The climb is totally done but the Anaheim Ducks did complete the first leg in the climb from obscurity this season to first place in the Pacific Division Saturday.
In Los Angeles, the Ducks defeated the Kings, 3-2, and moved into sole possession of the top spot.
“That’s the position we want to be in and we’re not satisfied being there right now,” Rickard Rakell said. “We just want to keep going. … the team’s coming together and we have four lines that play solid hockey. It must be tough to match up against us.”
Ryan Kesler had a goal in Ducks win in LA – file photo by Lewis Bleiman
Jakob Silfverberg, David Perron and Ryan Kesler scored for the Ducks.
The win also marked the 400th NHL win for Ducks coach Bruce Boudreau.
“I must have had good teams,” Boudreau said. “I was lucky in Washington and lucky to have a great team here.”
The Ducks are now 18-1-1 since mid-January and since the holiday break they are 25-4-2. A dramatic shift since opening the season on a losing streak and unable to generate any offense.
“I don’t know if we’re satisfied by that. … but it means you’re doing something right,” goalie Frederik Andersen said. “That’s all we’re really focused on.”
For the Kings, the loss was another game with limited offense.
“Every win and loss is a matter of home ice in the playoffs,” Anze Kopitar said. “We do realize what’s at stake here and we fell behind here today and we’re going to have to catch ground.”
For Anaheim, the offense has kicked into gear over the streak since December. On Saturday, they picked up another power play goal and that marked the 11th straight game with a score off the man advantage.
“I could never have foreseen a power play being as productive as it is,” Boudreau said. “But when they’re on the power play, they have a tremendous amount of confidence right now, and the leaps and bounds we’ve made in the last two months is incredible.”
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