NHL Grind Down: Sunday, December 4th - Page Two
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Anaheim Ducks at Calgary Flames
| Anaheim Ducks | Calgary Flames | ||||||||
 | John Gibson |  | |||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 12-8-5 | 12-13-2 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.58 | 2.29 | 22.80% | 82.50% | Team Stats | 2.27 | 2.92 | 10.70% | 78.00% |
The Ducks come into this one fresh off a 3-2 overtime loss to the Edmonton Oilers last night. As bad as Calgary seems to be a win here would put them just one point away from Anaheim for third place in the Pacific division standings. The Flames have been stingy on defense lately as they have given up just ten goals over the last six games and just six goals in their last four games in front of the home crowd. While Corey Perry and Ryan Getzlaf lead the team in points Ryan Kesler has to be considered as a one-off here as he skates from the team’s second line. Kesler has 19 points on the season and is afforded the extra ice time with Perry and Getzlaf when the Ducks draw a penalty. Rickard Rakell has potted three goals over the last five games while skating on the top line but if you are looking for a winger to pair with Kesler, Jakob Silfverberg is probably your guy. Silfverberg has two goals to go along with an assist over the last five games while leading the team in shots with 16. Cam Fowler makes for a strong play from the point as he is outshooting fellow defenseman by a tally of 53-33. Fowler also holds the edge in points as his seven goals and nine assists is five points more than Vatanen’s 11 points so far this season.
The Flames are going for the trifecta on home ice as they have already defeated Toronto and Minnesota over the last four nights. Now they look to beat the Anaheim Ducks to sweep the current home stand before they take to the road to play the Stars in Dallas on Tuesday night. Calgary has only scored 28 goals in their last 15 games so looking for some consistent scoring here is almost fruitless. The line of Kris Versteeg, Sean Monahan and Sam Bennett lead the team with four goals and five assists over the last five games while the line of Matthew Tkachuk, Mikael Backlund and Michael Frolik has found the net just twice while grabbing just three assists over that same time frame. Frolik does lead the team in points but having six goals and nine assists in 27 games is really nothing to write home about. Defenseman T.J. Brodie has registered three of his seven points over the last five games while Dougie Hamilton leads the team in shots with 73 as he has two goals and ten assists so far this season. The Flames look forward to the return of Johnny Gaudreau tonight as this could be just what the doctor ordered. the Flames had an optional skate this morning so who he skates with is anyone’s guess tonight.
Elite Plays
ANA: Corey Perry, Ryan Getzlaf
CGY: Johnny Gaudreau
Secondary Plays
ANA: Ryan Kesler, Jakob Silfverberg, Cam Fowler, Rickard Rakell
CGY: Sean Monahan, Mikael Backlund, Matthew Tkachuk, Sam Bennett, Dougie Hamilton
Minnesota Wild at Edmonton Oilers
| Minnesota Wild | Edmonton Oilers | ||||||||
 |  | Cam Talbot | |||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 11-8-4 | 14-10-2 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.82 | 2.09 | 17.60% | 82.60% | Team Stats | 3.00 | 2.60 | 19.80% | 85.30% |
The Wild may be catching the Oilers at just the right time as Edmonton comes into this one playing their third game in the last four nights. Minnesota however hasn’t been playing that well of late as they have just two wins in their last seven games. They have come away with points in three of the losses as they are at least playing some competitive hockey. Jason Zucker is on fire of late as he has a goal and five assists over the last five games. He will skate on the second line with Mikko Koivu and Mikael Granlund who have also been producing of late as they have four points apiece over the last five games. This is the line to target for your GPP plays as the Oilers will put their best defensive line on Eric Staal, Zach Parise and Charlie Coyle. Staal leads the team in points with 16 while Coyle is the team leader in goals with eight. Ryan Suter is the choice on defense as he anchors the top power play unit while registering 16 points so far this season. Jared Spurgeon is another option from the blue line as he has three assists and 15 shots over the last game while getting more ice time when the team draws a penalty.
One would have to think that with players like Alexander Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby having the day off the top line of the Edmonton Oilers should easily be the highest owned trio in cash games today. Connor McDavid leads the league in points with 34 while line mates Milan Lucic and Leon Draisaitl each have registered five points over the last five games. Having the home ice advantage will make it even easier for Edmonton to exploit the lesser lines that the Minnesota Wild will run out there tonight. They also get the first shot on the top power play unit along with third liner Mark Letestu and defenseman Andrej Sekera. Letestu will get you some cheap exposure to McDavid and hasn’t done half-bad lately as his two goals and three points over the last five games account for 33% of his scoring production so far this season. If you are looking to stray from the masse a little bit I’d take a look at Jordan Eberle and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins from the Oilers second line. Eberle has 20 points on the season so far while leading the team in shots with 77 of them. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins is his partner in crime as he has 72 shots on the year but is still looking to get on track as he has just four goals making his shooting percentage settle at a dismal 5.6 %. Sekera and Oscar Klefbom have been switching back and forth on the top power play unit as it is now Sekera’s turn again as his four points over the last five games have driven him up to ten points in 26 games so far. The power play has scored four times over the last two games while the Oilers have eclipsed the 30 shot plateau in each of the last six games. They may not score, but the opportunity should be there and that’s all you can ask for.
Elite Plays
MIN: None
EDM: Connor McDavid
Secondary Plays
MIN: Eric Staal, Zach Parise, Ryan Suter, Jason Zucker, Charlie Coyle
EDM: Leon Draisaitl, Milan Lucic, Jordan Eberle, Andrej Sekera