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puck Anaheim Ducks
usinfo | 2013-06-19 15:17
| 2012–13 Anaheim Ducks season | |
 |
|
| Conference | Western |
| Division | Pacific |
| Founded | 1993 |
| History |
Mighty Ducks of Anaheim 1993–2006 Anaheim Ducks 2006–present |
| Home arena | Honda Center |
| City | Anaheim, California |
 |
|
| Colors |
Black, Metallic Gold, Orange, White |
| Media |
Prime Ticket Ducks Fox Sports Ducks KDOC-TV KLAA/830 |
| Owner(s) | Henry and Susan Samueli |
| General manager | Bob Murray |
| Head coach | Bruce Boudreau |
| Captain | Ryan Getzlaf |
| Minor league affiliates |
Norfolk Admirals (AHL) Fort Wayne Komets (ECHL) |
| Stanley Cups | 1 (2006–07) |
| Conference championships | 2 (2002–03, 2006–07) |
| Presidents' Trophies | 0 |
| Division championships | 2 (2006–07, 2012–13) |
| Official website | ducks.nhl.com |
The Anaheim Ducks are a professional ice hockey team based in Anaheim, California, United States. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League(NHL). Since their inception, the Ducks have played their home games at the Honda Center.
The club was founded in 1993 by The Walt Disney Company as the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, a name based on the 1992 film The Mighty Ducks. Disney sold the franchise in 2005 to Henry and Susan Samueli, who along with GM Brian Burke changed the name of the team to the Anaheim Ducks before the 2006–07 season. In their 20-year existence, the Ducks have made the playoffs eight times, winning two Pacific Division titles (2007 and 2013), two Western Conference Championships (2003 and 2007), and one Stanley Cup Championship (2007).
History
Start of a Franchise (1993–1996)
Mighty Ducks primarylogo (1993–2006). The logo was subsequently used in the Disney movieD2: The Mighty Ducks. Disney design elements appear in this logo, such as team mascotWildwing's goalie mask.
The Mighty Ducks of Anaheim were founded in 1993 by The Walt Disney Company. The franchise was awarded by the NHL on December 1992, along with the rights to a Miami team that would become theFlorida Panthers. An entrance fee of $50 million was required, half of which Disney would pay to the Los Angeles Kings for being in the same area as the new team.[1] On March 1, 1993 at the brand-new Anaheim Arena - located a short distance east of Disneyland and across the Orange Freeway from Angel Stadium - the team got its name, inspired by the 1992 Disney movie The Mighty Ducks, based on a group of misfit kids who turn their losing youth hockey team into a winning team.[2] Disney president Michael Eisner had already said on the December press conference that the film's success served as "our market research."[1] As a result of the baptism, the arena was named "The Pond",[2] and Disney subsequently made an animated series called Mighty Ducks, featuring a fictional Mighty Ducks of Anaheim team that consisted of anthropomorphized ducks led by the Mighty Duck Wildwing.[3]
Philadelphia arena management specialist Tony Tavares was chosen to be team president,[2] and Jack Ferreira, who previously helped create the nearby San Jose Sharks, became the Ducks' general manager.[4] The Ducks selected Ron Wilson to be the first coach in team history.[5] Both the Ducks and the Panthers filled out their rosters in the 1993 NHL Expansion Draft and the 1993 NHL Entry Draft. In the former, a focus on defense lead to goaltenders Guy Hebert and Glenn Healy being the first picks, followed by Alexei Kasatonov and Steven King.[6] In the latter, the Ducks selected as the fourth overall pick Paul Kariya, who only began play in 1994 but would turn out to be the face of the franchise for many years.[7] The resulting roster had the lowest payroll of the NHL with only $7.9 million.[8]
The franchise's first game was played at home on October 8, 1993, versus the Detroit Red Wings, preceded by a 20-minute pregame show at the cost of $450,000. The Ducks lost 7–2.[8][9] Two games later, on October 13, 1993, also on home ice, the Ducks won the first game in franchise history 4–3 versus the Edmonton Oilers. Soon Wilson's aggressive tactics hockey lead the team to win 14 of their first 38 games, including four road games in a row at the Canadian teams of the Western Conference in November, and their first shut out in team history on December 15, 1993, 1–0 versus the Toronto Maple Leafs.[8] Lead by captain Troy Loney, the Ducks entered February 1994 at eight on the Western Conference.[10] However after a 0-6 defeat to the Sharks on April 1 the team had effectively fallen out of playoff contention. The Ducks' final result was 33–46–5, a record-breaking number of wins for an expansion team which the Panthers also achieved. The team sold out 27 of 41 home games, including the last 25, and filled the Arrowhead Pond to 98.9% of its season capacity. Ducks licensed merchandise shot to number one in sales among NHL clubs,[11] helped by their presence in Disney's theme parks and Disney Stores.[3] Near the end of the season, Disney president Frank Wells died in a helicopter accident on April 3, 1994. They honoured him by wearing Mickey Mouse head patches with the initials FGW printed on them.[12] Steve Rucchin was selected second overall in the 1994 Supplemental Draft.[13]
With the lockout in place, the Mighty Ducks did not play on the ice again until January 20, 1995. The season marked the debut of Paul Kariya, who would play 47 games that year due to the lockout, and score 18 goals, 21 assists, and 39 points. They finished the season fair, going 16–27–5. In 1995–96, it would mark a big change for the team, especially for second year superstar Paul Kariya. During the season he was chosen to play for the Western Conference in the 1996 NHL All-Star Game as the lone Ducks representative. At the time of his selection, in January 1996, he was ranked 14th in league scoring with 51 points (23 goals and 28 assists) over 42 games. Despite Kariya's efforts, the Ducks were low-scoring as a team.
Kariya/Selanne Era (1996–2001)
In the middle of their third year, on February 7, 1996, the team made a blockbuster deal with the Winnipeg Jets. The Ducks sent Chad Kilger, Oleg Tverdovsky, and a third-round pick to the Jets in return for Marc Chouinard, a fourth-round draft pick, and right winger Teemu Selanne. Following the trade, Ducks centre Steve Rucchin commented, "Paul had a lot of pressure on him...He singlehandedly won some games for us this year...Now that we have Teemu, there's no way everybody can just key on Paul." These three players formed one of the most potent lines of their time. Although the trade proved to be an important effort in the team, they still couldn't make the playoffs.
The club was founded in 1993 by The Walt Disney Company as the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, a name based on the 1992 film The Mighty Ducks. Disney sold the franchise in 2005 to Henry and Susan Samueli, who along with GM Brian Burke changed the name of the team to the Anaheim Ducks before the 2006–07 season. In their 20-year existence, the Ducks have made the playoffs eight times, winning two Pacific Division titles (2007 and 2013), two Western Conference Championships (2003 and 2007), and one Stanley Cup Championship (2007).
History
Start of a Franchise (1993–1996)
Mighty Ducks primarylogo (1993–2006). The logo was subsequently used in the Disney movieD2: The Mighty Ducks. Disney design elements appear in this logo, such as team mascotWildwing's goalie mask.
The Mighty Ducks of Anaheim were founded in 1993 by The Walt Disney Company. The franchise was awarded by the NHL on December 1992, along with the rights to a Miami team that would become theFlorida Panthers. An entrance fee of $50 million was required, half of which Disney would pay to the Los Angeles Kings for being in the same area as the new team.[1] On March 1, 1993 at the brand-new Anaheim Arena - located a short distance east of Disneyland and across the Orange Freeway from Angel Stadium - the team got its name, inspired by the 1992 Disney movie The Mighty Ducks, based on a group of misfit kids who turn their losing youth hockey team into a winning team.[2] Disney president Michael Eisner had already said on the December press conference that the film's success served as "our market research."[1] As a result of the baptism, the arena was named "The Pond",[2] and Disney subsequently made an animated series called Mighty Ducks, featuring a fictional Mighty Ducks of Anaheim team that consisted of anthropomorphized ducks led by the Mighty Duck Wildwing.[3]
Philadelphia arena management specialist Tony Tavares was chosen to be team president,[2] and Jack Ferreira, who previously helped create the nearby San Jose Sharks, became the Ducks' general manager.[4] The Ducks selected Ron Wilson to be the first coach in team history.[5] Both the Ducks and the Panthers filled out their rosters in the 1993 NHL Expansion Draft and the 1993 NHL Entry Draft. In the former, a focus on defense lead to goaltenders Guy Hebert and Glenn Healy being the first picks, followed by Alexei Kasatonov and Steven King.[6] In the latter, the Ducks selected as the fourth overall pick Paul Kariya, who only began play in 1994 but would turn out to be the face of the franchise for many years.[7] The resulting roster had the lowest payroll of the NHL with only $7.9 million.[8]
The franchise's first game was played at home on October 8, 1993, versus the Detroit Red Wings, preceded by a 20-minute pregame show at the cost of $450,000. The Ducks lost 7–2.[8][9] Two games later, on October 13, 1993, also on home ice, the Ducks won the first game in franchise history 4–3 versus the Edmonton Oilers. Soon Wilson's aggressive tactics hockey lead the team to win 14 of their first 38 games, including four road games in a row at the Canadian teams of the Western Conference in November, and their first shut out in team history on December 15, 1993, 1–0 versus the Toronto Maple Leafs.[8] Lead by captain Troy Loney, the Ducks entered February 1994 at eight on the Western Conference.[10] However after a 0-6 defeat to the Sharks on April 1 the team had effectively fallen out of playoff contention. The Ducks' final result was 33–46–5, a record-breaking number of wins for an expansion team which the Panthers also achieved. The team sold out 27 of 41 home games, including the last 25, and filled the Arrowhead Pond to 98.9% of its season capacity. Ducks licensed merchandise shot to number one in sales among NHL clubs,[11] helped by their presence in Disney's theme parks and Disney Stores.[3] Near the end of the season, Disney president Frank Wells died in a helicopter accident on April 3, 1994. They honoured him by wearing Mickey Mouse head patches with the initials FGW printed on them.[12] Steve Rucchin was selected second overall in the 1994 Supplemental Draft.[13]
With the lockout in place, the Mighty Ducks did not play on the ice again until January 20, 1995. The season marked the debut of Paul Kariya, who would play 47 games that year due to the lockout, and score 18 goals, 21 assists, and 39 points. They finished the season fair, going 16–27–5. In 1995–96, it would mark a big change for the team, especially for second year superstar Paul Kariya. During the season he was chosen to play for the Western Conference in the 1996 NHL All-Star Game as the lone Ducks representative. At the time of his selection, in January 1996, he was ranked 14th in league scoring with 51 points (23 goals and 28 assists) over 42 games. Despite Kariya's efforts, the Ducks were low-scoring as a team.
Kariya/Selanne Era (1996–2001)
In the middle of their third year, on February 7, 1996, the team made a blockbuster deal with the Winnipeg Jets. The Ducks sent Chad Kilger, Oleg Tverdovsky, and a third-round pick to the Jets in return for Marc Chouinard, a fourth-round draft pick, and right winger Teemu Selanne. Following the trade, Ducks centre Steve Rucchin commented, "Paul had a lot of pressure on him...He singlehandedly won some games for us this year...Now that we have Teemu, there's no way everybody can just key on Paul." These three players formed one of the most potent lines of their time. Although the trade proved to be an important effort in the team, they still couldn't make the playoffs.
Paul Kariya captained the Mighty Ducks for seven seasons from 1996-2003.
The Ducks reached the postseason for the first time during the 1996–97 NHL season led by Paul Kariya, following Randy Ladoceur's retirement during the offseason. The Ducks finished with a 36–33–13 record, the franchise's first winning record, good enough for home ice in the first round as the number four seed against the Phoenix Coyotes. The Ducks trailed 3–2 going into Phoenix for game six. Kariya scored in overtime to force the franchise's first game 7 which they won. In the second round, however, they lost to the eventual Stanley Cup champion Red Wings in a four game sweep. After the season, Wilson was fired after saying he would like to coach the Capitals. The Ducks missed the playoffs in 1998 with Pierre Page at the helm. Part of the reason for missing the playoffs was due to Kariya's concussion, which forced him to miss the remainder of the season. The Ducks followed that season up by finishing 6th in the Western Conference in 1998–99 NHL season with new head coach Craig Hartsburg. However, they were swept by the Red Wings again, this time in the first round.
From "Mighty" to worse (2001–02)
In the 1999–2000 NHL season, the Ducks finished with a winning record, but missed the playoffs by 4 points as the rival San Jose Sharks took 8th place that year with 87 points while the Mighty Ducks took 9th place with 83 points. In the 2000–01 NHL season, the Ducks ended up doing even worse as Kariya and Selanne substantially dropped points production from the previous season. Kariya went from 86 points to 67 points and Selanne went from 85 points to 57 points. Selanne was dealt to San Jose at the trade deadline for Jeff Friesen, Steve Shields, and a second round draft pick and Hartsburg was fired during the season. The team ended up with a losing record and last place in the Western Conference that season. Without Selanne, Kariya's numbers continued to drop in the 2001–02 NHL season with new coach Bryan Murray. The Mighty Ducks finished in 13th place in the Western Conference.
Western Conference Champions (2002–03)
The Mighty Ducks did not reach the postseason again until the 2002–03 NHL season with coach Mike Babcock. They entered the playoffs in 7th place with a 40–27–9–6 record, good enough for 95 points. In the first round, the Ducks were once again matched up with the Red Wings, the defending Stanley Cup Champions. They shocked the hockey world by sweeping the Red Wings in four games. Rucchin scored the series winning goal in overtime in game four. In the second round, the Ducks faced the Dallas Stars. Game one turned out to be the fourth longest game in NHL history with Petr Sykora scoring in the fifth overtime to give the Mighty Ducks the series lead. The Ducks would finish off the Stars in game six at home. In the team's first trip to the Western Conference Finals, they were matched up against another Cinderella team, the sixth seeded, three-year old Minnesota Wild. Jean-Sebastien Giguere strung together three consecutive shutouts and allowed only one total goal in the series in an eventual sweep.
The 2003 Stanley Cup Finals had some interesting story lines. Anaheim forward Rob Niedermayer was playing against his brother, defenseman for the New Jersey Devils, Scott Niedermayer and Giguere faced off against fellow French Canadian goalie Martin Brodeur. The series began with the home team winning the first five games. In game six at home, Kariya was knocked out by Devils defenseman and captain Scott Stevens. Kariya would return in the second period and score the fourth goal of the game. In an exciting third period, the Mighty Ducks defeated the Devils 5–2 to send the series back to New Jersey for game seven. Anaheim could not complete their Cinderella run, though, as they lost a hard-fought game 7 to the Devils 3–0. For his brilliant play during the post-season, Giguere won the Conn Smythe Trophy as Most Valuable Player of the playoffs. He became only the fifth player in NHL history to have won the trophy as a member of the losing team. Giguere posted a 15–6 record, 7–0 in overtime, with a 1.62 GAA, a .945 sv. pct. and a record 168 minute, 27 second shutout streak in overtime.
Post Kariya (2003–04)
After the season, Kariya promised to bring the Mighty Ducks back to the Stanley Cup Final the following year. Kariya, however, left the Ducks in the summer and joined Selanne on the Colorado Avalanche. The 2003–04 NHL season was a season to forget as Giguere could not repeat his amazing play from the previous year. Even with newcomers Sergei Fedorov and Vaclav Prospal, the team finished in 12th place in the standings with a 29–35–10–8 record. Giguere's stats subsequently went down from the previous season as he only won half the games he did the year before, his goals against average went up from 2.30 to 2.62, his save percentage went down from .914 to .907, and he went from 8 shutouts to just three. The team also went from 203 goals to 174.
Brian Burke Era (2005–08)
Ducks current script logo in use since 2006. This logo is used on the home and away jerseys.
During the summer of 2004, as the NHL and the NHL Players Association's labor dispute was headed towards a long lockout, Disney tried to sell the team but received a low offer of $40-million US, less than the franchise's original price. In 2005, Broadcom co-founder Henry Samueli of Irvine, California, and his wife, Susan, bought the Mighty Ducks from The Walt Disney Company for a reported $75 million (USD). The Samuelis pledged to keep the team in Anaheim. With Disney no longer owning the team, they can't make any more films with the Mighty Ducks name (for example, D4 Mighty Ducks). Brian Burke, former Vancouver Canucks General Manager and President, was appointed GM and Executive Vice-President of the Mighty Ducks on June 20, 2005.
Ryan Getzlaf, along with Corey Perry and Dustin Penner formed a line colloqually called the kid trio from 2005-2007.
On August 1, 2005, former Norris Trophy-winning defenseman Randy Carlyle was hired as the seventh coach in team history. Burke was familiar with Carlyle's coaching ability, as the latter had coached the Manitoba Moose from 1996–2001 (International Hockey League) and 2004–05 (American Hockey League); the Moose had been the Canucks farm club since 2001. Carlyle replaced Babcock, who later signed on to coach the Red Wings.
On August 4, 2005, free agent defenseman Scott Niedermayer signed with the Mighty Ducks to play with his brother Rob. Niedermayer was almost immediately named team captain. On August 22, 2005, TeemuSelanne returned to the Ducks after undergoing knee surgery. Selanne led the team in scoring during the season with 40 goals and 50 assists for 90 points. Selänne would also record his 1,000th NHL point on January 30, 2006. The 2005–06 NHL season saw the emergence of rookies Ryan Getzlaf, Corey Perry and Chris Kunitz (Kunitz also played for the Ducks in 2003–04, but immediately returned to Cincinnati). On November 15, 2005, the Ducks traded Sergei Fedorov, and a 5th round draft pick to the Columbus Blue Jackets for defenseman Francois Beauchemin and Tyler Wright. The Ducks finished the season with a 43–27–12 record good enough for 98 points and the sixth seed. The Ducks faced the Calgary Flames in the quarterfinals and forced a seventh game in Calgary. The Ducks shut out the Flames to reach the semifinals. In an interesting playoffs, all the bottom seeds won in the first round so the Ducks faced the seventh seed Colorado. Ilya Bryzgalov shined as the Ducks swept the Avalanche and Bryzgalov broke Giguere's scoreless streak record from the 2003 season. In the franchise's second Western Conference Finals appearance, they faced the eighth seeded Edmonton Oilers. The Ducks would ultimately lose the series in five games.
Stanley Cup Champions (2006–07)
Before the 2006–07 NHL season, the Ducks traded Joffrey Lupul, Ladislav Smid and a first round draft pick to the Oilers for defenseman Chris Pronger. With this trade, solid scoring lines, a shut down line featuring Rob Niedermayer, Samuel Pahlsson and Travis Moen and an enviable defense, the Ducks were considered by many to be the Cup favorite. On November 9, 2006, the Ducks defeated the Vancouver Canucks 6–0 at General Motors Place in Vancouver, British Columbia to improve their season record to 12–0–4. The win set an NHL open era record by remaining undefeated in regulation for the first 16 games of the season, eclipsing the previous mark set by the 1983–84 Edmonton Oilers (the record has since been broken by the Chicago Blackhawks during the 2012–13 season). They were subsequently shut out by the Flames the following game, 3–0, ending their streak. On January 16, 2007, the Ducks played in their franchise's 1000th regular season game, and on March 11, the Ducks recorded their franchise's 1000th point with a 4–2 win over the Canucks, which improved their franchise all-time record to 423–444–155, 1001 points. On April 7, the Ducks won their first Pacific Division title in franchise history, when the Canucks defeated the second-place Sharks in the final game of the season. The Ducks ended the regular season with a 48–20–14 record, good enough for second place with 110 points. The Ducks defeated the Minnesota Wild in the quarterfinals in five games and the Canucks in the semifinals in five games as well. Once again, the Ducks faced the Detroit Red Wings in the franchise's third trip to the Western Conference Finals. In game three Pronger elbowed Tomas Holmstrom and received a one game suspension. The Ducks won game four without Pronger and game five in Detroit as Selänne scored in overtime. The Ducks finished off the Red Wings in game six to advance to their second Stanley Cup Finals.
In the 2007 Stanley Cup Finals, the Ducks won the first two games at home against the Ottawa Senators. The Ducks lost game three and Pronger received his second one game suspension, this time for elbowing Dean McAmmond. The Ducks were again able to win without Pronger, beating the Senators in game four to have a chance to win the Cup on home ice in game five. On June 6, the Ducks defeated the Senators 6–2 at Honda Center to claim their first Stanley Cup in franchise history. Moen was credited with the Stanley Cup game-winning goal. Scott Niedermayer, the only player on the team who had previously won a Stanley Cup, was awarded the second Conn Smythe Trophy in Ducks history. The Ducks became the first California team, and the first west coast team since the 1925 Victoria Cougars to win the Stanley Cup.
Post Stanley Cup (2007–10)
The Ducks began their title defense in the 2007–08 NHL season season without two fan favorites, Scott Niedermayer and Selanne, who were contemplating retirement. To offset those losses, Burke signed forward Todd Bertuzzi and defensemanMathieu Schneider. During the season Burke put Bryzgalov on waivers and he was picked up by the Phoenix Coyotes. Free agent signee Jonas Hiller then became the back-up to Giguere. Both Selanne and Niedermayer would ultimately return and the team finished with a 47–27–8 record good enough to earn home ice advantage in the first round of the playoffs finishing as the 4th seed in the Western Conference. They were eliminated in the quarterfinals in six games by the Stars. During the off-season Burke bought out the remaining year on Bertuzzi's contract and traded Schneider to the Atlanta Thrashers.
After an extremely slow start to the 2008–09 NHL season, on November 12, 2008, Burke resigned to take the same position for the Toronto Maple Leafs. Bob Murray replaced him as general manager, but the team struggled to make the playoffs as the eighth seed in the Western Conference. A bevy of trade deadline deals saw the departure of some mainstays from the Cup team such as Kunitz, who was traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins for defenseman Ryan Whitney; Pahlsson, who was traded to the Chicago Blackhawks for defenseman James Wisniewski; and Moen, who was traded to the San Jose Sharks for two prospects. The trades gave the Ducks new life as a hot streak to end the season launched the Ducks into the playoffs. Hiller emerged as the new number one goalie during the stretch drive. The Ducks defeated the number one seed and President's Trophy winning Sharks in six games in the first round before being eliminated in the conference semifinals by the eventual Western Conference champion Detroit Red Wings in seven games. Before the 2009–10 NHL season the Ducks traded Pronger to the Philadelphia Flyers for Lupul, Luca Sbisa and two first round draft picks. Beauchemin and Rob Niedermayeralso left via free agency for Toronto and New Jersey respectively. The Ducks signed free agent center and former Montreal Canadiens captain Saku Koivu to a one-year deal.
Another slow start would doom the Ducks. Before the trade deadline, the Ducks traded Giguere to the Toronto Maple Leafs for Jason Blake and Vesa Toskala after signing Hiller to a contract extension. The trade deadline saw the Ducks trade Whitney to Edmonton for offensive defenseman Lubomir Visnovsky, as well as the acquisitions of defenseman Aaron Ward from the Carolina Hurricanes and goalie Curtis McElhinney from the Flames. The Ducks played through frequent injuries and picked up play in the second half of the season, but struggled coming out of the Olympic break. For the first time since the lockout, the Ducks failed to make the playoffs with a 39–32–11 record. The 2010 off-season was also busy for the Ducks, as Scott Niedermayer announced his retirement in a June press conference. Niedermayer decided to stay a member of the Ducks as a team consultant. The Ducks resigned Koivu for two years and signed free agent defenseman Toni Lydman to a three-year contract. In addition to Lydman, the Ducks were able to get defenseman Cam Fowler via the draft, and 35 year old strong-willed defenseman Andy Sutton signed to a two-year deal. Restricted free agent Bobby Ryan was signed to a five-year deal.
New Beginnings (2010–Present)
The 2010–11 season didn't start off too well for the Ducks, as they would lose their first 3 games and had a record close to .500 throughout the first half, but the Ducks found their groove and ended up with a 47–30–5 which was good for 99 points and 4th place in the Western Conference. Corey Perry and Jonas Hiller represented the Ducks at the All-Star game, and Corey Perry went on to have a 50 goal, 98 point season, which won him the Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophy andHart Memorial Trophy, while Hiller got injured at the all-star game and missed the rest of the season. Perry was the 1st ever Duck to win the Hart, and the first Richard winner since Teemu Selanne won the award in 1999. Even though the Ducks had a great season led by Perry, Hiller, Selanne, Visnovsky, and Getzlaf, they would end up losing in the first round of the playoffs to the 5th seeded Nashville Predators.
Before the 2011–12 season began, the team mourned the loss of former Mighty Duck Ruslan Salei, who died in a plane crash with several other former NHL players of the Lokomotiv Yaroslavl. They wore a black patch with his number 24 in current team numbering. The Ducks started the season with NHL Premiere games in Helsinki, Finland and Stockholm, Sweden. This was the second time in franchise history that they started the regular season with games in Europe. They lost 4–1 to the Buffalo Sabres in Helsinki, and defeated the New York Rangers 2–1 after a shootout in Stockholm. After a slow start to the season, the Ducks replaced head coach Randy Carlyle with former Washington Capitals head coach Bruce Boudreau. The rest of the season was mostly forgettable as the Ducks could not get out of the hole they dug themselves in the first half of the season, and ultimately failed to reach the playoffs in the 2011–12 season.
The 2012–13 season was shortened to 48 games due to a lockout (like the 1994–95 season). Under the new, lockout-shortened 48-game schedule, the Ducks opened the season by sweeping a two-game Canadian road trip, with a decisive 7–3 victory against the Vancouver Canucks on Saturday, January 19, at 7 p.m. PST, followed by a 5–4 decision against the Calgary Flames on Monday, January 21. Their home opener took place at Honda Center on Friday, January 25, also against the Canucks, who would get they're revenge, with a 5-0 win over the Ducks. The distinction of the Ducks' longest homestand was split between two five-game stretches from March 18 – March 25 and from April 3 – April 10. Anaheim's lengthiest road trip was a six-game haul from February 6 – February 16. Also, due to the shortened nature of the schedule and the objective of condensing travel, all games were to be played against the Ducks' own Western Conference opponents, and no games were played against Eastern Conference teams. The Ducks finished the season with a 30-12-6 recored and would win their second Pacific Division title in franchise history. In the Western Conference Quarterfinals, they ended up losing to the seventh seeded Detroit Red Wings in 7 games.
Logos and uniforms
Team colors and mascot
Logos
The Ducks' logo features a webbed foot forming a "D" followed by the other letters in the word "Ducks" in upper-case letters. The text itself is gold (which sometimes may appear as bronze as well) with orange and black accents (forming athree dimensional appearance). The entire logo is in turn outlined by silver. The city of Anaheim's name appears in smaller upper-case print, above the team name. The Ducks are one of three NHL teams to feature their team name spelled out in a scripted form on the front of their jersey rather than a logo. (The New York Rangers and the Washington Capitals are the other two.) This does not include alternate jerseys or throwback jerseys worn by other teams.
The old logo of the Ducks prior to the name change featured an old-style goaltender mask, shaped to form the appearance of a duck bill. Behind the mask are two intersecting hockey sticks, a black circle and a triangle (the color of the triangle is either green or gray, depending on how the logo is used).
Jerseys
The Ducks have officially worn two unique regular jerseys and three unique third jerseys in their franchise history:
Original Mighty Ducks Jerseys
Mighty Ducks of Anaheim jerseys: 1993–2006. The jerseys shown above feature shoulder patches which were used from 1996–2006.
The original jerseys of the Ducks (then the Mighty Ducks) used jade green, aubergine (eggplant), white and grey as primary colors for both the home and away jerseys. The team's dark jerseys were dominantly eggplant in color with diagonal gray and white stripes; the jersey is jade green below the stripes, which appear on the arms and waist, and the collar is jade and white. The white jerseys were similar, except that the eggplant is replaced mainly with white and the collar is completely eggplant in color. In 1996, shoulders patches were added to both jerseys featuring a forward-facing version of the main logo's "duck mask," surrounded by a circle reading "Mighty Ducks of Anaheim."
Ducks jerseys after 2006
Anaheim Ducks jerseys: 2006–2007.
About a year after the team was purchased from the Walt Disney Company by the Samuelis, Brian Burke initiated a name change dropping the "Mighty", after consultation with the fans showed that the typical fan had a willingness to update the "Mighty Ducks" name and jersey and also a desire to keep part of the traditions of the franchise. Burke sought inspiration for the jersey from the United States Military Academy,[citation needed] ending up with diagonal gold, white, black and orange stripes down the arms and waist with the word "Ducks" on the front. The jersey is similar to the team's most recent third jersey prior to the name change. The orange pays tribute to Orange County,[14] where Anaheim is located.
The Ducks are not the first team from Southern California to win a title in the same year as a major uniform change. The Anaheim Angels won the 2002 World Series the same year that they changed to their current red-and-white uniforms. A year later the Angels were sold by the Disney Corporation to Arte Moreno in 2003.
2007–08 jerseys
For the 2007–08 NHL season, the Ducks, like all NHL teams, changed over to new Rbk Edge jerseys. The new team jersey shows only minor modifications from 2006–07, including a small NHL crest just below the neck, and a smaller ducks logo on the chest. After the first year of the Edge uniform system being in place, the Ducks increased the size of their logo.
Third jerseys
The third jerseys of the Ducks were created in 1995, 1997, 2003 and 2010. The 1995 jersey was jade green with eggplant and white stripes on the collar and on the end of the sleeves. The logo was of team mascot Wildwing wearing a Mighty Ducks jersey while breaking through a sheet of ice. The jersey was short-lived; as severe criticism encouraged management to retire the jersey at the end of the 1995 season.
Ducks alternate logo (2010–present). This is currently used as a patch on the Ducks' third jersey and features the original Mighty Ducks logo.
The 1997 third jersey came with a rare fourth jersey partner. The third was a jade green-colored jersey with silver and eggplant stripes at the shoulders outlined in thin yellow, and a silver stripe at the bottom. It had the Mighty Ducks logo in the center of the chest. The fourth jersey was much like it. It was white with jade green, eggplant, and silver stripes at the shoulders of the jersey, but no bottom stripe. These jerseys saw action until the end of 1999–2000, when they stopped playing with their third jerseys, and used only the fourth. At the end of 2000–01, the fourth was also retired.
The 2003 third jersey was black with purple and gray stripes at the waist and on the sleeves. It had the alternate script logo of the present Mighty Ducks and old-style laces at the neck, as well as a shoulder patch displaying an interlocking "MD" (for "Mighty Ducks"). The popularity of this jersey amongst fans was so great it replaced the eggplant and jade jersey, serving as the home jersey for the last half of the 2005–06 season and playoffs. It was dropped following the season as the team went to a modified name, new uniforms, and color scheme; however, this popular jersey influenced the design of the new jerseys for 2006–07. It was the only time in the modern NHL days when a mainly black jersey was not worn with black pants; instead, the pants were purple.
The current third jersey was officially unveiled on November 26, 2010 against the Chicago Blackhawks, the day after Thanksgiving. The jersey features the webbed 'D' on the chest with the classic Mighty Ducks logo on each shoulder. It features striping similar to the regular uniforms, and orange is much more prominent as a secondary color.[15]
Mascot
The official mascot for the Anaheim Ducks is an anthropomorphized duck by the name of Wild Wing. He has been the team's mascot since its inaugural season, and his name was chosen through fan voting. He wears a Ducks jersey with the number 93 on the back, referring to the year the Ducks became an NHL team.
He regularly descends from the rafters of the arena when making his in-game entrances.[16] In one such descent the rigging that lowered Wild Wing from the rafters malfunctioned leaving the mascot trapped fifty feet above the ice for several minutes. Another well known blunder occurred in October 1995 when Wild Wing, attempting to jump through a "wall of fire", accidentally tripped causing the mascot to land on the fire and set his costume ablaze.[17]
His physical appearance is similar to the duck mask in the original Mighty Ducks logo. A bronze statue of Wild Wing is also located outside the team's arena (located at the West side of the South Doors), Honda Center.[18]
The mascot's name was also used for the leader of the Ducks, Wildwing Flashblade, in Disney's Mighty Ducks cartoon series.
During the same time in which the team announced a name change as well as change in jersey designs, there was an attempt by the team's owners to change or replace the mascot, Wild Wing, but was halted after a highly successful petition by fans.
The Mighty Ducks also used a secondary "mascot," a person (with no particular costume) called "The Iceman," during the team's first game in 1993. "The Iceman" appeared occasionally in the stands, played an electric guitar, and attempted to liven up the crowd. However, "The Iceman" was poorly received by fans and was quickly eliminated.
NHL awards and trophies
Stanley Cup
• 2006–07
Clarence S. Campbell Bowl
• 2002–03, 2006–07
Conn Smythe Trophy
• Jean-Sebastien Giguere: 2002–03
• Scott Niedermayer: 2006–07
Hart Memorial Trophy
• Corey Perry: 2010–11
Lady Byng Memorial Trophy
• Paul Kariya: 1995–96, 1996–97
Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy
• Teemu Selanne: 2005–06
Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophy
• Teemu Selane: 1998–99
• Corey Perry: 2010–11
First All-Star Team
• Teemu Selanne: 1996–97
• Scott Niedermayer: 2005–06, 2006–07
• Paul Kariya: 1995–96, 1996–97, 1998–99
• Corey Perry: 2010–11
Second All-Star Team
• Teemu Selanne: 1997–98, 1998–99
• Paul Kariya: 1999–2000, 2002–03
• Chris Pronger: 2006–07
• Lubomir Visnovsky: 2010–11
NHL All-Rookie Team
• Paul Kariya: 1994–95
• Bobby Ryan: 2008–09
Hall of Famers
• Jari Kurri, RW, 1996–97, inducted 2001
• Adam Oates, C, 2002–03, inducted 2012
Franchise individual records
• Most goals in a season: Teemu Selanne, 52 (1997–98)
• Most assists in a season: Ryan Getzlaf, 66 (2008–09)
• Most points in a season: TeemuSelanne, 109 (1996–97)
• Most penalty minutes in a season: Todd Ewen, 285 (1995–96)
• Most goals in a season, defenceman: Lubomir Visnovsky, 18 (2010–11)
• Most assists in a season, defenceman: Scott Niedermayer, 54 (2006–07)
• Most points in a season, defenceman: Scott Niedermayer, 69 (2006–07)
• Most goals in a season, rookie: Bobby Ryan, 31 (2008–09)
• Most points in a season, rookie: Bobby Ryan, 57 (2008–09)
• Most wins in a season: Jean-Sebastien Giguere, 36 (2006–07)
• Most shutouts in a season: Jean-SebastienGiguere, 8 (2002–03)
