Ritchie’s Two-Goal Effort Powers Ducks to 5-3 Victory Over Sharks in Rookie Showcase Finale

By Kyle Shohara AnaheimDucks.com

After coming up short in a 3-2 loss yesterday against the Colorado Avalanche, the Ducks prospects admitted they could perform better, and today they backed up those words in the form of a 5-3 victory over the San Jose Sharks in the Rookie Showcase finale.

Led by Nick Ritchie’s game-high two goals, the Ducks also got tallies from Kevin Roy, Max Jones and Keaton Thompson, while Kevin Boyle and Antoine Samuel combined to stop 34 of 37 shots at the Ice Centre at the Promenade.

“We were better-organized [today],” said Dallas Eakins, who served as head coach of the Ducks prospects. “Yesterday’s game, especially in the first period, there was a lot of nervousness even though we practiced a couple times. Today, we looked like a team rather than a bunch of players that were thrown together.”

Eakins says nerves might’ve gotten the best of some of his players yesterday because of what’s at stake for many of them.

“There’s a lot going on,” Eakins said, on the importance of rookie camp. “For some guys, it’s their first shot at an NHL training camp. There are other guys that want to show well because they may have a chance to make the big club. There are other guys that are looking to re-claim their careers. With that comes a little bit of nerves early.”

With new-look line combinations, the Ducks came out with gusto, jumping on the Sharks with goals from Roy and Jones in a spirited opening 20 minutes that also included two fights at the tail end of the period.

“On a personal level, it was a little bit of a step from yesterday,” said Ritchie. “I’m not game-ready yet, but I’m getting there. It won’t be long before I feel really good.”

For the second consecutive game, Ducks junior invite defenseman Darian Skeoch (6-4, 205), dropped the gloves, this time against Sharks forward Jake Marchment (6-4, 220) with 17 seconds remaining in the …

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