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After triple-OT defeat, determined Ducks pass character test with Game 3 win over Blackhawks

After triple-OT defeat, determined Ducks pass character test with Game 3 win over Blackhawks

CHICAGO — It was Game 3. It felt like Game 4.

The Anaheim Ducks and the Chicago Blackhawks played one hundred sixteen minutes and twelve seconds of playoff hockey in a triple-overtime thriller Tuesday night. They did what they could to recover – fluids, cold tubs, massages, pillows, blankets. Still, they flew four hours from California to Illinois and played again Thursday night.

Man, it was a slog, a test of body and mind.

“It was more of a mental battle for everyone tonight,” said Ducks center Andrew Cogliano, who compared it to playing after a hard weight workout. “You basically played two games, and it’s pretty tough. I think both teams were tired. You could tell. I think the pace wasn’t as high. But I think it was a character win.”

The Ducks earned a 2-1 victory and 2-1 lead in the Western Conference final, and it was about resiliency and survival more than anything else. They were on the wrong end of that triple-OT thriller Tuesday night. For them, it was heartbreaking when Marcus Kruger finally put the puck in the net. Had a bounce gone their way, they would’ve had a 2-0 series lead. Instead, it was 1-1.

Simon Despres' first career NHL playoff goal turned about to be the winner in Game 3. (AP)
Simon Despres' first career NHL playoff goal turned about to be the winner in Game 3. (AP)

“I kind of took that night to just digest everything mentally,” said Ducks defenseman Cam Fowler. “But we came to the rink the next day, we knew what we were up against. We knew we had to start preparing for this game, because the more you dwell on a loss like that, it’s not going to do anything good for your group.”

They won Thursday night not with dominance, but with determination. They had 27 seconds of power-play time to the Blackhawks’ 9:18. They had 46 shot attempts to the Blackhawks’ 67. But they scored one power-play goal and allowed none, and they blocked 27 shots, and goaltender Frederik Andersen made 27 saves. Simon Despres scored his first career NHL playoff goal to break a tie late in the second period, and they held on in the third.

“Towards the end, I maybe felt a little bit of fatigue in my legs, and sometimes when that happens you have to make sure you mentally stay in it and try and make the simple plays,” Fowler said. “It certainly wasn’t the prettiest third period for us, but sometimes you’ve just got to get the job done, make sure Freddie sees the puck, and we came out with the win.”

The Ducks are now 10-2 in these playoffs, and both of their losses came in OT, one in triple OT. Yes, they had a relatively easy road, sweeping the wild-card Winnipeg Jets in the first round and beating the third-place Calgary Flames in five games in the second. But they are halfway toward beating the Blackhawks here in the conference final, two wins from playing for the Stanley Cup.

This is a team that has been vulnerable against speed in the past. But the Ducks have forced the speedy Blackhawks to play their physical, grinding style more than they have wanted to. The fatigue factor, and maybe poor ice at the United Center, only helped in Game 3.

The Blackhawks have been in this situation many times before, trailing in a series. They will not panic. They should not panic. But coach Joel Quenneville made lineup changes Thursday night – scratching Antoine Vermette and Teuvo Teravainen, inserting Kris Versteeg and Joakim Nordstrom, trying to bring in some fresh legs – and it didn’t work. The power play looked awful, as it sometimes does despite all the Blackhawks’ high-end talent.

“We had them taking penalties,” Quenneville said, “and we didn’t make them pay.”

The Blackhawks’ defense is thin, and it could become more of a factor the longer the series goes. Each of the top four defensemen – Duncan Keith, Brent Seabrook, Johnny Oduya and Niklas Hjalmarsson – played more than 46 minutes in Game 2. Keith played almost 50. Keith and Seabrook each played more than 28 minutes in Game 3. Oduya and Hjalmarsson played less than 20. But Kyle Cumiskey played only 8:51, Kimmo Timonen only 6:50.

Both teams will rest now. They won’t have to travel Friday. The pace should be quicker Saturday night. Game 4 should feel like Game 4, not Game 5. But the Ducks can savor this one.

“I think it told me what I know, that they’re a great character team,” said Ducks coach Bruce Boudreau. “This was a character win, I thought, a very good checking game for us, road game. I mean, they’re going to get some chances. There’s no way you can stop them from getting chances. But I thought we limited their chances on the road. For a tired group, it was a really good game for us.”

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