ANAHEIM, Calif. — The Anaheim Ducks have already accomplished something this spring that eight previous editions of the franchise could not: they won a playoff series. Now they face a Vegas Golden Knights team that owns a Stanley Cup pedigree and a significant experience edge, but the Ducks are not intimidated.
Anaheim swept the three-game regular-season series against the Knights, winning each contest 4-3, two of those in overtime. Those results, combined with a first-round upset of the Edmonton Oilers in six games, have fueled belief inside the Ducks’ locker room that they can advance again.
“Within the room, belief’s in here,” Ducks right winger Troy Terry said Saturday. “Maybe there’s not as much pressure from media and outside sources and all that. We saw all the picks from the NHL voters and writers and stuff. But internally we have high expectations for ourselves, and we’re playing another team that within this room we know they’re a good team and we have lot of respect for but we swept them this year.”
The Knights, who hired John Tortorella as head coach on March 30, won the Pacific Division and are making their seventh playoff appearance in eight seasons. But the Ducks counter with a championship-winning coach of their own: Joel Quenneville, who led the Chicago Blackhawks to three Stanley Cups.
“They’ve got their best stretch here late in the year and going into this round here, they’ve been very effective,” Quenneville said. “We’ll have some things we’ve got to worry about, but I think we’re exiting our last series on a high note knowing that we’d probably played our best game of the series and maybe the season, which is positive.”
Defenseman Jackson LaCombe has emerged as a key contributor, recording eight assists and a goal against the Oilers. The third-year pro has drawn praise from teammates for his calm, two-way game.
“It’s like crazy to me that people are just now figuring out about him sometimes, and I realize that we haven’t been on this stage and that’s when guys get seen,” Terry said. “It’s been almost wild to me that people haven’t realized how good this kid is. Every night we play, he controls the game with his legs.”
LaCombe, however, downplayed the regular-season sweep of the Knights, noting the coaching change in Vegas. “New coach in there too, so they’re going to play hard,” he said. “We didn’t accomplish any goal yet obviously, but we don’t really have any I’d say high expectation and kind of play as underdogs through the whole playoffs here.”
The Ducks are making their first playoff appearance in eight years and won their first series in nine years. But with a veteran coach and a young core gaining confidence, they believe they can continue to surprise.
