ROBBY:

In case you haven't heard yet, the NHL's Board of Governors has adopted a radical new league alignment that abolishes the existing Western and Eastern conferences and instead creates four smaller conferences that consist of seven or eight teams. I'll save all of the gory details, but the relevant info for the Ducks is that they will now be in an 8-team conference (with Los Angeles, San Jose, Phoenix, Colorado, Vancouver, Calgary, and Edmonton) and that only the top four teams in each conference make the playoffs. The other big talking point is that every team will now play a game in every other team's barn.

I have three words to describe this: Do. Not. Like.

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[Ed. Note: Earlier today, SK offered up Cam Fowler and Andrew Cogliano as the most important young defenseman and young forward for the Ducks this coming season. Let's see who Robby decided to pick...]

ROBBY:

While the obvious choice here would appear to be Cam Fowler, I think a strong showing from Luca Sbisa will be equally important for the Ducks this season. Whereas Fowler put up 40 points in his first 76 games at the NHL level, Sbisa has only recorded 18 points in 115 career NHL games. And while Luca does not have the scoring touch that Cam has displayed, he's shown to be a more sound defender than Fowler. Cam's -25 rating is probably not the best indicator of his defensive abilities (playing with Paul Mara and Andreas Lilja might have something to do with that), but he has clearly struggled at times in his own end. Sbisa, on the other hand, has developed a reputation as a solid defender with the ability to eliminate players on his own end with devastating hits and solid positioning.

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JEN:

When talking about the Ducks, we find ourselves referencing the top two lines and our number one defensive paring A LOT. While we would love for them to be able to play the entire game - they can't. For the Ducks to be successful now (and in future seasons), there needs to be at least one young forward and one young defenseman that has to show he can keep up with the superstars. Instead of tackling this issue myself, I decided to let SK and Robby duke it out. SK is first and Robby will follow later today.

SK:

The kid wonder, Cam Fowler. It's so easy to forget that he's only 19 going on 20 when he plays like he's got the skills and poise of someone who's 29 going on 35. Whatever it is that keeps his head so grounded and wherever it is that he got his mad hockey skills is beyond me, but I approve. Highly. Randy Carlyle has expressed numerous times that he's not concerned with seeing neither he nor Luca Sbisa make a giant leap this season. The expectations placed on both of them are to simply perform as well as they did last season.

Come on, you gotta know that won't be good enough for me. I, of course, have expectations that make me believe Fowler can and will be better this season than his rookie year. Experience alone will take this youngster far, and we have all witnessed how well he can adapt to the game.

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DANIEL:

This is a pretty opinionated piece that has not been reviewed by the editor. With the 22nd selection the Ducks chose to trade down to the end of the draft, giving the pick to Toronto for the 30th and 39th picks. I think this is an awful move. Burke continues to fleece Bob Murray. I guess Murray wants a player he's sure will be available then, or he doesn't care who he gets. Murray left a few quality picks on the table; some of them probably won't be available when he picks 30. Maybe someone will fall to the Ducks; John Gibson might still be there. I really hope we fire Murray soon.

ARTHUR:

As Daniel noted, I didn't review this. My counter would simply be that Madden and company run the draft board. They do the scouting from the day after the Draft until the next Draft. They sell Murray (and each other) on their list. Last year's first round was probably a no-brainer for all involved, but Madden has come up with some gems in the later rounds of his limited time running the Ducks boards, so if I were Murray, I'd give Madden some serious consideration if he says we can trade down.

Now, I don't know if that's what happened here. Eric Stephens' tweet that the Ducks had their eyes as high as the top half of the first round seems to intimate that they missed their guy or this is a really weak class (and, indeed, many GM's seemed to go off the board in the bottom third). I don't know if Anaheim could have gotten better for their money at 22, or if the Ducks STILL missed their backup pick in the intervening picks before 30, but the decision to deal with Burke again should probably be the center of the critique here.

And that would be my problem. Some nice deals have gone down, but Murray couldn't get any players involved once he knew he'd have to trade down. His buddy Wilson was moving Devin Setoguchi, but he ends up at Burke's knee again. As far as the decision to move down, I don't mind laying that at one foot (or both feet) of the Amateur Scouting department, but what trading down actually looks like is completely up to Murray.

JEN:
After watching Game 3 and Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Final, I think we all can agree - Tim Thomas is one bad ass motha...shut yo mouth.

I'm not talking about him giving up one goal in the two games or the inhuman goaltending. I mean, the way he put the beat down on Twin 1 in game 3 and again on Alex "Bite Me" Burrows in game 4. I LOVED IT. If I didn't know better, I'd think he was a Southie (not sure what that means-- I got it from The Departed) goalie from some beer league by the way he was brawling. That is one nasty Ginger you don't want to mess with. A goalie's crease is his domain. Those who dare to crash it (Corey...) will suffer the consequences - should the goalie be angry enough to fight back with more than just a stick to the ribs.

One of my favorite Ducks-related memories is the day after Thanksgiving game in 2009. JS Giguere was starting versus the Chicago Blackhawks. Five rows up from the ice, I could see Dustin Byfuglien's big butt constantly getting in Jiggy's way. By the third period, Jiggy had had enough. After giving a nasty cross check to the skater, Jiggy ripped off his mask and went chest to chest in a very one-sided shoving match with Big Buff. Jiggy was sticking his chin out, daring Byfuglien to take a shot. At that moment, Jiggy was invincible, because he knew had the law on his side.

Byfuglien couldn't take a swing at Jiggy for the mere fact that Jiggy is a goalie, and goalies are to be protected - no matter what. Robby, incidents like those of Tim Thomas and JS Giguere are few and far between. Are the current rules in place sufficient to protect the team's most important player on the ice, or does it set a dangerous precedent for goalie on skater violence going unpunished?

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ARTHUR:
Anaheim calling to the hockey world...

The staff is mostly resting during the Ducks' offseason, but behind the scenes, we're all watching the playoffs. And we just HAD to come out of hibernation to talk about the Sharks.

In the five completed seasons after the last Lockout, San Jose amassed 544 points and ZERO Conference Finals wins. However, despite their parade of playoff exits, the most embarrassing one seems to have been their 2009 elimination at the hands of the 8th seed Anaheim Ducks-- and many Sharks experts would agree with that estimation. This blogger even declared, last season, that due to Cap concerns, the comical, Benny Hill-esque Sharks were at an end, and they would either get better or much worse.

Well, now in danger of stealing defeat from the jaws of a 3-0 lead in their series with Detroit, perhaps the Benny Hill Sharks have returned for a final performance. Daniel, if the Sharks lose this series, is it the most embarrassing loss in that franchise's history?

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ARTHUR:
With the playoffs continuing, sadly without the Ducks, I thought we should do a whimsical post.

Every year, NHL players observe the postseason beard tradition. A smaller portion of the NHL fans grow their facial hair in solidarity.

Daniel, you and I are members of the latter group, and as the practice is one of superstition, I have a question of etiquette, of proper magumbo procedure, if you will. Is it acceptable to trim and shape your beard, or must every hair grow unimpeded until your team is eliminated?

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ARTHUR:
The NHL's new 10 year, $2 Billion television contract with VERSUS and NBC promises an increase in NHL coverage, both at the network and cable level, as well as the potential for hockey to be the centerpiece of a new sports programming brand under the Comcast umbrella.

However, Ducks fans will remember that, just last season, shortly after eliminating the Presidents' Trophy winning Sharks in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, Anaheim was omitted completely from both the NBC and VERSUS programming schedules for the 2009-10 campaign. In general, NBC has preferred a handful of teams for its limited calendar of games, and VERSUS has done little to fill the void in coverage left by the Peacock's preferences.

Robby, is the new TV contract good or bad for the Ducks?

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