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Doubted all season, Ducks finally facing adversity

Viktor Fasth

Flukes.

Phonies.

Paper tigers.

A house of cards.

All of the above have been used to described the 2013 Anaheim Ducks.

Mostly, it’s been advocates of hockey’s advanced statistics (see: Corsi, Fenwick, and PDO) that have been waiting for the Ducks to collapse.

Anaheim, the stats guys say, has benefited from an unsustainable shooting percentage and an unsustainable save percentage.

Or, to put it another way, the Ducks were lucky to start the season 22-3-4.

Now, after three straight losses, Anaheim is facing some adversity.

“There’s always peaks and valleys, and we’re trying to get out of this valley as quick as possible and start climbing back in the right direction,” forward Corey Perry said after Monday’s 5-3 home loss to the Sharks. “We didn’t start well, and eventually it caught up to us. You don’t like losing at home, but if we play the same way we played in the second half of the game, we’re going to be successful.”

The Ducks kick off a four-game road trip tonight in San Jose, to be followed by stops in Chicago, Columbus, and Dallas.

Per the LA Times, defenseman Sheldon Souray is confident his team will “respond to this adversity and keep going.”

Others, obviously, aren’t so sure.