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Anaheim Ducks
Regular Season Record: 48-20-14, 110 pts
Head-to-Head Record: 2-1-1
Last Stanley Cup Win: -
Last Stanley Cup Final Appearance: 2003
Last Postseason Appearance: 2006
Players with Stanley Cup Rings: Scott Niedermayer (3).

Team Analysis: The Ducks were three wins shy of a trip to the Stanley Cup Final last season, and GM Brian Burke has kept his core group up front to take care of that unfinished business this spring. While Burke was unable to land a veteran forward like Todd Bertuzzi and Bill Guerin at the trade deadline, the offence still very strong. Veterans Teemu Selanne and Andy McDonald blended well again with youngsters Ryan Getzlaf, Corey Perry, Dustin Penner and Chris Kunitz, with the league's second-best power play and seventh-best offence. The Ducks also have a solid shutdown line with faceoff man Samuel Pahlsson and wingers Rob Niedermayer and Travis Moen. On the blueline, there isn't much left to say about the star tandem of Scott Niedermayer and Chris Pronger. Niedermayer knows all it takes to win championships, while Pronger, a former Hart and Norris Trophy winner and Olympic gold medalist was a workhorse in Edmonton's Stanley Cup run. The Ducks also got superb performances last season from Francois Beauchemin and Sean O'Donnell. Beauchemin provided some clutch scoring last spring, while O'Donnell was an impressive plus-8 in 16 playoff games. It looked like it was going to be a battle for the No. 1 spot in goal last fall, but Jean-Sebastien Giguere entrenched himself in the role from the start. He once again played the majority of Anaheim's games, and will be expected to put up a performance similar to his Conn Smythe Trophy-winning campaign in 2003. If he struggles again in the postseason, there's no reason to believe Randy Carlyle won't turn to Ilya Bryzgalov.

Minnesota Wild
Regular Season Record: 48-26-8, 104 pts
Head-to-Head Record: 2-1
Last Stanley Cup Win: -
Last Stanley Cup Final Appearance: -
Last Postseason Appearance: 2003
Players with Stanley Cup Rings: Brian Rolston

Team Analysis: A lot of people have tagged Minnesota as the dark horse of the playoffs, and with an incredible run in March and April it should come as no surprise. While other teams struggled when their No. 1 goalie got injured down the stretch, the Wild only got better. Manny Fernandez's knee injury left the goaltending duties to Niklas Backstrom, and the rookie worked his way up the stats sheets finishing as the league leaders in goals-against average and save percentage. Up front, Marian Gaborik has been equally impressive. After missing 34 games with a groin injury, the former first-round pick has been lighting it up. Gaborik socred at least one point in 13 of Minnesota's last 14 games. The rest of the offence is spread out very well, with Pavol Demitra, Brian Rolston, Pierre-Marc Bouchard and Mikko Koivu contributing. With Jacques Lemaire behind the bench, the team also fares well on its defensive game. Wes Walz is one of the NHL's best defensive forwards, while Stephane Veilleux and trade deadline pick-up Dominic Moore play a great two-way game. The blueline is obviously equal to the task on team defence, but lacks offensive production. Brent Burns led the group with only 25 points.

Statistical keys to the series
- Anaheim ranked third in the league on the power play, with a 22.4% success rate. Minnesota ranked sixth at 19.0%.

- Buffalo ranked fourth in the league in penalty killing, with an 85.1% success rate. Minnesota ranked second at 86.0%.

- Minnesota ranked first in the league with 2.24 goals against per game.

- Minnesota ranked fourth in the league in number of times shorthanded, 342.

- Samuel Pahlsson (181), Chris Kunitz (159) and Travis Moen (128) are the Ducks' leading hitters.

- Adam Hall (91), Stephane Veilleux (89) and Nick Schultz (88) are the Wild's leading hitters. Hall's totals include games with the New York Rangers.

- Andy McDonald is the Ducks' top face-off man -- 55.4%.

- Dominic Moore is the Wild's top face-off man -- 52.6%. Moore's totals include games with the Pittsburgh Penguins.

- Anaheim's Teemu Selanne led the league with 25 power play goals.

- Anaheim's Teemu Selanne tied for the league lead with 10 game-winning goals.

- Anaheim's Scott Niedermayer ranked second in the league with 27:30 of ice time per game.

- Anaheim's George Parros led the league with 18 major penalties this year.

- Minnesota's Niklas Backstrom led the league with a 1.97 goals against average and .929 save percentage.

- Scott Niedermayer led the Ducks with six points in four games against the Wild this year.

- Pierre-Marc Bouchard led the Wild with six points in four games against the Ducks this year.

- Anaheim's leaders in power play ice time (per game):
Scott Niedermayer 5:50
Chris Pronger 5:47
Teemu Selanne 4:38
Andy McDonald 4:19
Chris Kunitz 4:02
Ryan Getzlaf 3:22

- Minnesota's leaders in power play ice time (per game):
Brian Rolston 5:12
Pavol Demitra 4:23
Petteri Nummelin 3:54
Mark Parrish 3:48
Kurtis Foster 3:44
Marian Gaborik 3:44

- Anaheim's leaders in penalty killing ice time (per game):
Samuel Pahlsson 4:28
Scott Niedermayer 3:58
Francois Beauchemin 3:58
Chris Pronger 3:46
Rob Niedermayer 3:44
Sean O'Donnell 3:39

- Minnesota's leaders in penalty killing ice time (per game):
Kim Johnsson 3:33
Nick Schultz 3:32
Brian Rolston 2:38
Martin Skoula 2:35
Todd White 2:35
Keith Carney 2:13

http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/feature/?fid=11001&hubname=

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Sa va être chaud cette série!!! Je crois que le Wilds a un avantage par contre!!!

pour ajouter sur le but de Penner et le suspence....

ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) - Dustin Penner's patience - and positioning - paid off.

Penner scored with 5:20 remaining to lift the Anaheim Ducks to a 2-1 victory over the Minnesota Wild on Wednesday night in the opening game of their first-round playoff series.

Penner poked the puck in after Minnesota defenseman Kim Johnsson crashed into Wild goalie Niklas Backstrom, sending him sprawling backward into the net.

The puck was sitting in the crease, and Corey Perry swept it toward the goal. Penner took a couple of swipes at it and forced it in.

Related Info
Highlights: 1, 2
''I saw it coming. That's why I moved over to the side,'' Penner said. ''If the puck didn't go in after the initial shot I wanted to be able to pick up any loose change.

''I was looking for the puck, the ref was right there and he made a great call. Obviously the puck was free. You could see it on the replay. Perry and I just whacked away and it went in.''

Backstrom thought the goal should have been disallowed.

''I watched the replay and I was sure it was under me and nobody saw the puck,'' he said. ''Of course, you're going to get the puck out from a goalie if you slash at it with your sticks.

''That's a bad goal and we lose a game on that,'' added Backstrom, who stopped 32 shots.

Minnesota coach Jacques Lemaire wasn't so sure it should've counted, either.

''I don't know if he stopped the puck or whether he was right on top of it or if it was under the pad,'' Lemaire said. ''He waited a bit and they whacked the puck right in.''

Teemu Selanne tied it for Anaheim with a second-period goal, just 3:51 after Pavol Demitra scored for Minnesota.

Ilya Bryzgalov started in place of Jean-Sebastien Giguere and made 24 saves for Anaheim.

''It's the playoffs and all the marbles are on the floor,'' Bryzgalov said. ''It's very important. It was a very difficult game. Every game is so close.''

Giguere has been taking time off to be with his wife and newborn son. Maxime was born April 4 with a condition that could leave him blind in his right eye. Giguere and his wife, Kristen, were worried about the vision in the baby's left eye as well, but a specialist told them on Tuesday that their son will have sight in that one.

Anaheim coach Randy Carlyle explained his decision to keep Giguere on the bench: ''We felt that the emotional roller coaster Giguere has been on, it was more beneficial to let him get his feet underneath him.

''With the good news that he received yesterday about his son, we felt it would be best if he backed up tonight. Now we have both goaltenders available.''

Giguere was the MVP of the 2003 Stanley Cup playoffs, when the Ducks were beaten in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup finals by New Jersey.

Bryzgalov played well during the postseason last year when Giguere was injured, helping Anaheim advance to the Western Conference finals, where the Ducks lost in five games to Edmonton.

The 36-year-old Selanne, rejuvenated since his return to Anaheim before the 2005-06 season, took a long pass from Francois Beauchemin, broke behind the defense and into the slot, where he slid the puck between Backstrom's pads at 9:52 of the second period.

Demitra beat Bryzgalov with a 15-foot slap shot down the slot, with the puck sailing into the net high on the goalie's glove side at 14:51 of the second period.

Notes: Giguere had three shutouts as the Ducks swept the Wild in the Western Conference finals in 2003, Minnesota's last appearance in the postseason. . The Ducks and Wild split their regular-season series this season, with each team winning twice on home ice. . Selanne's goal was his 29th in the postseason for Anaheim, tying him with Paul Kariya for the franchise record.

http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/news_story/?ID=203843&hubname=nhl

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quand Pronger et Niedermayer sont sur la glace l'autre ne peut rien faire et vu que ces 2 joueurs jouent 30 minutes. ben sa veut dire que doit se sauver avec la victoire en 30 mintues. Ca serait un adversaire sur mesure pour le parce qu'ils n'ont jamais été capable de jouer pendant 60 minutes cette année.