I’ve been a bit MIA lately, I’m sorry.  I blame this shopping season – although, I absolutely hate shopping, so in reality that is a terrible excuse.

I have to admit, I kind of blame the Ducks.

WHAT?!  How is your absence from the blogging world the Ducks’ fault?

Calm yourselves, I’ll explain.

As it’s nearing Christmas here in Southern California, all I see is white.  No, not snow- how silly of you!  We don’t have snow in Southern California!  I’m not even talking about a clean sheet of ice at Honda Center.

No, the blinding white is coming from my computer screen, more specifically, my blogging template.

It’s blank!

What are you talking about?

Again, I’m glad you asked (even if you didn’t, and even if you don’t care…I’ll continue to explain for the sake of this rather lame “conversation”)!

The Ducks have been playing…fantastic.  At least, better than the first few weeks of the season.

The penalty kill is simply killing it.  The power play is improving.  Goaltending is coming strong from both men. Joffrey Lupul had successful surgery, Teemu Selanne is recovering quicker than expected, and Dan Sexton is a monster.

So what’s the issue?

I have nothing to say about any of it.

But you always have PLENTY to say about ALL of it!

Unfortunately, I’ve fallen into a hole where I’m afraid that any opinion or thought about “changes for the better” will quickly be erased by lazy sloppy play.

Through the many ups and downs this season, this team officially has me wondering what is next.  So many times I’ve hoped and wished that a seven-goal spanking of Vancouver would do the trick.  A 3-0 shutout over Western Conference leading Chicago would provide a spark.  Hitting the floor of the standings would snap life into the team.

There have been blogs of disappointment, blogs of shame, blogs of joy, and blogs of promise.

Now, while the Ducks hold on desperately to anything other than 15th place in the West, I force myself to hold onto the little things that tell me THIS time they’ve turned the corner.  THIS time the season is changing – for the better.

Other than those tiny moments of positivity, I have nothing.

Until Tuesday night.

During the first half of the game in Denver, many local fans were treated to a giant blank screen and it was just as aggravating as my naked blog template.

Listening on the radio as the Ducks gave up the first goal of the night, I’m sure the immediate reaction for many of us (myself included) was to expect the worst.

Colorado has had a magnificent start to their season.  Several rookies in their line up are proving that they’re just as valuable as their draft numbers indicate, and they are backed by an amazing goaltender named Craig Anderson. Anderson is a beast, and he proved that he is capable of being challenged on any given night.  Stopping 39 of the 43 shots that Anaheim sent his way, it seemed as thought it would take the impossible to get past this stellar net minder.

For some reason, that makes the victory all the sweeter.

The Ducks proved that not only is it possible to come from a two-goal deficit in the third period, but with determination and drive, it’s possible to win the game outright as well.

Earlier Tuesday night, the San Jose Sharks took over the first place spot in the West with a 3-2 win over Chicago.  The numbers indicated that Chicago dominated and controlled every aspect of that game.  Out shot by the Blackhawk’s, 47-14, San Jose managed to make those 14 shots count to win the game.

It felt like the Ducks and Avalanche were planning their own one sided game as well, and it wouldn’t end well for Anaheim.

Anaheim out shot, out played, and flat out dominated the Colorado Avalanche in every aspect of the game.  Colorado only managed 17 shots on goal, and Jonas Hiller allowed two of those shots in.  However, the Ducks were so controlling and so overpowering they were able to control the Avalanche’s power play opportunities and even assaulted Anderson on their own power play chances.

But it was persistence and simple line changes that paved the way for the Ducks in their victory.

More importantly, the Ducks needed big time players to step up.  Scott Niedermayer‘s controversial goal (the controversy on whether Bobby Ryan committed goal tender interference) opened the floodgates.

Sexton’s continued ability to find the open spaces and ultimately find the net is a huge bonus when a team is looking for offense.  The same can be said of the timely back hander by Ryan Getzlaf with less than 30 seconds remaining in the game.

Simply, the Ducks didn’t give up.  60 minutes of play – 60 minutes of continued determination.

Even when the Ducks were down with less than 9 minutes to play in the third period, they pressed on.  Even after tying the game, they proved that overtime would not suffice.  Even when victory was near, Todd Marchant still pressured the puck to score an empty net goal.

It’s nice to finally hand someone else a last second defeat, isn’t it?

The Ducks learned a valuable lesson in Colorado.

Persistence, focus, and drive.

It might earn you two points.

In my case, it tore down that blank wall.