Hagelin's Preseason Debut to Wait as Ducks Face Kings Tonight at Staples Center
Although tonight’s game will feature a fairly heavy NHL-caliber lineup on Anaheim’s end, Ducks head coach Bruce Boudreau confirmed it will not feature speedy left wing Carl Hagelin.
Boudreau says nothing is wrong, health-wise, with the 27-year-old Swede. “We know what Carl can do,” he said. “Two games will be more than enough for a guy of his speed and everything else. There are other guys with decisions to be made, guys we’d like to see. We’ve talked to Carl about it, and he’s totally on board.”
One of those players could be 19-year-old Nick Ritchie, who made it through a big round of cuts (23, to be exact) yesterday morning. “I’m going to get even better as we go here,” he said yesterday. “I’ve played three preseason games and I thought I was pretty solid in all of them. Obviously not perfect, but I made some plays. I’m a big body, and I can play physical. I think I showed that in these games, and I’m going to keep it going.”
Another player who might play tonight is Max Friberg, who cleared waivers earlier this morning. Boudreau heralded the 22-year-old’s tenacity and scoring touch throughout training camp, and recently told the media Friberg is “doing something special every practice.”
As for tonight’s goaltenders, veteran Anton Khudobin is expected to make his second consecutive start. Khudobin is coming off a 23-save performance in Anaheim’s 2-1 victory at San Jose on Saturday.
With the preseason rapidly coming to an end, Boudreau says he’s been pleased with the way his team has been responding to systems work through on-ice instruction and off-ice videos.
(NHL.com)
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