Ducks must solve power-play issues

ANAHEIM --Forward Jakob Silfverberg believes one of the contributing factors to the Anaheim Ducks' faltering power play is a slippage in confidence.
The Ducks enter Game 2 of the Western Conference Final against the Nashville Predators at Honda Center on Sunday (7:30 p.m. ET; NBCSN, SN, TVA Sports) in an 0-for-21 drought. They have gone more than six full games without a power-play goal and are 5-for-40 (12.5 percent) in 12 games during the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Captain Ryan Getzlaf has three power-play goals; Silfverberg has the other two.

"The biggest thing the last couple of power-play attempts is we're not playing with the same confidence as we did at the end of the year," Silfverberg said. "Maybe there are times where we can hold on to the puck a little bit longer instead of throwing it away. That's probably the biggest difference.
"The penalty killers are working a little bit harder than we are. We've got to make sure we get back to that working mentality on the power play too."
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Nashville won Game 1 of the best-of-7 series 3-2 in overtime Friday. The Ducks are trying to avoid losing the first two games on home ice again, like they did in the second round against the Edmonton Oilers.
"We don't want to go down 2-0 like we did in the last series against Edmonton and force ourselves to go into their building with a 2-0 lead in the series," coach Randy Carlyle said Sunday. "Again, it's all about trying to get better than we were in the last game. We felt we didn't play close enough to the level that we were accustomed to with our group."
In Game 1, the Ducks had four power-play opportunities, including one late in the third period. They had one shot on goal after Predators forward Ryan Johansen went off for slashing with 5:54 remaining.
"Nashville is doing a good job at pressuring us," Silfverberg said. "They're putting a lot of pressure on everywhere the puck is. There are the times where we have more time than we think."

The other key element missing on the Ducks' power play is forward Patrick Eaves, who sustained a lower-body injury in Game 3 against the Oilers. The Ducks haven't scored a power-play goal since Game 2 against Edmonton and are missing the presence of Eaves, who has the ability to get to the tough areas in front of the net.
Eaves is off crutches but is nowhere near ready to return. He said Sunday that his mother sent him a LEGO car set to help him occupy his time. He was smiling when he said it took him seven hours to put it together.
"I'm getting better every day," Eaves said. "It really hasn't been that long. It seems like eternity. Every day is just getting a little better.
"Especially when you want to be doing something and you're sitting here watching. That's why I did the LEGO set yesterday. Just try to occupy my mind. You can only read and watch TV so much."