Predators’ Ryan Johansen lashes out at Ducks’ Ryan Kesler over rough play

The popular close-up shot of Sunday’s television broadcast was that of Ducks center Ryan Kesler bumping helmets with Nashville Predators center Ryan Johansen on faceoffs.

The two jostled, roughed up and annoyed each other for much of the Ducks’ 5-3 win in Game 2 of the Western Conference finals.

It didn’t stop there.

Johansen, who took a high-sticking penalty on Kesler in the second period, didn’t hide what he thinks about Kesler’s play.

“He just blows my mind,” Johansen told reporters. “I don’t know what’s going through his head out there. His family and friends watching him play, I don’t know how you cheer for a guy like that.”

Johansen kept going.

“It just doesn’t make sense how he plays the game. I’m just trying to go out there and play hockey, and it sucks when you have to pull a stick out of your groin after every shift.”

Johansen has still tormented the Ducks with four points in the first two games of the series. He scored a breakaway goal in the first period Sunday.

“I play the game hard and obviously he doesn’t like that,” Kesler said in a television interview.

Nashville coach Peter Laviolette defended Johansen when asked if Kesler can take Johansen off his game. “I think Ryan’s been completely composed,” Laviolette said.

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Ducks forward Nick Ritchie checks Predators defenseman Roman Josi during the first period.

  (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

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Ducks center Ryan Getzlaf is checked into the glass by Predators center Mike Fisher during first-period action.

  (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

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Ducks center Ryan Getzlaf celebrates in front of the Predators bench after assisting on a late empty-net goal to seal a 5-3 win.

  (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

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Ducks goalie John Gibson is surrounded by teammates as he guards the net during a late push by the Predators.

  (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

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Ducks goalie John Gibson dives to block the shot of Predators center Mike Fisher during the second period.

  (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

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Ducks forward Nick Ritchie, left, celebrates after scoring a second-period goal with teammate Ryan Getzlaf (15).

  (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

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Ducks coach Randy Carlyle watches, along with his team, a replay of a goal scored by forward Nick Ritchie in the second period.

  (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

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Ducks captain Ryan Getzlaf argures an offisdes call with linesman Shane Heyer during the second period.

  (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

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Predators defenseman Matt Irwin and goalie Prekka Rinne can’t stop a shot by Ducks forward Ondrej Kase (not pictured) from crossing the goal line in the second period.

  (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

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Teammates and fans join in the celebration after Ducks forward Ondrej Kase (86) scores a game-tying goal against the Predators during the second period.

  (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

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Ducks center Ryan Getzlaf controls the puck as teammate Corey Perry slips to the ice during the first period.

  (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

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Ducks center Ryan Getzlaf celebrates with teammate Sami Vatanen after the defenseman scored a a goal in the first period.

  (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

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Predators defenseman Yannick Weber is upended by Ducks center Nate Thompson during the first period.

  (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

“The penalty that he took tonight was a faceoff where he was battling for a puck and the stick came up. I think it was accidental more than anything.”

Scouting Rinne

It appears that the book on Nashville goalie Pekka Rinne is to shoot high, given that several of the Ducks’ goals have come that way, including Nick Ritchie’s game-winning goal.

“I guess we have scored a lot of goals high,” Ritchie said.

“He’s obviously a butterfly goalie that goes down on most shots. If you hit the right spot, it’s [past] most goalies these days because they’re all going down. I think I got lucky and got the puck up there.”

Etc.

Jakob Silfverberg went to the bench in pain following a spear by Filip Forsberg at the end of the second period but returned. … The Ducks recalled Sam Carrick, Nic Kerdiles and Jhonas Enroth. … Mike Trout of the Angels attended Games 1 and 2.

helene.elliott@latimes.com

Twitter: helenenothelen