Anaheim Ducks Can Take Advantage of Unsettled Pittsburgh Penguins

By Jessica Bradley @jessiebear23 on October 9, 2014

With a fresh team outlook, new jerseys and a new number in net, the Anaheim Ducks look to make last season’s bitter ending a wistful memory as Orange County’s finest take on the hometown Pittsburgh Penguins tonight, in the season opening game for both teams.

While Anaheim’s uptown rivals, the Los Angeles Kings, spent the summer prancing around Southern California with the Stanley Cup, the Ducks and a legion of loyal, yet disappointed fans, spent theirs with too many questions and not enough answers as to why a team that hovered at the top of theNHL power rankings for the majority of the 2014 season fell apart so quickly.

But with the start of a new season, the answers to any of those questions become a mute point. The past is the past and while the Ducks certainly weren’t the team with the most shocking of offseason moves, coach Bruce Boudreau and Anaheim’s management certainly tweaked a few of the Ducks’ weaker points to give Anaheim as good a shot as any to hoist that trophy come June.

While Anaheim’s preseason was forgettable, tonight the Ducks have the opportunity to take advantage of an unsettled Penguins offense under new coach, Mike Johnston. The words problem and Pittsburgh offense usually don’t relate, with the likes of Sydney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin leading the charge, but Johnston has created a new look for the now James Neal-less team. And while the rumors of dissatisfaction with these changes are, in fact, simply rumors, the Ducks’ already proven ability to roll four consistently strong offensive lines for 60 minutes can overshadow anything that may or may not be happening in the Pittsburgh locker room.

Another factor playing into Anaheim’s strong chances for a win tonight is the play of Ducks goaltender, and Pittsburgh native, John Gibson. Gibson wowed critics and fans alike with his play last season, noting inexperience at the NHL level as the acrobatic goaltender’s only downfall. With plenty to prove in a fight for the top goaltending spot in Anaheim, Gibson will be what Anaheim desperately needs at the other end of the ice.

The renewed hope for success at the beginning of the season washes away most memories of any failure in the previous one. But those feelings of loss aren’t so easily let go of. And while the end of last season was less than ideal for Anaheim, it might just be exactly what this rising powerhouse team needed to finally reach their potential.

Jessica Bradley is an Anaheim Ducks writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow her on Twitter @jessiebear23 or add her to your network on Google.