Chicago Tribune | Chicago Sports | Section 3 | Tuesday, May19, 2015 5

STANLEY CUP Ducks’ top line seeking more

Getzlaf-Perry combo wasn’t blank shot by Patrick Kane. solace in the Ducks’ depth becoming the The Blackhawks mostly employed de- difference. abig factor in Game 1 victory fensemen Johnny Oduya and Niklas Hjal- “Speaks volumes that we have four lines marsson against the Getzlaf line, but the that can play at any time in this series,” By Lance Pugmire | Tribune Newspapers center said difficulties were self-induced. Perry said. “We’re going to need that to “We didn’t handle the puck that well,” win.” ANAHEIM, Calif. — Patrick Maroon has Getzlaf said. “As a line, that’s up to us. I The Ducks also understand the need to played long enough with first-line mates turned over the puck a couple of times — maintain home-ice advantage. Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry to project uncharacteristic. “We can’t stay back. We have to remain what kind of performance is coming in “Things have been addressed, we’ll keep physical,” fourth-line forward Jiri Sekac Tuesday’s Game 2 of the Western Confer- Getzlaf Perry moving. We’re playing a good hockey team said of Game 2. ence finals. we’re expecting a good response from and Ducks coach Bruce Boudreau told re- “They’ll be mad. … Expect their best, the Perry — the playoff points leader who we’ll impose our own response from the porters he expects to keep Sekac, center A-game,” Maroon said Monday after prac- had four points in each of the Game 1 lack of things we did in Game 1.” Rickard Rakell and Emerson Etem together tice. “You always want to contribute in playoff victories over the Jets and Flames — Asked if he is troubled by any matchup, as his team — 9-1 in the playoffs — looks to some way, get that confidence back.” had only two shots on goal while four others Perry said, “No. It’s nothing.” improve to 7-0 at the Honda Center. While the Ducks beat the Blackhawks 4-1 were blocked or missed. Perry said he wasn’t hindered by a right He also made it clear the game plan starts in Game 1 — thanks to two goals and two The Ducks don’t want ineffective first- leg injury that briefly sidelined him in the with the first line. assists from the third line centered by Nate line play to become a trend. clinching game against the Flames on May “When those three are on their game, Thompson — Getzlaf’s first line was muted, “We won a game, and we’ll take the 10 and kept him from two practices last they’re pretty hard to stop,” he said. “Their by its standards. positives from that, but there were a lot of week. expectations for themselves are very high Getzlaf notched its only point, upping his areas we could clean up,” Getzlaf said, He had 15 minutes, 17 seconds of ice time and they didn’t exceed their expectations NHL playoff lead in assists (11) with a referring to events such as his first-period —less than second-line forwards Silf- last game.” secondary pass on Jakob Silfverberg’s turnover that forced Frederik Andersen to verberg and Matt Beleskey and third-line empty-net goal with 78 seconds left. make a spectacular stick save on a point- forward Andrew Cogliano — and took [email protected]

EASTERN CONFERENCE Boudreau has FINALS LIGHTNING 6, RANGERS 2 strong ties to Lightning’s Blackhawks Johnson Haugh, from Page 1

“That was a great team: (Steve) Larmer, (Denis) Savard, (Troy) Murray, anatural (Doug) Wilson,’’ Boudreau said. “It wasn’t like the late ’90s when they Has 1st playoff hat trick in weren’t good. Being in Chicago Stadium was pretty electric. It’s a great memory.’’ team history to even series The Hawks were Boudreau’s last NHL stop, one made possible thanks to By Erik Erlendsson hockey’s small world. As Boudreau Tampa Tribune explained, Hockey Hall of Famer Roger Neilsonwas a Blackhawks assistant NEW YORK —Act Two on Broadway who coached him in Toronto. for the Lightning looked like a comedy of “It was alove-hate relationship with errors at times, but it wound up being a Roger — I thought he liked me but he smashing success before the curtain was always sent me down,’’ Boudreau said. drawn. Nevertheless, Neilson recommended The Lightning rediscovered their Boudreau to Pulford, as did late long- offense for a convincing 6-2 victory time Hawks scout Jack Davison, who against the Rangers in Game 2 of the knew him from when the Hawks and Eastern Conference Finals at Madison Leafs shared an AHL affiliate in Monc- Square Garden. ton, New Brunswick. It was there that The Lightning evened up the best-of- Boudreau played with former Hawks seven series 1-1 as the scene shifts to star and Kings coach Darryl Sutter. Tampa for Games 3 and 4 starting Along the way, Boudreau also was Wednesday. teammates with Hawks coach Joel Tyler Johnson took center stage after Quenneville and assistant Mike Kitch- registering the first playoff hat trick in en. Ducks general manager Bob Murray, franchise history while notching his alongtime Hawks defenseman, hired fourth multigoal game of the postseason. Boudreau in November 2011 less than Johnson leads all scorers in the 48 hoursafter the Capitals fired his postseason with 16 points and 11 goals, ex-teammate. Crossing coasts, Bou- one goal short of matching the franchise dreau felt comfortable because of an- single-season playoff record set by other Chicago connection: Ducks exe- BRIAN CASSELLA/CHICAGO TRIBUNE Brad Richards and Ruslan Fedotenko in cutive Rick Paterson, a former Black- Ducks goalie Frederik Andersen covers the puck in the third period of Sunday’s Game 1. 2004. hawks forward, welcomed him in Cali- Johnson is also just the fourth player fornia. Paterson’s best man at his first in the last 25 seasons to record a playoff wedding? Boudreau. hat trick with a short-handed goal, Former Hawks coach Trent Yawney Danes make gains power-play goal and even-strength goal, is Boudreau’s top assistant. Current joining Claude Giroux (Flyers, 2012), Wolves coach John Anderson remains a Johan Franzen (Red Wings, 2008) and close friend, awaiting dinner with his Denmark, from Page 1 Mario Lemieux (Penguins, 1996). buddy later this week when Boudreau DETAIL Miles 100 Nikita Kucherov added three assists, AREA comes to a city special to him. Making the 2010 world quarterfinals is NORWAY Alex Killorn scored twice and added an “There’s history for me in Chicago,’’ one of the landmark achievements in assist while Steven Stamkos notched his Boudreau said. Danish hockey history. The other came in fourth playoff goal and added an assist. Boudreau’s future is more secure now 2007, when Frans Nielsenbecame the first EUROPE Ben Bishop finished with 35 saves. that he has led a team into the confer- homegrown Dane to play in the NHL. SWEDEN Chris Kreider and Derek Stepan had ence finals for the first time, quieting Nielsen just finished his ninth season with power-play goals for the Rangers. whispers over his status. That’s why the Islanders. Baltic stopped 20 shots, DENMARK insiders say Boudreau reacted so emo- “All this has come from almost nothing,” Sea allowing five or more goals for the fifth tionally after eliminating the Flames, Ernst Andersen said. “Now the world has time this season, the third against the acknowledging his family from the ice. opened its eyes to Danish players and seen North Sea Copenhagen Lightning. Tweaking the lineup for Game 1 to make what our skill level is.” NETHERLANDS Getting the series tied did not go the third and fourth lines more versa- Denmark has a 10-team top league that POLAND exactly as the coaching staff would have tile, a key to victory, demonstrated that began in 1955 and now plays a 36-game GERMANY drawn it up. Boudreau has played no small role for regular season, with only foreigners and a The Lightning took three penalties in the Ducks. few Danes as full-time professionals. TRIBUNE the opening 8:15 of the period, including “Again, it’s not me …” Boudreau The Danish national team made its allowing a two-man advantage for 1:07 at said. international debut in 1949 with a 47-0 loss 2003. The Danes have stayed there since, the 4:31 mark. In midsentence, Boudreau inter- to Canada that remains the worst defeat in and their Under-20 team, for which Ernst That’s where the tide turned, and in rupted to say hello to John Wiedeman world championships history. Denmark did Andersen is goalies coach, made the top favor of the Lightning. Martin St. Louis of WGN-AM 720, the voice of the not return to world play until 1962. world junior level in 2015 and requalified lost an edge while in the slot during the Hawks. They bonded over 13-hour bus The country’s hockey still wasn’t much to there for next year. 5-on-3 chance. That allowed Killorn to rides in 1992 during Boudreau’s first write home about when Dan Jensen moved Despite (or because of ) the limited push the puck ahead to Johnson for a year as a head coach with the Muskegon from suburban Toronto to begin a 15-year number of rinks, with none in wide swaths shorthanded breakaway. Fury of the Colonial Hockey League career with the Herning team in 1990. of the country, the relatively small number Lundqvist made the initial stop, but when Wiedeman also was a new an- “It was pretty terrible,” Jensen said of youth players means everyone gets Johnson kept his stick on the ice for the nouncer. Wiedeman quickly learned Monday from Henring. plenty of ice time — especially goalies such follow-up to push the puck into the net. why everyone called Boudreau “Gabby.’’ Enver Hansen, who spent 11 years as as Andersen. The goal was initially waved off as St. “I did my first actual interview of a chief executive of the Danish He was among many kids who would Louis knocked the net off, but review head coach with Bruce, and I asked him Federation, said improvement began in the play simultaneously on two or three youth confirmed the puck entered the net one question,’’ Wiedeman said. “The mid-1990s with the hiring of Swedish teams, one at their age level and others ahead of the post coming off at 5:38, with answer went 2 minutes, 27 seconds. He coaches who implemented a system across above. Being with older teammates and the goal coming officially as a 5-on-4 told me, ‘You’ll find that interviews with all age levels. The Swedes developed what opponents accelerated the improvement of shorthanded goal. me are easy because I like to talk.’ Regin called “a culture for hockey.” the younger ones. Whenever I see him, I shake his hand.’’ “They brought a seriousness about all Andersen chose to play professionally in It usually is a long line. Considered a parts of training — physical, mental, hours Sweden rather than sign with the Hurri- players’ coach, Boudreau connects by on the ice,” Hansen said. canes. He was drafted again in the third being himself. He walked into Monday’s Jensen, who has lived in Denmark the round by the Ducks in 2012, made his NHL news conference in jeans, a black polo last 25 years and is Herning’s youth hockey debut last season and became their undis- and running shoes with a paunch as director, said the change also owes to puted No. 1 goalie in this year’s playoffs. distinguishable as his red face. Players something in the Danish character. He and Regin were among the four NHL say Boudreau can yell with the best of “The Danes take a lot of pride in Danes this season from Herning, a city of coaches. Everybody knows he can education,” he said. “When they want to 47,000 inhabitants 200 miles west of laugh. His personality works; the confi- learn something, they work very hard at it.” Copenhagen. The only Dane to make the dence not every Hawks opponent car- About 20 years ago, some young Danish Final, the Canucks’ Jannik ries comes from Boudreau. Chuckling, players began to seek hockey tutelage in Hansen in 2011, is from the Copenhagen he mocked the attention paid goalie nearby Sweden, attending sports-oriented suburb of Herlev. Frederik Andersen for declaring that high schools there. Once a general reluc- Three Danes have been first-round picks the Ducks think they can beat the tance to take that step was overcome, others in the last eight NHL drafts. Hawks. began going to major junior leagues in “When I was young, guys just wanted to “What do you expect him to say?” North America. make it (as a pro) to Sweden,” Regin said. Boudreau said. “You have to believe you Jensen’s older son, Nicklas, moved at 17 “Now they want to make it to the NHL, and it’s can do the job before you do the job. It’s to play with Oshawa of the Ontario Hockey areachable goal, so everybody aims for that.” my job to make them believe they’re League. He was a first-round pick of the And if one can bring back hockey’s holy capable of beating anybody.’’ Canucks in 2011 and has played in 24 games grail? Unquestionably, the Ducks are — with Vancouver over the last three seasons, “That would obviously be a great way to thanks to an ex-Hawk doing his job so during which he also has played for the honor Denmark as a hockey country, well. Wolves and the Utica Generals of the AHL. because we’ve grown a lot,” Andersen said. BRUCE BENNETT/GETTY Dan Jensen was on the Danish national Tyler Johnson celebrates after scoring [email protected] team that won promotion to the top [email protected] the second of his three goals Monday in Twitter @DavidHaugh division of the world championships in Twitter @olyphil a 6-2 Lightning victory over the Rangers.