Ducks love bad-boy image

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This article was published 22/04/2015 (3795 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Anaheim Ducks are perfectly cool with being cast as villains, with being mocked incessantly by enemy fans and being cross-checked after scoring critical goals.

Then again, being up 3-0 in their series with the Winnipeg Jets makes it just a tad easier to turn the other cheek.

The Ducks need just one more win to move on in the Stanley Cup playoffs and get their first opportunity to close the deal tonight at the MTS Centre.

“You’ve got a team on their heels and we have our foot right on the throat where we want it,” said Ducks goaltender Frederik Andersen, “so we’ve just got to finish them off. We don’t want to give them any hope.”

That Andersen gem aside, the Ducks spent most of their media availability on Tuesday spitting out the usual chatter about securing the fourth win in a playoff series being the toughest of all. Ducks captain Ryan Getzlaf was asked, for example, if he had to teach the Swedish, Danish and players of other nationalities in the Anaheim dressing room the cliché about the fourth win being the toughest to close out in a series. Getzlaf grinned and said:

“I think everyone knows that one. Everyone is well aware of what task is ahead. It’s never easy to close out a series and we’re going to have to play our best game of the series (Wednesday night).”

The Duck are up 3-0 in the series by making Stanley Cup playoff history — they are the first team to win three games when trailing in the third period and have outscored the Jets 7-0 in third periods and overtime. All told, they have led for a grand total of 11 minutes and 21 seconds through the first 180 minutes of the first three games.

“It’s playoff hockey, that’s what it is,” said Getzlaf. “You don’t get points for ties and you’ve got to play until the end. We’ve been able to build throughout the year in learning how to win in different ways and situations and it’s paid off for us, obviously, in this first round.”

Ryan Kesler was at the receiving end of the MTS Centre’s wrath Monday, hearing “Kesler sucks” from the warm-up to the final horn. And he enjoyed absolutely every second of it.

“I love it. I embraced it,” said Kesler. “It brings my game to the next level. It gets me going even if I didn’t feel like I had that much early on. That definitely got me going.”

“Seems everywhere in Canada we go, they’re saying something bad about him,” added Ducks coach Bruce Boudreau. “You’re going to have to ask him about what he did to this poor country (Kesler is American). But you know what? Some guys like it. Corey Perry feeds off when you start getting on him. He loves that. I guess Ryan’s the same way.”

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Perry was indeed the other main target Monday, both by Jets faithful and Jets defenceman Dustin Byfuglien, who levelled the Ducks sniper after he scored Anaheim’s second goal.

“I had no idea what was going on,” said Perry of the incident. “I saw the one guy beside me (Byfuglien) and then I didn’t see him at all. It’s playoffs. You just take it, roll with it and move forward.”

Pressed as to how he did not retaliate, Perry shrugged.

“It’s easy. You just keep playing hockey. We’re here to get a win. We just want to play our game. If they take that penalty, hopefully we get a great opportunity on the power play. And that’s what we’re looking for.”

ed.tait@freepress.mb.ca Twitter: @WFPEdTait