In making the decision that he knew could affect the course of his team's playoff journey, Ducks Coach Bruce Boudreau ultimately relied on the instincts he has developed during a lifetime in hockey as a player and coach.
He had absolute faith in the ability of 20-year-old rookie John Gibson to win a pivotal game against the Kings on Saturday, but he was mindful that Gibson had never experienced the pressure cooker of the Stanley Cup playoffs. Boudreau considered the extensive postseason experience logged by Jonas Hiller but put greater weight on Hiller's flagging play late in the season, which caused Boudreau to lose confidence in him.
Boudreau knew that the wrong move might deepen the Ducks' deficit in their Western Conference semifinal series against the Kings. The right move could lift the Ducks to even footing. After consulting with his assistants and with General Manager Bob Murray, Boudreau went with the riskier choice — Gibson.
He and the Ducks were rewarded with a 28-save performance by the rookie in a 2-0 victory at Staples Center that left their Western Conference semifinal series tied at two games each. Gibson became the youngest goalie in NHL history to record a shutout in his playoff debut.
"On big decisions like this, we trust Bruce to go with his gut," Murray said, and that trust was well-placed despite the bizarre nature of the evening's events.
The Ducks failed to get a shot on goal in the second period — a playoff first for them and a playoff first in shots-against for the Kings — yet the Ducks managed to hold onto the lead they had built on first-period goals by Devante Smith-Pelly and Ryan Getzlaf.
"It's not the formula that we were looking for," defenseman Cam Fowler said, "but it's a win against a really good hockey team, so we'll take it."
And in another strange turn, Kings Coach Darryl Sutter pulled Jonathan Quick after the first period and replaced him with rookie Martin Jones, purely for shock value. That ploy seemed to give the Kings a spark but wasn't nearly enough for them to solve Gibson, who made Boudreau's gutsy move look brilliant.
"The overriding reason was I thought in today's game, he's been playing, and he would give us the best chance to win," Boudreau said, referring to Gibson's stellar performances for the Ducks' American Hockey League farm team in Norfolk, Va., before he was summoned to Southern California this weekend.
"When it comes down to it, it's like each individual game is its own entity. And whatever lineup I put in, it's those guys — I may be wrong 99 out of 100 times — but I think this is the lineup that can win."
They won because of Gibson's athleticism and calmness, because they again dented the Kings' penalty killing — which continues to suffer without injured defensemen Willie Mitchell and Robyn Regehr—and because they pulled together in support of Gibson and each other. Getzlaf lifted his game too, and at one point blocked a shot by Drew Doughty that had eluded Gibson.
Corey Perry said he knew from the three regular-season games that Gibson had played for the Ducks down the stretch that Gibson would be "steady back there. He makes the first save and smothers rebounds."
Still, it took a strong conviction to put Gibson into this game based on his experience playing for Team USA at the World Junior Championships and the American Hockey League playoffs. Or maybe Gibson's unfamiliarity with NHL playoff pressure was a blessing.
"Young kids don't know any better," Perry said. "They come in and just play the way they're told to play and the way they want to play. That's what he did tonight."
Gibson credited his teammates for protecting him well, in the third period especially. He said he didn't know what to expect and claimed to be excited, though his even tone and manner suggested otherwise.
He surely had all the cliches that a veteran would know. "It's exciting, but at the same time it's a 2-2 series and we've still got a lot of work to do," he said. "It's obviously exciting, but we haven't won anything. There's time to celebrate, but you have to get back to work."
Gibson seemed surprised when asked if he saw this as the beginning of his time as the franchise goalie, which may very well be the case with Hiller's contract up after this season and Frederik Andersen recently injury-prone.
"I don't think so. I don't even know if I'm going to play the next game," he said, drawing laughter from reporters.
It's a fairly safe bet he will start Monday at Anaheim, and that Boudreau won't be going solely on instinct in making that decision.
helene.elliott@latimes.com
Twitter: @helenenothelen
Copyright © 2014, Los Angeles TimesAnda sedang membaca artikel tentang
Bruce Boudreau's gut instinct was on the mark in Ducks' win
Dengan url
http://usiamudahan.blogspot.com/2014/05/bruce-boudreaus-gut-instinct-was-on.html
Anda boleh menyebar luaskannya atau mengcopy paste-nya
Bruce Boudreau's gut instinct was on the mark in Ducks' win
namun jangan lupa untuk meletakkan link
Bruce Boudreau's gut instinct was on the mark in Ducks' win
sebagai sumbernya
0 komentar:
Posting Komentar