BoC Gameday—Prelude to Burke Week

by Earl Sleek on Nov 16, 2008 7:10 AM PST

Los Angeles Kings (7-7-2, t-11th in west) at Anaheim Ducks (9-7-2, 5th in west)
That strange silence you're hearing is a quiet general manager.

Over the next week, I will be writing a series of posts looking back on the legacy of Brian Burke in Anaheim -- moves I liked, moves I didn't like, plus some general observations -- so yeah, look forward to that. For now, though, all I'll say is that I'm fine with the timing of the move, as there's not a lot of GMing that can really be done with the rest this year's roster. The Ducks are so close to the cap ceiling that there's not much to do except (a) promote Bobby Ryan and (b) re-sign some key players before next summer.

We'll get to (a) in a second, but really the re-signing aspect is the key one: once Burke turned down a contract extension, next year's roster became Bob Murray's concern, and better to put that person in charge now than to wait until the offseason. Incidentally, I don't expect to learn very much about Bob Murray's GM tendencies until next summer; for now it's still pretty much Burke's team, and the only clues we'll have about Murray in the coming months will likely be in the form of which UFAs get re-signed and which do not.

Ah, this PuckToon I drew last June seems appropriate.
(It's not as if I've never stolen from work before.)
I missed Friday's game against the Predators, so I was caught off-guard by the announcement that Frenchie Beauchemin will be out six months with a torn ACL. The ramifications of this seem to be twofold: (a) Bobby Ryan and Ryan Festerling got promoted from the AHL under long-term-injury cap relief, and (b) Scott Niedermayer will be getting a new minute-eating defense partner. I hesitate to say who will be getting the promotion, but I think I'd give Steve Montador a shot at some top-four duty -- he's a guy who's been impressing me with his overall game and could play anchor to Niedermayer's roamer game.

As for Bobby Ryan, now's the opportunity for the kid to step up to the big leagues -- on paper, he potentially gives the Ducks a set of six legitimate top-six forwards (sorry Marchant, one of the requirements is "hands") for the first time this season. Between Kunitz-Getzlaf-Perry and Ryan-Morrison-Selanne, I'll be interested to see how the Ducks' offense operates. It may just provide the positivity to offset the downside of losing Beauchemin.

Prediction: Tonight Sleek's lucky green shirt is going up to the Honda Center rafters (translation: I'll be sitting in the nosebleeds), as some hockey-playing friends of mine have taken advantage of a Ducks promotion -- sell enough upper deck seats and they get to play a short beer league-style game on Honda Center ice after the Ducks and Kings end. So if you see a green shirt during the game in Section 430, Row J, feel free to say hi, or if you're bored after the game and want to see some amateurs play, I'll be in the lower bowl for that. Ducks 4, Kings 2. Goals by Ryan (x2), Pahlsson, and Getzlaf.

Go Ducks.

Tweet Comment 21 comments | 0 recs |

Do you like this story?

Comments

Both teams share something in common: they both lost to the Predators this weekend. At least Nashville had the audacity to give Anaheim a point in their game. They weren't as generous to Los Angeles last night.

But maybe they'll be so upset with the Predators, they'll share each other's pain, and we won't see a Parros/Ivanans or May/Brown fight. Are Parros and May even back in the lineup yet?

Sleek, that whole "lucky green shirt"/"Row B" thing.. aren't you a bit afraid that you might run the luck out of it by wearing it to a game and sitting elsewhere?

I would be. Be afraid.. be very afraid. [insert evil laughter here]

by Kevin Y on Nov 16, 2008 7:36 AM PST reply actions

fires depending, I'll be at the game tonight.

by Brad on Nov 16, 2008 8:25 AM PST reply actions

Sleek, that whole "lucky green shirt"/"Row B" thing.. aren't you a bit afraid that you might run the luck out of it by wearing it to a game and sitting elsewhere?

The luck only works if it's used fearlessly. And my positivity knows no bounds.

fires depending, I'll be at the game tonight.

Yeah, good luck with that. The Ducks and Kings will be around after the fires get put out, so no need to mis-prioritize.

by Earl Sleek on Nov 16, 2008 11:37 AM PST reply actions

The luck only works if it's used fearlessly. And my positivity knows no bounds.

True, there's no limit to positivity. Especially when your team has gone 0-1-2 in the last three games, all at home. Also when the Kings have gone 4-1-0 in their last five games and have allowed three or fewer goals in their last seven games. All hail King Ersberg*!!

How did the green shirt thing begin, anyway?

*"Ersberg" is probably the least regal name I've ever heard.

by Kevin Y on Nov 16, 2008 11:51 AM PST reply actions

by Brad on Nov 16, 2008 11:53 AM PST reply actions

Five hours to go, I'm no longer planning on it. Unless I took a route way out of the way, I can't get out of Chino Hills into Orange County. 57, Carbon Canyon, 71-91, all closed. Television will have to suffice

That really sucks. Do you think Anaheim has a thing where you can redeem tickets that you can't use because of the fire for games later in the season, like the Kings are doing?

by Kevin Y on Nov 16, 2008 11:58 AM PST reply actions

I don't know. I think they were season tickets through my friend's company. I didn't pay, so I'll just chock it up as a loss for me.

by Brad on Nov 16, 2008 12:06 PM PST reply actions

...your team has gone 0-1-2 in the last three games, all at home. Also when the Kings have gone 4-1-0 in their last five games...

Emjoy the stretches when you can get 'em. The real point is that (a) both teams are well short of the Sharks' pace, no matter how you slice it, and (b) other than that, it's a pretty shoddy west thus far. Lots of opportunities for everybody to make it, still.

But yeah, I don't worry that much about November, not like I used to.

How did the green shirt thing begin, anyway?

I won the shirt on an internet bet in the Ducks' cup year. Plus my Vishnevski jersey got quickly irrelevant.

57, Carbon Canyon, 71-91, all closed. Television will have to suffice.

I'd be TV-ing it, too, if my friends weren't playing afterwards. Today is supposed to be the first look at "modified rinkside view", and I'm curious how much they're scaling it back. Any comments or criticisms you want to give would be welcome.

by Earl Sleek on Nov 16, 2008 12:12 PM PST reply actions

...(a) both teams are well short of the Sharks' pace, no matter how you slice it...

Actually the Ducks are chasing the Sharks. The Kings are chasing mediocracy. They could probably care less if the Sharks won the Presidents' Trophy and the Stanley Cup this season.

by Kevin Y on Nov 16, 2008 2:33 PM PST reply actions

The only solace I take in the Sharks' record is that they [b]probably won't[/b] keep up their current pace, which if they did would land them about 64 wins this year. That just doesn't seem likely. Other than that, they piss me off.

by brokeyard on Nov 16, 2008 3:46 PM PST reply actions

Fuck, there i go with bb code again.

by brokeyard on Nov 16, 2008 3:46 PM PST reply actions

Fuck, there i go with bb code again.

Just make sure you do the < and > keys, not the square brackets.

by Kevin Y on Nov 16, 2008 4:35 PM PST reply actions

Rink. Side. View. STILL. BLOWS.

You still can't see a damn thing because the puck moves around the end boards much faster than the camera. If they sped up the camera, then it'd just be worse, and you would have a lot of television at home covered in vomit from nausea. ugh.

*comic book guy voice* Worst. Idea. Ever.

by Morbo on Nov 16, 2008 5:45 PM PST reply actions

I made it to the game. I should have just stayed home.

by Brad on Nov 16, 2008 8:39 PM PST reply actions

I made it to the game. I should have just stayed home.

If it makes you feel any better, in one fantasy league that really matters I dressed Labarbera and benched Hiller. So it's not all roses on my side either, I guess.

by Earl Sleek on Nov 16, 2008 9:25 PM PST reply actions

The only solace I take in the Sharks' record is that they probably won't keep up their current pace, which if they did would land them about 64 wins this year. That just doesn't seem likely. Other than that, they piss me off.

The main solace that I take is that all this winning is meaningless to your average Sharks fan. They don't care about anything except the second round of the playoffs. Even McLellan's probably not a "success" until he does it "when it matters".

That's what amuses me about the whole thing. No Shark fan can accept success without asking "...but then what?"

by Earl Sleek on Nov 16, 2008 9:34 PM PST reply actions

in one fantasy league that really matters I dressed Labarbera and benched Hiller.

I don't know enough about fantasy sports for that to make much sense. Either way, it doesn't sound like a good move.

word verification: uppimpe

yes, yes I am.

by Brad on Nov 16, 2008 10:21 PM PST reply actions

I only watch the Ducks broadcast when the Kings are playing them, but MAN does that play by play guy love to say "rimming."

by Chris Kontos on Nov 16, 2008 11:01 PM PST reply actions

The Kings are chasing mediocracy. They could probably care less if the Sharks won the Presidents' Trophy and the Stanley Cup this season.

I believe you about the President's Trophy, but if you tell me that Kings fans are indifferent as to whether or not they are the last team in California to get a Stanley Cup, I don't believe it for a second.

by Earl Sleek on Nov 17, 2008 12:51 PM PST reply actions

Ducks fans are bent on forever remaining the "only" California team to ever win the Cup.

by brokeyard on Nov 17, 2008 2:41 PM PST reply actions

I'm not sure if I have that bent as much as most Ducks fans, but so long as it remains true, it remains my biggest trump card in this whole BoC experiment.

I can survive a Sharks or Kings cup win, of course -- just don't make it two!

by Earl Sleek on Nov 17, 2008 2:47 PM PST reply actions

Comments For This Post Are Closed

FanPosts

Community blog posts and discussion.

Recent FanPosts

+ New FanPost All FanPosts >

Pacific Standings

	GP	W	L	OTL	PT
San Jose Fear The Fin	54	31	17	6	68
Los Angeles Jewels From The Crown	57	27	19	11	65
Phoenix Five For Howling	57	27	21	9	63
Dallas Defending Big D	56	28	25	3	59
Anaheim Anaheim Calling	57	24	24	9	57