This was an interesting week for the Ducks, where they played ok in totality with a very poor game mixed in, but somehow came out of it with a 2-2-1 record for the road trip. We will dive into the overall play, though, and how that compares with that record, but first time for the song of the week.

Song of the week

For the song of the week, I am going with a song from the New York band Bayside in honor of the Ducks completing their annual Tri-State road trip. I went with the song duality because that kind of describes the Ducks’ defensive game on this trip, which will make more sense by the end of the article!

@ Pittsburgh

This was a bad game for the Ducks from a process perspective, even though the vibes were great with the ultra-late tying goal and shootout win, with the main driver of those vibes being a stellar performance by Ville Husso.

For context, recall how well the Ducks played against Chicago and how that was a historic win from a numerical perspective; this was nearly the same game, but flipped. Against the Hawks, the Ducks generated 4.6 xGF and allowed 0.54 xGA at 5v5. Versus the Penguins, those totals were 4.53 xGA and 1.35 xGF. So the Ducks generated a bit more than the Hawks did in the Ducks’ trouncing, but allowed just as many chances at 5v5. Then, in all situations, against the Hawks, the Ducks generated 6.75 xGF and allowed 0.98 xGA. Versus the Penguins, those totals were 7.0 xGA and 2.02 xGF (Granted, this includes OT).

The 4.53 xGA at 5v5 is the 4th worst total by the Ducks in the analytics era, and the 7.0 xGA in all situations is the third worst total by the Ducks in the analytics era.

My big question coming out of the Chicago game was how the Ducks would follow up that historically great performance. Would this be the spark the Ducks needed to clean up their defensive game? Would this spur the team to get back to their high-flying, chance-creating ways?

The answer to both of those questions in this game was a resounding no. Granted, this was only one game, but this two-game sample kind of epitomizes this season so far, with the team having a bit of a Jekyll and Hyde element to them.

The only positive from a numbers side of things in this one was Ville Husso. He posted a 3.65 GSAx in all situations, even though he allowed 3 goals in the game. He was the sole reason the Ducks got anything from this one and deserved that Bombay jacket after the game.

Just for completion sake, the numbers on a per 60-minute level in this one were 1.64 xGF/60 and 5.50 xGA/60. Their season average is currently 2.93 xGF/60 and 3.10 xGA/60.

@ New york islanders

The Ducks appeared to take the lessons learned from the Penguins game on the defensive side of the ice and implemented some changes to bring down the chances against to a much more manageable level. There were still issues with the Islanders controlling most of the 2nd period and getting good chances, but it was not the all-out assault that the Ducks allowed against the Penguins.

Offensively for the Ducks, this was a game where they got a steady stream of shots and chances, but they did not seem to be able to get out into the rush and create as many grade-A chances as usual. Overall, though, as the season goes on, that is going to become the norm, and this team will need to find ways to generate their looks from the in-zone cycle vs predominantly the rush.

All of that in mind, I thought this was a nice bounce back in play at 5v5 after the disastrous game against the Penguins, even if I would like to see the Ducks dominate an Islanders team that has struggled overall at 5v5 this season.

The numbers in this one ended up at 3.02 xGF/60 and 2.81 xGA/60 at 5v5, with the season averages being at 2.93 xGF/60 and 3.10 xGA/60.

@ new jersey

To be honest, this game felt very similar to the game against the Islanders for me. The Ducks got a decent stream of shots offensively, but the Devils did an excellent job at limiting the grade A chances from the Ducks with a very stingy game plan. The Ducks will need to start finding more and more ways to work their way through defenses like this if they want to maintain their success throughout the season.

I think going through these types of games is really important for the young core to understand how teams are going to be playing them so that they can make tweaks to generate more offense as the season goes along.

Defensively, this was in line with the Islanders’ game. The Ducks allowed some good chances, but did a nice job overall in comparison to the Penguins game. Part of that may have been the Devils missing some of their top players, but the Ducks do deserve credit for stringing together two improved defensive performances in a row.

The numbers from this one were 2.72 xGF/60 and 2.77 xGA/60, and their season averages are 2.93 xGF/60 and 3.10 xGA/60.

@ new york rangers

This was the third straight game that followed a somewhat similar game flow/play style, which was not the most exciting, but could be a good sign long term. Defensively, the Ducks were fairly stingy at 5v5, limiting the Rangers to only a few flurries of good chances, mainly coming in the third period when down 2-1. Outside of that, though, the Ducks did a good job of limiting the Grade A looks from the Rangers.

Offensively, though, this game was a step back for the Ducks at 5v5. They really struggled to get a steady flow of shots in this one at 5v5, and when they did get their chances, they were not finding them in dangerous locations. The key difference in this one vs the Devils and Islanders game is that in those, they found ways to get some looks from their in-zone, whereas in this one at 5v5, they did not.

Yes, the Ducks did win this game as compared to losing against the Islanders and Devils, but the overall 5v5 did take a dip in this one.

The numbers for this game came out to 1.77 xGF/60 to 2.46 xGA/60, and the season average is 2.93 xGF/60 and 3.10 xGA/60

@ Columbus

This game was once again a similar game to the previous ones for the Ducks from an overall output perspective, but how they got there was a bit different.

The Ducks felt a bit more dangerous offensively in this one, but they were not able to apply consistent pressure, going through some extended stretches without shots or chances for. Overall, though, it is good to see them work their way into dangerous locations for their shots as compared to the prior games, which were more so a steady stream of lower danger shots at 5v5.

Defensively, the Ducks just had one really poor stretch early in the 2nd period, which led to two of the goals against in this one. Removing that little flurry, the Ducks continued their improved 5v5 play from the prior games.

Overall, the numbers from this one ended up at 2.29 xGF/60 and 2.36 xGA/60

Trends

This was an interesting week for the Ducks. I already went on a bit about the game in Pittsburgh and how poor it was, but in the 4 games after that, they did rebound. If we isolate that 4-game stretch for this team, they put up a 2.44 xGF/60 and allowed 2.60 xGA/60, which is a step back offensively from their 2.93 xGF/60 season average but a massive improvement on their 3.10 xGA/60.

This was not a stellar week for the Ducks, although it's worth noting that their 5v5 numbers were well below 50% when including the Pittsburgh game, and still below 50% if that game is excluded. The positive spin on that is that we have seen them be extremely dangerous offensively, so if they can continue this improved defensive structure, while bringing back their strong offensive game, this team could take a step in their play.

From a trend perspective, I did want to bring up Mason McTavish. I mentioned this on the podcast, but he is one of the worst forwards defensively in the league this year, and those numbers have resulted in his GAR metrics being some of the worst in the league. He has consistently struggled in his own zone over his career, but the hope was that with a new coach and system, his offensive output could outweigh any defensive issues. For the first 10-ish games of the season, that was the case, but in the 20+ games since, he has been extremely poor.

Something has to give with this situation, and he either needs to be moved to the wing or put with some more defensively responsible linemates to shore up these issues and allow him to take the step. If not, the Ducks need to evaluate the situation quickly and make a change if needed because his play is what is holding this team back currently.

Victory+ STreak

This past week the Ducks got last goals from Sennecke, Mintyukov, Terry twice, and LaCombe so there was a bit of top 6 chalk and some defenseman jumping in to get their name on the board.

I have yet to get one right, but I am going to keep hammering the chalk.

Brian Hayward Fit Check

Against the Penguins we got the black undershirt mixed with the pattern jacket. This is a fine enough look for Hazy but we all know he can bring a lot more heat than this.

I give this look a 5/10

Hazy is coming for me with this fit. I love the black turtleneck, but I continue to dislike this jacket, which overall really ruins this fit for me

I give this look a 4.5/10

Here we go!!!!!! That turtleneck appears to be a navy instead of the usual black that we have seen from Hayward on numerous occasions, and that little pop of color goes wonderfully with the tan jacket. This is near perfection, actually you know what, it is perfect!

This look is a 10/10!

Hayward took the same look from the prior game and just switched up the undershirt turtleneck. It still works wonderfully but the gray just is not as good as the navy for me.

I give this look a 9.2/10

And we have a repeat of the first game of the road trip. I already didn’t love this look, but it will get a knock for a repeat look on such short notice.