Ducks’ Bobby Ryan questionable for Saturday’s game
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Forward Bobby Ryan is optimistic but not sure he will be able to play in the Ducks’ game at San Jose on Saturday after taking a knee-on-knee hit from Flames defenseman Mark Giordano near the end of the Ducks’ 4-2 victory at Calgary on Wednesday, a team spokesman said.
The Ducks had Thursday off and practiced Friday, but Ryan didn’t participate in the full session. Ryan, the left wing on the top line with Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry, is second on the team in goals with 33 and fourth in points with 66. He’s expected to skate Saturday morning to test the knee to see if he’s comfortable enough to play. The Sharks rank second in the West with 99 points, and the Ducks are seventh, with 93 points.
Ryan said after the Calgary game that he thought Giordano’s hit was dirty, but Giordano -- predictably -- disagreed.
“I don’t think it was much. I think it was a trip if anything,” Giordano told the Calgary Herald. “He plays hard, and he hits. I don’t mind it at all, but I didn’t try to hurt the guy or anything, or do anything stupid at the end of the game.”
Giordano acknowledged that with Ryan and Getzlaf about to beat him on a give-and-go, he did stick out his right leg. But he said he didn’t intend to injure Ryan.
“I just tried to get in his way -- just a reaction thing,” Giordano said. “He moved one way, and I tried to shift with him. If that’s dirty, there’s a lot of other things a lot worse than that.”
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-- Helene Elliott