The Boston Bruins won’t oppose a better duo than the Ryan Getzlaf-Corey Perry tandem that the Anaheim Ducks will deploy to the Honda Center ice on Monday night.
You could argue that Penguins forwards Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin are a more talented pair, and Boston witnessed their world-class talent firsthand in a 3-2 overtime loss to Pittsburgh last week, but these superstars rarely play on the same line during 5-on-5 play.
Getzlaf and Perry are two constants on the Ducks’ top line at center and right wing, respectively. In fact, Getzlaf has been Perry’s center for 251:57 of the winger’s even-strength ice time this season. Ryan Kesler is the only other Ducks center who’s played more than 20 minutes with Perry at even strength.
Anaheim has relied on Getzlaf and Perry more than normal this season because of all the injuries the team has suffered, specifically on the back end to important defensemen such as Cam Fowler, Francois Beauchemin and Clayton Stoner.
Getzlaf and Perry have combined for 17 goals at even strength, nearly 40 percent of Anaheim’s team total. Their 21 goals in all situations are about 32 percent of the Ducks’ season mark. Anaheim is 9-2-2 when Getzlaf scores a point, 10-1-0 when Perry finds the scoresheet and just 2-4-1 when neither player tallies a goal or an assist.
The key to their success is remarkable chemistry and a tough, physical style that’s hard to play against.
The offensive production speaks for itself. Perry ranked second in 5-on-5 goals with 40 over the last two seasons, while Getzlaf was third in assists with 133. This duo’s combined 164 5-on-5 points during that same span was the highest total of any two teammates. Getzlaf (22 points) and Perry (20 points) rank first and second, respectively, in Ducks scoring this season.
They also have played well against the Bruins since the 2005-06 campaign.
| Vs. BOS since 05-06 | GP | G | A | PTS |
| Getzlaf | 9 | 1 | 6 | 7 |
| Perry | 9 | 3 | 4 | 7 |
Expect the Bruins to match up Patrice Bergeron against this line as much as possible. Bergeron is a two-time Selke Trophy winner and the best defensive forward in hockey. Bergeron must shut down Getzlaf specifically for the Bruins to have a good chance of securing two points Monday night. It’ll be a tough test, but also one that the Bruins center is quite used to. He’s played against many top centers this season and still has excellent puck-possession numbers, including a 60.57 Corsi-for percentage at even strength.
One area where Bergeron can help the Bruins limit the effectiveness of the Getzlaf-Perry duo is in the faceoff dot. Bergeron ranks third in the league with a 58.6 faceoff win percentage among players who’ve taken more than 250 draws.
Getzlaf has struggled in the dot in recent seasons, but he’s improved to a 53.3 percent mark in 2014-15. With that said, the Ducks’ top center is only 12-for-30 on power-play faceoffs, so Bergeron will have the edge when Boston is on the penalty kill.
The Bruins have fared pretty well defensively in the 15 games that No. 1 defenseman Zdeno Chara has missed since Oct. 23. The team’s young defensemen have impressed despite having limited NHL experience and goaltender Tuukka Rask is returning to top form. Boston has allowed two goals or fewer in eight of its last 12 games as a result.
Monday night’s matchup versus Getzlaf and Perry is another great test for the Bruins after a successful November in which the team showed encouraging improvement in several areas.
Thumbnail photo via Charles LeClaire/USA TODAY Sports Images
