Anaheim Ducks Offense Struggling, Time for Depth to Step Up
By Redan Lopez
In what seems to be a serious case of Deja Vu for the Anaheim Ducks, the team cannot get anything going on the offensive side of the puck.
The Anaheim Ducks are looking for answers on offense early on. This doesn’t seem to be a new thing. The past couple of years, the Ducks have struggled to generate offense early on. This led to last year’s 1-3-1 start and scoring only 10 goals in their first 10 games two years ago.
Being at the Sabres vs. Ducks games on Sunday night at Honda Center, I could see the Ducks struggling mightily to generate anything at even strength. They were simply one and done, unable to mount sustained pressure and get to the few rebounds they generated. This led to the Ducks yet again allowing the first goal early on, this time to Sabres’ winger Justin Bailey.
The most alarming trend in this game and the six played thus far has been a slow, lackluster start. The Ducks have spent an enormous amount of time in their defensive zone early on. What does this mean? It means less time for them to mount their own attack and play in the offensive zone. It means less time to create offense and less scoring chances.
Anaheim Ducks Decimated by Injuries & Struggling on the Power Play
While devastated by injuries – missing Ryan Getzlaf, Ryan Kesler, Patrick Eaves up front and Hampus Lindholm and Sami Vatanen on the blueline – the Ducks have simply been unable to generate a consistent and feared offense. The easiest area to point this out is their inability to score a Power Play goal. Per TSN, they are scoreless on the man advantage in 21 attempts.
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That the Ducks’ last 2 goals in the past 2 games have come shorthanded says a lot about the lack of offensive execution. But in order for the Ducks to get through this rough patch without some of their best players, their depth forwards and defensemen need to show up.
Jakob Silfverberg, Nick Ritchie, and Logan Shaw have yet to score a goal. Corey Perry has not contributed on the scoresheet beyond opening night against Arizona. Francois Beauchemin, in his third stint with the team, has not contributed offensively.
Even Beauchemin himself said that the offense needs to get better and sees it as a vast area of improvement.
Next: Kings edge Islanders at home
While early, the Ducks need to generate some offense to give the team a chance to stay afloat in what will be a highly competitive Pacific Division. Their defense and John Gibson in particular has been outstanding, allowing two goals (not including empty net goals) in their last 4 games. The defense is doing its job. Its time for the Ducks’ offense to now go out and do theirs.