Anaheim Ducks vs. Calgary Flames Predictions, Picks and Preview – 2017 Stanley Cup Playoffs – Western Conference First Round Game Three – April 17, 2017
The Anaheim Ducks extended their extraordinary home winning streak against the Calgary Flames by winning their first two games of their first-round series. The Ducks have now won 29 games in a row against Calgary at the Honda Center. However, they would rather not go back home in this series, and they can do that if they get the job done in Canada in Games 3 and 4.
Luckily for the Ducks, they also have a fairly decent record at the Scotiabank Saddledome. They’re 5-1 in their last six trips to Calgary.
Ducks captain Ryan Getzlaf has been red-hot to start the postseason. He picked up back-to-back multi-point games in Anaheim, extending his current points streak to seven games. His game-winning goal in Game 2 had a huge slice of luck as it went off the skate of Calgary’s Lance Bouma, but they all count.
Ryan Kesler and Corey Perry, the team’s next two leading scorers, have just one point between them in the first two games. Instead, it’s been Rickard Rakell and Jakob Silfverberg who’ve been excellent, scoring in both games thus far. It feels like just a matter of time before Kesler and Perry also start making their presence felt in the series, though.
Meanwhile, goalie John Gibson has also been terrific. He’s stopped 65 out of 69 shots thus far in the series. That much isn’t surprising, since he has an incredible record against the Flames. He’s 9-1 in 10 career starts against them in his career, and has given up just six goals in his last four games.
The Calgary Flames have some work ahead of them to get back to the series after two tough losses. But to the Flames’ credit, they recovered from a rough Game 1 to outshoot the Ducks 37-29 in Game 2. The bounce of the puck ultimately didn’t go their way, but they certainly won’t lay down just yet as they return home to Calgary for Game 3.
Top goal scorer Sean Monahan has scored in each of the first two games, but he’ll need a bit more help from Johnny Gaudreau (a team-high 61 points) and Mikael Backlund (53 points), who both have a point apiece in the series.
But to get back in the series, goalie Brian Elliott has to figure things out. After going on a terrific hot streak for about a month, Elliott has fallen back down to earth. He’s lost six of his last seven starts dating back to the regular season, four of which have come against the Ducks.
Elliott has simply had horrific luck against the Ducks throughout his career. He has only one win in 14 starts against Anaheim, which came all the way back in 2009. His teams – the Senators, Avalanche, Blues, and Flames – have last 13 in a row to the Ducks with Elliott in goal.
Writer’s Prediction
The Ducks (+110) dig an even deeper hole for the Flames as Anaheim wins Game 3, 4-2.
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