup twice (interrupted by two wins by the LA Kings and a win by the Boston Bruins) and each time has done so in mesmerizing style.

The Ducks, on the other hand, fell short for the third straight time in a Game 7 at the Honda Center.

Each loss has come in a progressive better round.

The first woe was in the first round of the 2012 playoffs, falling to the Detroit Red Wings.

This was followed up by last year’s fall to the eventual Stanley Cup Champion Los Angeles Kings and then of course the most recent one happening against the Chicago Blackhawks.

Yikes.

Not only have the Ducks seemed to master the art of losing when it counts — which is like the exact opposite of what you should be doing as a professional sports team — but they only seem to get better but worse in the same breath.

How is it that a team that make it to the first, then second, then third round in three consecutive seasons yet still crumble in the same opportunity?

Simple. The answer lies in their determination.

As many of us took note of, the Ducks played with some serious firepower to open things up in the Western Conference Final, and even in the middle of things were pushing strong, but when it came down to a do-or-die situation they choked.

Again.

The fate remains the same.

Moving forward, the most pressing question for the Ducks right now is whether or not a division crown every year is worth focusing on if that kind of success doesn’t replicate itself in the playoffs when the games truly count.

Los Angeles in previous years and Chicago this season show that winning your division is not essential to making it far after the regular season and even potentially winning the Cup.

Maybe the Ducks should take note of that, and not over-inflate themselves with confidence just because they have home ice advantage.

The Ducks Don’t Have An Answer – Yet

Because clearly, the way things sit right now, playing in front of their own fans when it counts is not the answer.

On the other side of the NHL, the New York Rangers were also shocked by the Tampa Bay Lightning, as both road teams in Game 7 will now face each other for the most coveted prize in hockey — Lord Stanley’s Cup.

Oh yeah, baby, it’s that time again.