Ducks Are Making the Grade

The Mighty Ducks skated past the midway mark of their inaugural season Thursday night, and figuring them out is still a chore.

They are on pace to become one of the best expansion franchises in NHL history but until this week couldn’t beat the other new teams.

They are 11-12-0 on the road but only 4-12-2 in sparkling, often raucous, Anaheim Arena. They also won a neutral-ice game against Dallas at Phoenix.

They shut out the New York Islanders one night, then got shut out by the Washington Capitals two nights later.

They can’t seem to score some nights, but they don’t give up many goals, either.

“I think we found a secret to our success: We need to get outshot,” goaltender Ron Tugnutt said recently.

Crazy as it sounds, he might have a point.

He means the Ducks should be on the defensive in most games, allowing shots but not good scoring chances.

But the Ducks might have outdone themselves in the last 16 games, when they went 7-9-0 but were outshot by 539-400.

Forty-two game highlights include standout goaltending from Tugnutt and Guy Hebert, a 1-0 victory over Toronto at Maple Leaf Gardens on Dec. 15 and a six-game winning streak on Canadian ice.

Lowlights include a 1-8 record against Florida, Ottawa, San Jose and Tampa Bay, a 7-2 spanking by Detroit on opening night and 13 one-goal losses.

Any list of surprises must include the names of Bobby Dollas and Garry Valk, who have helped keep the Ducks surprisingly competitive.

The wishful thinking award goes to the person who designed the “Skate for Eight” T-shirts the Ducks wore early in the season; the top eight teams is each conference qualify for the playoffs. Playoff teams usually finish with at least 80 points; the Ducks are on pace to finish with 68.

In the Expansion Cup, the Ducks (16-24-2) still trail the Florida Panthers, whose 16-16-6 record includes two victories over the Ducks. Both teams could break the expansion record of 73 points set by the Philadelphia Flyers in 1967-68.

Here is the midseason report card:

OFFENSE

Progress seems to be measured in halting steps for the Ducks, whose 111 goals is third-lowest in the NHL.

They miss Anatoli Semenov, their leading scorer until he suffered a dislocated elbow Dec. 7 in a collision with teammate Stu Grimson.

But Terry Yake has seven goals and six assists since Semenov’s second-period injury against Florida. Yake and Bob Corkum lead the team with 29 points apiece. Yake has 15 goals and 14 assists and Corkum has 13 goals and 16 assists.

Jarrod Skalde has five goals and four assists since his Dec. 12 call-up from the Ducks’ minor league affiliate at San Diego.

But the bad news is that Semenov, who had 24 points in 29 games, isn’t expected to return until February.

Key stat I: In the 13 games since Semenov was injured, the Ducks have scored more than two goals only five times and been shut out twice. But they are 7-6-0 since Dec. 7. Go figure.

Key stat II: Yake has 17 points (10 goals, 7 assists) in the last 17 games.

Grade: C+

DEFENSE

This is supposed to be the Ducks’ greatest strength, but sometimes they seem to forget and it causes all sorts of trouble.

Defensemen Bill Houlder and Sean Hill have been caught out of position occasionally and the Ducks have paid the price. Houlder has 22 points, but is a minus-15 and Hill has 17 points, but is minus-six.

Bobby Dollas, a steady player who rarely makes a mistake, clearly has been the best Duck defenseman. He could have been the Ducks’ All-Star representative, but the honor instead went to Alexei Kasatonov.

Randy Ladouceur has lived up to his billing as a dependable, stay-at-home defenseman.

Key stat: The Ducks have allowed 126 goals, fewest in the Pacific Division.

Grade: B-, an improvement from a C+ after 21 games.

SPECIAL TEAMS

Power-play efficiency: They continue to spend a startling amount of time chasing the puck during power plays. Will they get better?

Unless they trade for more goal-scoring, the answer is probably no.

Key stat: They’re 22nd in power-play efficiency at 29 for 188 (15.4%).

Grade: C-

Penalty killing: It should come as no surprise that a defensive-minded team excels in killing penalties. They have allowed only 31 goals in 191 short-handed situations, eighth-best in the league.

Key stat: They’re the best in the NHL in killing penalties on the road, allowing 15 goals in 108 short-handed situations.

Grade: A, up from an A-.

GOALTENDING

A clear-cut No. 1 goalie hasn’t emerged, but so what.

No question, Hebert and Tugnutt are the midseason MVPs.

By rotating Hebert and Tugnutt, Coach Ron Wilson has kept them fresh and eager to play.

Hebert is 7-12-1 with a 2.72 goals-against average and recorded the first shutout in team history Dec. 15 with a 1-0 victory at Toronto.

Tugnutt is 9-11-1 with a 2.77 goals-against average and he recorded the team’s second shutout with a 3-0 victory over the New York Islanders Dec. 28.

Tugnutt has been hotter lately, particularly on the road where he has a 2.00 goals-against average in his last nine starts.

Key stat I: The Ducks’ goals-against average is 2.25 in the past 23 games.

Key stat II: Of Hebert’s 12 losses, nine have been by one goal.

Grade: A, up from a B.

COACHING

Wilson earns high marks for his handling of the goaltenders, pushing the Ducks to a 11-12-0 road record and getting them to believe in his defensive style of play.

But you have to wonder about his whining about the width of Florida goalie John Vanbiesbrouck’s pads after a Jan. 1 game in Miami.

OK, hockey’s an emotional game, but what’s up with that?

All things considered, Wilson has handled his first NHL head coaching gig with as much polish as a 10-year veteran. The players seem to believe in Wilson’s system and Wilson seems to have faith in the players.

Help, in the form of a trade, doesn’t appear to be coming this season. General Manager Jack Ferreira continues to insist the best move is no move.

Key stats: The Ducks are 16-24-2 and credit, or blame depending on how you look at their record, falls on Wilson’s shoulders.

Grade: A-.