Ducks urged to skate, forecheck to jumpstart slumping offense

ANAHEIM, Calif. -- The two biggest issues to open the season for the Anaheim Ducks have been the 0-for-17 power play and, especially over the last two games–a self-described “terrible” 4-3 loss at Colorado on Friday and a “no jump” 4-1 home loss to Los Angeles on Sunday – a lack of shot generation.

Anaheim (2-2-1, 5 points) was handily outshot by both the Avalanche, 49-19, and Kings, 36-14.

For the Ducks, generation of offense starts well before the puck is on their stick.

“Well, you’ve gotta get (the puck) first,” Ducks coach Greg Cronin said. “If your forecheck’s not going, you’re not going to get shots, and if your forecheck is going and your offensive zone arrivals aren’t organized, where you can go high-low with a quick shot or hit the guy in the pocket for a shot, because usually a shot will invite a rebound, whether it’s off the end wall or the shin pad or the goalie’s pad.

"If you don’t get it back, you’re not going to get shots.”

Cronin said after rewatching the Kings game with an unemotional view, he saw a “tight-checking playoff game” for the first 25 minutes. However, once the turnovers hit, Los Angeles was able to catch the Ducks on long shifts and run them down.

The second-year coach reiterated that Anaheim needs to chase down those pucks to establish offensive zone time and not get hemmed into their own end.

“If you don’t skate, that was my frustration after the game, you don’t skate, you’re not gonna get it,” Cronin said. “The whole game is about speed and skating.

"Whether you skated across the blue line with your legs or you moved it across the blue line with a chip in, you gotta match that speed to go get it.”

Troy Terry leads the team in goals (3) and assists (4) with goals in three of the last four games and a four-game point streak, and the 27-year-old said the team needs to get back to playing that quick game and “playing vertical,” as Anaheim did in its first three games.

Terry said they do need to start just sending more rubber to the net, but there’s also work to be done in the Ducks’ offensive production.

“Getting more shots just isn’t a flip the switch thing,” Terry said. “We need to get the puck back more on forechecks. We need to make cleaner breakouts.

"Away from there, we need to have more offensive zone time, and once we’re there, I think we have been passing up some shots. That’s definitely part of it. I think it’s just the whole thing. Cleaner breakouts, better forechecks.”

Terry and center linemate Ryan Strome are top two in goals for Anaheim, with Strome scoring three goals on a team-high 14 shots, including the lone tally against the Kings on Sunday. The line’s other winger Frank Vatrano, who led the Ducks in goals last season, leads the team in expected goals, according to MoneyPuck, despite not putting one in the net this season.

Terry, Strome and Vatrano have been the Ducks most consistent line, leading Anaheim at 5-on-5 play in both total unblocked shot attempts and expected goals for, according to Natural Stat Trick.

Cronin said they’ve set that pace by skating hard and knowing where each other is on the ice. 

When it comes to the still goalless power play–Anaheim (0-for-17) and Buffalo (0-for-21) are the only teams without a power play goal this season–Terry said the Ducks need to get into more of a shooting mindset, but the first step, like the 5-on-5 offense, is work.

“Trying to find ways to work for each other and support each other and break down these teams’ pressure,” Terry said. “Once we do that, just looking to shoot more often than we have been. 

"It’s just executing. It’s not like guys aren’t working hard out there. It’s an execution thing. Last game against LA, it was just pressuring everywhere, and we just didn’t handle it well.”

Anaheim will look to snap back to its winning form against San Jose at home on Tuesday. The Ducks shut out the Sharks, 2-0, in their season opener on Oct. 12.

Practice Notes

• John Gibson hit the ice in full pads Monday for the first time since his emergency appendectomy on Sept. 25. There’s still no immediate timetable for the goaltender’s full return, but Cronin said he could join the Ducks on their upcoming East Coast road trip.

• Isac Lundestrom is still day-to-day with an upper-body injury and wore a red non-contact jersey. Cronin said the Swedish forward is close to returning.

• Ryan Strome did not practice due to illness.

• Frank Vatrano was also absent at practice. He was at the hospital with his wife in anticipation of their second child’s birth.

• Pavel Mintyukov was back at practice after a bout of food poisoning last night.