No lineup changes likely as Ducks look to finish sweep of Winnipeg

Ducks Coach Bruce Boudreau said he didn’t anticipate making any lineup changes for his team’s potential first-round playoff clincher against the Winnipeg Jets on Wednesday night at MTS Centre.

That means Tomas Fleischmann will again play center and injured center Nate Thompson will miss another game. Fleischmann, normally a winger, played capably at center in place of injured Chris Wagner in the Ducks’ 5-4 overtime victory Monday in Game 3. Fleischmann played 11 minutes and 23 seconds, taking two shots and winning four of nine faceoffs. But regaining Thompson, a natural center, would be the ideal situation.

“He’s skating well. He’s getting closer and we miss him,” Boudreau said of Thompson. “He’s a really good player.”

Boudreau also said that goaltender John Gibson, who sustained an upper-body injury late in the regular season, was within a week of returning. “He said he’s fine to go but he’s not backing up tonight,” said Boudreau, who instead will have Jason LaBarbera in uniform as the backup to Frederik Andersen.

Boudreau was asked whether he and the Ducks would be better prepared for the Jets’ enthusiastic fans and noisy arena following their experience in Game 3, when the roars, chants and ovations were remarkably loud. He said he was ready for whatever levels the din might reach Wednesday.

“I can only anticipate it’s going to be the exact same, if not just a little louder,” he said. “But we made it through, so I’m assuming we’re going to make it through tonight. Time will tell whether we’ve learned ... to keep our cool when they’re getting a little extra loud or not.”

Andersen’s play was a source of questions from several reporters who have noticed the goaltender’s increased maturity this season.

“There was a couple of times when he had the flu and we asked him if he wanted to take the day off and he said, no, he really wanted to play the game, and he’d go out and play a really good game,” Boudreau said. “Just the mental toughness of growth from one year to another, we thought, was a big thing from him.

“He wants to be the guy that we depend on. I think it’s a growth in him. Any good young goalies want the same thing.”

Boudreau also said the expected things about the Jets, complimenting their perseverance. “We know the heart Winnipeg has and what they had to deal with to get in. So we know there’s no quit in them,” he said. “And we know they’re going to probably play their best game of the series. And if we want to be successful we’re going to have to play our best game of the series. How the game takes on a life of its own, we’ll find out.”

But there was one area in which Boudreau was a bit off. He was asked when was the last time he coached a team that had a 3-0 series lead and said it was in 2006, when he coached Hershey against Albany in the American Hockey League playoffs. According to Jason Chaimovitch, vice president of communications of the AHL, Boudreau’s teams had four 3-0 series leads, two in 2006 and two in 2007, but none was against Albany. But Boudreau did win each of those series, three times in four straight games and once in five.

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