Anaheim, Calif. – Ilya Kuryakin, “The Man From U.N.C.L.E.’s” sidekick, could be playing goal in this series for the Mighty Ducks and the Avalanche probably would still be down two games to none.
Instead, it’s Ilya Bryzgalov in the Anaheim net, and the soft-spoken yet mischievous Russian has had little to do in posting consecutive shutouts against Colorado since his Game 7 shutout against Calgary.
The Avalanche suddenly can’t get anything done offensively.
This is nothing close to the larcenous work of Anaheim’s Jean- Sebastien Giguere, now relegated to the bench, in the 2003 playoffs.
There’s a fine line here in the wake of the Mighty Ducks’ 3-0 victory in Game 2 on Sunday. It would be folly to belittle or attempt to diminish Bryzgalov’s work dating to Game 6 of the Ducks’ seven-game comeback victory over Calgary, and the four-game stretch in which he has allowed only one goal. He has been terrific in controlled doses. The light behind him hasn’t come on, and that’s the ultimate evaluation.
But let’s not get carried away. At least in the first two games of the series against the Avalanche, Bryzgalov has not been called upon to be the Patrick Roy of the 1986 and 1993 playoffs. The save that drew the most rousing reaction from the fans at the Arrowhead Pond on Sunday, his glove save on Alex Tanguay in the third period, came when Tanguay didn’t get much on the redirection from point-blank range and Bryzgalov snagged the puck out of the air. In other words, it wasn’t as great as it looked.
This is a lanky, unflappable Russian making huge saves when he has to – but not being called upon to be relentlessly heroic, as Giguere was in winning the Conn Smythe Trophy as the playoff MVP three years ago.
It was so bad in the first two games of the series, the members of the Mighty Ducks’ checking line – Samuel Pahlsson, Rob “The Other” Niedermayer and Jeff Friesen – not only did a good job of neutralizing Joe Sakic’s line, they had significant chances themselves. The Ducks’ checking line had seven shots. Sakic, Andrew Brunette and Milan Hejduk had seven, which isn’t invisible territory, but thanks to limited high-quality chances and Bryzgalov’s work, Colorado’s top line was held off the scoresheet in the first two games.
That’s a double whammy.
It’s all intertwined, of course, with Scott Niedermayer and Francois Beauchemin playing marathon minutes in the Ducks’ top defensive pairing and spending a lot of that time out against the Sakic line.
Pahlsson is holding his own on faceoffs with Sakic, an important element, winning 22-of-43 in the first two games, and that has helped limit the Avs’ puck possession and opportunities. And the Ducks’ checking line, put together only for Game 6 against Calgary after Jarome Iginla had broken loose and threatened to carry the Flames into the next round, has been one of the keys.
“I didn’t expect us to shut them out in two straight games, but it happened that way,” said Pahlsson, the former Avalanche prospect whose rights went to Boston in the 2000 Ray Bourque deal. “We played good, and they probably didn’t play their best hockey. They’re probably going to come at us a lot better in Denver now.”
That sounded as if the Ducks’ next strategy is to avoid ticking off the Avs.
“Yeah,” Pahlsson said with a smile, “we don’t want to get anyone mad here. … They could score four the next game, we know that. They have that capability. They’re dangerous. We have to keep on our toes.”
Friesen said the Ducks “had some breakdowns, but Bryz stood his ground. He played extremely well again. … You just want to make it hard and not give talented players like that, especially Sakic, chances. The playoffs are when he’s at his best, and you have to be ready every shift.”
One of the perils of playoff hockey, yet an inevitable occurrence, is overreaction to especially one, but even two games. Momentum can swing back, especially with changes of venue, and short memories should be as much a part of the territory as playoff beards.
So pronouncing the Avs dead in this series would be absurd. But they at least have to give Bryzgalov more of a legitimate test to have any shot of getting back in it.
Terry Frei can be reached at 303-820-1895 or tfrei@denverpost.com.
