A Taylor Hall hat trick and a 5-2 loss to the Carolina Hurricanes were the least of the Ducks’ worries on Sunday night. They went 0-for-6 on the power play and mustered just six shots on goal on the man advantage, with the Hurricanes also creating several breakaway attempts while shorthanded.
The power play—and special teams as a whole—has been an issue for Anaheim all season. An 0-for-20 run to start the season foreshadowed what was to come, as the Ducks have had several dry runs this season on the man advantage. They are currently 31st overall in power play percentage (12.6%), with only the New York Islanders (12.1%) below them.
“Our special teams haven't been good this year and it's definitely cost us,” Ryan Strome said. “It’s definitely been an eyesore and something we need to improve on.”
“I mean, the power play can't go 0-for-6,” Troy Terry said after Sunday’s game. “(Carolina’s) penalty kill comes with pretty much just all-out pressure everywhere, and (you can feel a little disjointed at times because they're coming at you so hard and then all of a sudden you have a grade-A (chance).
“Through some of the power plays that were ugly, we still ended up with a grade-A chance at the net. That’s kind of the way it is, but we just need to bear down and put them in the net. We also just need to be maybe a little more connected and support each other more (against) teams that pressure really hard.”
Diagnosing the Anaheim Ducks Power PlayThe Ducks have the (tied) 31st-ranked power play in the NHL and have yet to produce a goal
‘Connected’ and ‘connectivity’ have been two big buzzwords inside the Anaheim locker room this season. The two terms were used frequently early on this season when the team was struggling to generate offense as a whole. They’ve cropped up again recently with the recent power play slump. But what does it mean to be connected or to have connectivity? Strome attempted to break it down after their 6-4 win over the Seattle Kraken on Jan. 28
“In practice, we've been doing a lot of drills where it's 3-on-2 and 2-on-2 and competing, and I think we're making more plays in practice. I think guys are embracing that every day, coming to the rink to make those plays and to challenge themselves to compete against each other in practice.
“I think that confidence is kind of spewing on the ice a little bit. I thought the last few days of our practice had been really high-spirited and competitive. Guys are trying to score goals and make plays, and when you're seeing that transition to the game, it’s a good sign.”
Does that mean that the players suddenly aren’t making plays in practice and aren’t being high-spirited and competitive? Of course not. But the “disconnect” has been evident on the man advantage.
For most of the season, the power play units have involved Strome at the netfront and Alex Killorn in the bumper on one unit and Frank Vatrano serving as the trigger man on the right flank. The point has typically been occupied by Jackson LaCombe or Olen Zellweger with Terry on the left flank.
Ducks to Continue with Same Power Play PersonnelThe Anaheim Ducks' special teams units remain mostly intact despite poor results
Trevor Zegras has missed several games due to injury, but has found himself in various positions on the power play. So too has Mason McTavish. Both players have found themselves in nearly every position imaginable on the power play. Zegras was even utilized as a faux defenseman when assistant coach and power play chief Rich Clune briefly ran a five-forward power play unit.
It’s clear that Zegras is the straw that stirs the drink on the power play. His vision and the creativity he possesses allows him to create something out of nothing. When Zegras was out injured, Killorn went out of his way to mention how much of an impact he has on the power play.
Currently, Zegras occupies the left flank of the 1-3-1 while McTavish fills the same role as Vatrano––with his booming one-timer––on their own unit. “I think you're kind of more of a passer from the left side,” Zegras said. We kind of want one-timers in different spots of the ice, and having (someone) ready on the goal line helps with that. Obviously, we wanna give (McTavish) the puck with some space to shoot it and let him do his thing.”
“It’s kind of weird because there's only really two righties (on the power play), me and Troy, so it's kind of a unique thing,” Strome said. I think the setup is maybe more based on the hands we have available to us versus what we'd wanna do if we have more righties.
“So, in that case, we have the righties in front of the net and then the guy that's going down the hill, they're coming down the left side. The D’s a lefty, the guy in the middle is a lefty and the shooter's a lefty. And the guy on the goal line is a righty, so it gives that guy four options to pass to, so we kind of work off that.
“The power play hasn't been great this year, but I think that's kind of what we're trying to accomplish and it's tough. When Troy and I were playing on the same power play unit, the other unit had five lefties. It’s a little bit of a weird thing and not too common, but we've tried to make the most of it.”
After spending most of the season on the flanks, Leo Carlsson now occupies the bumper position. Carlsson said he is trying to emulate the Minnesota Wild’s Kirill Kaprizov while operating in the bumper.
“(Kaprizov is) in the bumper, but he’s everywhere,” Carlsson said. “I have to stay in the bumper when it’s tight and there’s pucks in the corner, just trying to have a free role and have fun with it. Being an option to shoot and pass.”
This is all well and good when properly executed, so why hasn’t it been? One of the issues plaguing the Ducks is that their power play has been too static. Some of the league’s best power plays emphasize movement, whether that comes via the puck or players within the unit. Too often, the Ducks have either failed to move the puck with urgency within their units or have not attacked the interior of the opposing penalty kill. Zipping the puck around the perimeter does nothing if the opposition is given free rein to deny the middle and let everything come from the outside.
To better utilize Carlsson as the bumper, he needs to assert more of a roving role like he mentioned in mimicking Kaprizov. Carlsson must do a better job of recognizing when to pop out from the bumper and perhaps utilize a two-man game alongside the goal line with whoever is at the netfront (it was Sam Colangelo at Tuesday’s practice).
The no. 1 option on the Ducks’ power play appears to be setting up Vatrano and McTavish for one-timers, but what happens when that option isn’t available? The units must find ways to collapse the diamond penalty kill and open up opportunities for seam passes—and more one-timer chances.
A major issue that transcends the power play is that the Ducks simply do not have enough true finishers. Many of their players have dangerous shots, but not enough of those shots have been converted into goals. When you barely have any true shot threats to cover, it becomes easy to neutralize your power play.
One player who has been on and off the power play who possesses a lethal shot is Cutter Gauthier. He has just two power play goals this season, but both of them have come from dangerous positions on the ice—and both were pinpoint shots. Utilizing Gauthier in the bumper to set up one-timers alongside Vatrano or McTavish could help keep opposing penalty kills honest, not knowing if the pass from the left flank is going to the bumper or through the seam to the right flank.
The Ducks certainly have the personnel to convert on the power play at a league-average rate. Being more “connected” by knowing their outs and moving the puck with purpose is a start. Cleaner zone entries—especially against high-pressure teams like Carolina—will make their jobs a lot easier as well.
The NHL is all about structure and predictability, but being too rigid on the power play can be detrimental. Letting the creativity flow and playing ‘organically’ off their talent,’ like head coach Greg Cronin mentioned at the beginning of the season, could do them a world of good in the final 12 games of the season.
