September 2011 Archives

Tonight's game against the Sharks offers Honda Center patrons a chance to see some different Ducks players out of uniform. Here's where to go:

Team Store (main concourse) - Jonas Hiller, Dan Ellis, Andrew Cogliano (6:00-7:00 p.m.)

FanZone (section 214) - Lubomir Visnovsky, Matt Beleskey (6:00-7:00)

Will Call Window (near section 201) - Teemu Selanne, Saku Koivu (6:30- 7:00)

Oggi's Pizza (near section 203) - Kyle Palmieri, Devante Smith-Pelly, Dan Sexton, Brandon McMillan (6:00-7:00)

The first game of the NHL preseason is a haphazard ritual, its beauty comparable to gargling the morning breath out of one's mouth at the crack of dawn, its timing and coordination no better than of a pack of hyenas attempting to divide a carcass of raw meat.

There is no need here to romanticize the hockey-viewing experience of 12,544 announced spectators at Honda Center -- it was pretty ugly -- but there were a few takeaways.

First, the quick and dirty game synopsis:

Igor Bobkov played roughly the first 30 minutes and John Gibson played the last 30. It was the first NHL game action of any sort for either goalie (Bobkov was at last year's NHL camp and did not appear in an exhibition game), but the seven goals couldn't totally be pinned on them. "We've got to work on defensive-zone coverage. That's what we have to work on, obviously," head coach Randy Carlyle said.

Sean Zimmerman, Kyle Palmieri, Andrew Cogliano and Nate Guenin scored goals for the Ducks, who never led in the game. The offensive effort wasn't much to blink at, either.

"We just seemed to be slapping the puck around in too many situations," Carlyle said. "From our standpoint it's an evaluation game."

On with the evaluating then ...

Players not appearing in tonight's game will be working at various locations at Honda Center during tonight's game against the Phoenix Coyotes and again tomorrow against the San Jose Sharks. Players and times are subject to change:

Team Store (main concourse): Ryan Getzlaf and Bobby Ryan (6:00-6:30 p.m.)

Elevator operator (Southeast Concierge near section 204): George Parros (working elevator 6:00 to 6:15 then FanZone from 6:15 to 6:45). FanZone is near section 214

FanZone (section 214): Sheldon Brookbank (6:00-7:00)

Will Call Window (near section 201): Francois Beauchmin and Jason Blake (6:00- 6:20)

Oggi's Pizza (near section 203): Cam Fowler, Luca Sbisa and Nick Bonino (6:00-7:00)

Andrew Gordon's first-period goal accounted for all the offense in the Ducks' 6-1 loss to the Sharks on Wednesday night. Gordon, the former Washington Capitals prospect who signed a two-year contract in the off-season, elicited a positive reaction from Randy Carlyle after an otherwise dreary game for the Ducks.

"I thought that Gordon made an impression. I thought that he was, again, a player that showed the determination and the fire that he showed right from the start of camp to impress some people," the coach said.

Here's something you probably didn't know about Gordon.

Kurtis Foster will have a procedure later
today at UCI Medical Center to remove a piece of wire from his left
thigh, the Ducks announced Monday, and the defenseman is expected to miss 2-4 weeks. Foster hasn't been taking part in drills since training camp opened Saturday.

A team spokesperson said the wire was placed in Foster's left leg during surgery that took place
to repair a fracture in March
2008. The wire was causing inflammation/irritation, and therefore will
be removed.

A two to four week timetable projects to Oct. 3 at the earliest and Oct. 17 at the latest. The Ducks play a preseason game in Helsinki on Oct. 4 and do not play in North America again until Oct. 14, a home game against San Jose. Foster's availability for the Europe trip seems to be in jeopardy, which would open a door for the other defensemen bidding for an opening-day roster spot.

Some more injury updates:

(Photo courtesy of Anaheim Ducks)

Teemu Selanne said he wanted to decide whether or not to extend his playing career by September 16. Looks like he beat his own deadline by a full day.

The 41-year-old right wing signed a one-year, $4 million contract Thursday that will keep the Ducks' leading scorer in uniform for another year. The annual summer ritual of will-he-retire-or-re-sign was getting old, and there was a sense of finality this time when Selanne spoke to reporters on a national conference call.

"I look at it as my last year," Selanne said. "Hopefully it's going to be a good one."

According to ESPN.com, the NHL has enacted a social media policy that will prohibit most posts by players, coaches, trainers and management on game days.

Beginning at 11 a.m. on the day of a game, and ending after post-game media obligations, the aforementioned NHL employees won't be allowed to post on social media websites. Nor can they use another person to post messages to their social media accounts.

Several Ducks players have popular Twitter accounts: Bobby Ryan, Matt Beleskey, George Parros, Cam Fowler, Andrew Gordon, Kyle Palmieri, Peter Holland and Emerson Etem.

The NHL is relatively late in restricting social media use by its personnel. Two years ago, the NFL instituted a policy similar in scope -- blacking out social media statements less than 90 minutes before kickoff up until post-game media obligations commence. The NBA's initial policy, also enacted in 2009, was almost identical.

Enacted in May, Major League Baseball's policy (which you can download here) seems more focused on restricting the content of social media dispatches, rather than their time of day.

Incidentally, Parros endorsed a social-media-use restriction on his own earlier today.

The Ducks announced six new game times today; adjust your schedules accordingly:

Tuesday, Nov. 1 at Washington - game time is now 4:30 p.m. PST
Friday, Nov. 11 vs. Vancouver - game time is now 7:35 p.m. PST
Monday, Dec. 19 at Dallas - game time is now 5 p.m. PST
Saturday, Jan. 21 vs. Ottawa - game time is now 1:05 p.m. PST
Wednesday, Feb. 1 vs. Dallas - game time is now 7:35 p.m. PST
Tuesday, Feb. 14 at Minnesota - game time is now 4:30 p.m. PST

The team also announced that its 2011-12 regular season television schedule will be released "soon."

Today I penned a story for Hockey Primetime that attempted to put the makeshift Ruslan Salei memorial outside Honda Center in a global context. You can read that here. After the jump, you'll find a bunch of photos I snapped this afternoon. Warning: My photography skills are, for lack of a better word, rusty.

The Ducks announced a list of 17 players who have been invited to the team's annual rookie camp. The group will work out both on and off the ice from Monday, Sept. 12 through Thursday, Sept. 15 at Anaheim Ice. All sessions will be closed to the public.

Full roster after the jump:

It will be remembered as one of the biggest tragedies in sports history, and it couldn't have come during a more tragic summer in the hockey world.

An airplane carrying members of the KHL team Lokomotiv Yaroslavl crashed near Minsk, Belarus today, killing 43. Former Ducks defenseman Ruslan Salei was reported among the deceased, along with former NHLers Pavol Demitra, Karlis Skrastins and Brad McCrimmon.

The Ducks released the following statement earlier today:

The Anaheim Ducks organization is shocked and saddened to learn of the passing of Ruslan Salei. 'Rusty' was a fan favorite and dedicated member of the Orange County community since being drafted by Anaheim in 1996. Our thoughts and prayers go to his wife and three children, along with all of the other members of the hockey community affected by this horrible tragedy.

Salei, a native of Minsk, joined Yaroslavl in the off-season after playing 75 games in 2010-11 for the Detroit Red Wings. He was a Mighty Duck until 2006, playing parts of nine seasons in Anaheim and one in Russia during the 2004-05 lockout. He signed with the Florida Panthers prior to the 2006-07 season.

The NHL was already left reeling in the wake of the suicide deaths of Wade Belak and Rick Rypien, and the death of Derek Boogaard from a lethal mix of alcohol and painkillers -- all in the last four months. Many players took to Twitter to express their disbelief.

- Ducks forward Bobby Ryan (@b_ryan9): I can't believe I'm writing another one. Thoughts and prayers to everyone affected by the KHL plane crash. Too many players gone this year

- Ducks defenseman Cam Fowler (@camfowler4): "cant even believe theres more awful news in professional hockey. thoughts and prayers go out to family and friends involved with that flight"

- Long Beach native and Ducks prospect Emerson Etem (@tweetem_up): doesn't matter who you are or where you play. another sad day for the hockey world. #KHL #RIP Lokomotiv Yaroslavl.

- Russian native and Philadelphia Flyers goalie Ilya Bryzgalov (@bryzgoalie30): My deepest condolences go to families and friends of Lokomotiv. My thoughts and prayers are with wives, childrens and parents of victims

- Orange County native and Nashville Predators defenseman Jonathon Blum (@JonBlum7): Can't believe the news today lost a former teammate thoughts and prayers go to the victims families

- Orange County native and Florida Panthers draft pick Rocco Grimaldi (@RGrimaldi23): My thoughts and prayers are with those who lost loved ones in the plane crash of the KHL team. Be praying for their comfort and peace

- Former Ducks center Andrew Ebbett (@aebbett): I can't even believe what happened in Russia today. So sad. My thoughts and prayers go out to all the players and staffs families.