Anaheim Ducks Corey Perry is Heating Up; Power Play Awakens

By Steve Palumbo (@StevePalumboNHL)

(Paul Vernon / AP)

The Anaheim Ducks big three came to play during their 5-3 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets on Sunday night. The win gave Anaheim three out of four possible points in the first two games of their season long eight game road trip.

Corey Perry scored three goals for his fifth career hat trick – and second against Columbus this season. Bobby Ryan added a goal and an assist, and Ryan Getzlaf picked up three helpers as the top line erupted for eight points. Jason Blake also scored for the Ducks who are clinging to their playoff lives by the slimmest of margins.

The Ducks ended a two-game losing streak and have managed to earn at least a point in 15 of the last 17 to creep within nine points of the eighth and final playoff position.

Perry had been slumping before picking up the game winning overtime goal against the Carolina Hurricanes in the Ducks last home game and now the hat trick. The 26 year-old forward now has four goals in the last three games with 20 total shots. In his previous three games he had just seven shots total and one assist. This was about the same time last season that Perry caught fire en route to his first 50 goal season in his career.

Anaheim will need a miracle to make the postseason and a hot Corey Perry certainly won’t hurt their cause.

Teemu Selanne, the subject of countless trade rumors, leads Anaheim in scoring and shows little signs of slowing down, picked up an assist. The point tied him with Brett Hull for 21st on the NHL’s career points list with 1,391.

Besides the revival of the Ducks top line of Getzlaf, Perry and Ryan, the power play roared back to life. Anaheim finished three of four with the man advantage after having gone scoreless in their last 13 attempts, including a 0-7 disaster in a 2-1 shootout loss to the Detroit Red Wings on Friday.

Anaheim has six very important games left on the road before heading back to the Honda Center. They face the Minnesota Wild on Tuesday before flying to Pittsburgh to face the Penguins on Wednesday.

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