Twos Are Wild: Ducks Get First Win of the Season in Overtime

Final Score: Ducks 4, Wild 3 (OT)

First Period Recap:

Jonas Hiller got his first start of the season and saw the Ducks provide him immediate goal support as Saku Koivu netted the first goal 1:40 into the first period off a feed from Francois Beauchemin. The Ducks didn't have to play much defense in the first five minutes of the game as it was all offense. Matt Beleskey got in a fight – which he lost – with Zenon Konopka after some chirping between the two.

The second Ducks goal of the game came in the form of a power play goal by Nick Bonino — a power play which consisted of quick setups and great passes from Ryan Getzlaf. The Ducks lost some momentum after that when Bryan Allen took an elbowing penalty at 10:54 — in his defense, Allen had been solid up to this point in the game, supporting Sami Vatanen well. Like the Ducks, the Wild capitalized on their first power play chance with a goal from Zach Parise.

Bruce Boudreau switched up the defensive pairings for this game, going with Beauchemin – Mark Fistric and reuniting Cam Fowler and Ben Lovejoy. From this point on the Ducks seemed to get lost in their shifts, giving up turnovers and failing to handle puck cleanly. Luckily, they managed to escape the period with a 2-1 lead.

Second Period Recap:

The second period started much like the first, with the Ducks dominating play early. Mathieu Perreault served a sweet pass to Jakob Silfverberg from behind the Wild net which Silfverberg ripped into the top corner for a 3-1 Ducks lead. Unfortunately, the Ducks' play fell off after this goal and there were players *cough* Dustin Penner *cough* who were seen standing around.

Play deteriorated fast and Fistric went off for high-sticking Matt Cooke. Immediately off the faceoff, Jason Pominville scored on a shot that ricocheted in off Fowler's stick. On the next shift a Bryan Allen defensive-zone turnover resulted in a mass scramble in front of Hiller who managed to shove the puck into the corner for a clear.

Lovejoy made a solid defensive play in a one-on-one situation before Beauchemin went to the sin bin for tripping. This time, the Ducks' penalty kill was much better, preventing Minnesota from getting a shot on goal in the third Wild power play of the night.

A couple shifts after the kill, Perry snuck just behind the defense on a partial breakaway but couldn't get a handle on the puck. The Ducks would get their second power play of the game on a slashing call on Ryan Suter with 1:19 remaining in the second period.

The Ducks didn't do much with the first half of power play time, but headed to the locker-room with a 3-2 lead.

Third Period Recap:

The Ducks started on the power play and failed to do anything at all. Zach Parise tied the game quickly after the successful Wild penalty kill (1:15 into the period). Soon after Bonino sent the puck over the glass from the defensive zone resulting in another Wild power play.

Dany Heatley rocketed a shot that had Hiller beat, but it rang off the post and out of the zone. With a couple of scramble plays and fair defense, the Ducks managed to kill the penalty. Soon after the kill, the Ducks got their third power play of the game when Torrey Mitchell slashed Getzlaf — a makeup call for Mitchell's earlier pick on Fistric that went uncalled prior to the Bonino penalty.

The Ducks didn't generate much on the power play and the game turned into an up-and-down battle. There was a hybrid icing miscue that went the Ducks' way. Hiller made some saves and managed to get the game to overtime.

Overtime Recap:

Cam Fowler seems to live for overtime hockey, and he impressed with his skating ability and a couple great shots on goal. The Wild had one good chance against Hiller but didn't get it past him. With less than a minute left, this game looked like it was destined for a shootout.

As the seconds wound down, Fowler made a nice outlet pass to Beauchemin who slipped a pass through the defender to Perreault, who went 5-hole on Niklas Backstrom for the win with 4.9 seconds left in overtime.

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The Good: THE DUCKS WON!!!!!!! Perreault is proving to be a steal.  And who knew he would have such great chemistry with Silfverberg so early in the season? If Perreault continues to dominate, Peter Holland will continue to slide into obscurity and possibly trade bait (Get us some defense Murray). The Ducks survived without Selanne in the lineup as well, which is a plus.

The Bad: The top line is off to it's usual slow start to the season. Perry and Getzlaf, outside of the power play, were not impressive and look like they may take some time to get into top form. Dustin Penner was sluggish as well. I often caught him standing around or reaching for the puck instead of playing the body. He was not a great fit on the second line, and Bruce didn't play him at all on the top line. The defense made strides toward improvement but still needs a lot of work.

The Ugly: The Ducks PK. Like last season, the Ducks are off to a painfully slow start on the penalty kill — currently siting at 50 percent (4 for 8) in the two games played so far. What made the PK even worse was the defense taking the penalties. The team seems to go into panic mode once the opposition gets set up. Hopefully, this stat improves with the return of Emerson Etem ... whenever that happens.

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3rd MVD: Cam Fowler. Aside from the unlucky bounce that resulted in the second Wild goal, Fowler had a solid game. He stepped up when necessary and was prevalent in the offensive end. Fowler was great in overtime, putting on an display with his neutral zone skating and great shots on goal.

2nd MVD: Jakob Silverberg. Two goals in two games is a great way to start the season, and the Ducks couldn't ask for more from him. His two-way play was great in this game. Silfverberg has developed some chemistry with Perreault and Selanne, which solidifies the Ducks' second line. With that wicked wrister at his disposal, expect more highlight reel goals from Silfverberg.

1st MVD: Mathieu Perreault:

Yeaaaaahhh! Thanks for Perreault, Caps! GMGM was hosed by GMBM.

— Jen Neale (@MsJenNeale_AC) October 6, 2013

Jen nailed it here. Perreault has impressed all over the ice. He had two points (a goal and an assist) in this game. A bright spot in the loss to the Avalanche in the season opener, Perreault has already proved that he is worth more than the fourth rounder and John Mitchell that Murray sent over to the Capitals.

Next Game: Sunday, October 6 at 5:00 PST @ Winnipeg