Ducks Draw First Blood, Beat Jets 4-2

The Winnipeg Jets still haven’t solved the mystery of the Anaheim Ducks’ big men.

On Thursday night (and early Friday morning in Winnipeg), first star Corey Perry had two goals and two assists while second star Ryan Getzlaf had a goal and two assists as the Ducks came back from a 2-1 deficit after 40 minutes to beat the Jets 4-2.

Adam Lowry celebrates his first playoff goal.

With the win, the Ducks drew first blood in the opening round series of the 2015 Stanley Cup playoffs. It’s the second time the Thrashers/Jets franchise has reached the post-season and the teams – whether Winnipeg or Atlanta – have yet to win a game.

This one, however, was a rare one for Winnipeg. The Jets were 30-2-6 this season when leading after two periods, but on Thursday night in Anaheim, the Ducks simply had too much size and skill – and way too much Perry and Getzlaf.

“It was definitely physical,” said Jets forward Drew Stafford during his televised post-game news conference. “It was a tough hard-fought battle. We got into a little penalty trouble and we couldn’t overcome it. Next game we have to bring that physical play, but we have to do it between the whistles. We have to re-group and still make sure we bring that physical play.”

Sami Vatanen opened the scoring for Anaheim at 1:57 of the first period, but the Jets battled right back and scored at 2:46 as rookie Adam Lowry, playing in his first Stanley Cup playoff game, redirected a pass from Jacob Trouba and gave the Jets some early life.

This game was intense.

In the second period, Drew Stafford scored the only goal at the five-minute mark and Winnipeg led 2-1 after two periods.

But in the third, it was all Perry and Getzlaf. The Ducks two stars completely took over the game. Perry scored at 1:09 and then tallied the winner on a beautiful individual effort at 13:21. That goal had to be reviewed, but the puck clearly went across the line.

To the Jets credit, they didn’t quit and actually started taking the play to the Ducks late in the frame, but a penalty to Michael Frolik for boarding at 16:09 was the dagger. Getzlaf scored on the power play and Anaheim had a 4-2 victory.

The Jets did get a late power play, but couldn’t beat Frederik Andersen and the Ducks took a 1-0 series lead.

Once again, the Jets couldn’t hold to the Ducks to fewer than four goals. In three games during the regular season, the Ducks won 4-3 in overtime in Winnipeg on Dec. 7, and then won 4-1 in Winnipeg on Dec. 13. Then on Jan. 11, the Ducks beat the Jets 5-4 in a shootout in Anaheim. While none of the goals on Thursday night could be blamed on Jets goalie Ondrej Pavelec, Winnipeg didn’t get the monster saves you often require to win in the playoffs.

In the end, Anaheim outshot Winnipeg 33-27, but it was an even 10-10 in the third period, a period that the scoresheet says Anaheim dominated.

Corey Perry and Ryan Getzlaf.

On the evening, Winnipeg was zero-for-three on the power play while Anaheim was two-for-three with a shorthanded goal. Obviously, the Jets have some work to do on special teams. Both Perry and Getzlaf scored power play goals in the third, but Perry’s second goal of the night – and the period – came off a neutral ice turnover by Blake Wheeler and was scored shorthanded.

If there is one thing head coach Paul Maurice knows, it’s that his Jets can be better — especially late in the game.

Game 2 in the series goes Saturday night at the Honda Centre in Anaheim. The first puck will be dropped at 9:30 CDT.

Posted by: Scott Taylor for RiverCitySports.com