If this is the end of the Bruce Boudreau era in Anaheim, then it is closing on a whimper.
The Ducks have been unable to score this season and that persisted in a troubling 3-0 loss to the Minnesota Wild tonight.
Already down 1-0 going into the second period, the Ducks were flat for the next 20 minutes. They managed just six shots on goal in that frame and committed four minor penalties. When the Ducks finally had a power-play opportunity towards the end of the second, Wild forward Ryan Carter poured salt in the wound by scoring shorthanded.
Not that Minnesota ended up needing that insurance tonight, just as the Wild wouldn’t have needed it against Anaheim almost any other night this season. Anaheim has only scored more than a single goal in a game once this season. Through seven contests, they’ve been shutout four times and have scored a total of six goals.
In fact, Minnesota was the only team that Anaheim has been able to beat so far and it couldn’t repeat that tonight.
So where do the Ducks go from here? Do they trust that coach Boudreau can guide the team out of this rut? After all, he has led the Ducks to three straight division titles and guided them to the Western Conference Final less than a year ago. At the same time, Anaheim is in win now mode and it doesn’t want to risk allowing these struggles to go on for so long that reversing the damage becomes a monumental task.
How do you think Bruce Boudreau feels? pic.twitter.com/cVgHOhoaTh
— Chad Graff (@ChadGraff) October 24, 2015
