ANAHEIM, Calif. – The crowd was slow to arrive to Game 1 between the Ducks and Flames at the Honda Center in Anaheim on Thursday night. The arena itself seemed much more vast and wide open than the Saddledome. On press row in Calgary, you sit staring down over the ice, while in Anaheim every single paying fan is closer to the action than any media member.
The fans didn’t provide any spontaneous energy—they booed when the Flames came out, they cheered on the Ducks’ arrival. Regular five-on-five play was quite quiet, goals were cheered, opposing goalies jeered, but to be clear—nothing like a Flames crowd in the playoffs.
Andersen outplays Hiller
Jonas Hiller said all the right things leading up to Game 1. He thanked the Ducks for turning him into a starter in the NHL in his seven seasons in Anaheim. Hiller said his motivation was to win a playoff series, not stick it to the team that lost faith in him last year and eventually let him go.
Hiller had played in the regular season at the Honda Center with the Flames against the Ducks, but no doubt a playoff return to Anaheim meant a great deal to the Flames starter. After being pulled in back-to-back games, I doubt he’ll be the starter in Game 2 on Sunday. The Anaheim Ducks brass can feel more secure in their decision to move forward with Frederik Andersen over Jonas Hiller. Hiller played some great games in Round 1, but the momentum and the Ducks attack was too great for him to start Round 2.
Flames lose physical battle
The Flames used their physical game to wear down Vancouver and eliminate the Canucks in six games. Clearly Anaheim is not a team that was worn down in Game 1 against the Flames, in fact it was the other way around. Michael Ferland became a fan hero in the first round for his game-changing hits and pesky attitude, but Ferland was knocked out of Game 1, along with Jiri Hudler.
The Flames didn’t change their lineup or game plan much in their series win against Vancouver, but we could see a lot of change heading into Game 2 of this series—likely including a change in net.
A 6-1 loss is basically a low point of the season at the worst time. The trend of not being able to win a game at the Honda Center continues. The Flames have been a bounce-back team all season, but winning Game 2 will be a huge challenge.
The Ducks are who we thought they were, now the Flames look to do what they’ve done all season: succeed against great odds in trying to earn a split before heading back to Calgary for Game 3 on Tuesday.
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