Anaheim Ducks snap seven-game losing streak 4-1 over Montreal Canadiens but lose Randy Carlyle
Anaheim Ducks won their second matchup of the month of November after losing seven straight for their longest losing streak in the 2011-2012 National Hockey League (NHL) regular season so far against the Montreal Canadiens, 4-1, Wednesday night, November 30, 2011 at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California, United States, but also lost coach, Randy Carlyle, in the process.
It might have been one of their biggest wins so far but it still did not save Carlyle from being let go by the Anaheim organisation after the matchup ended due to their worst record in the past seven years in a season they had hoped to go deep in the playoffs.
"It's a frustrating thing," Ryan Getzlaf said. "It's one of those things where you're working and working and working and not getting the results that you need. This is the first time I'd ever been through something like that. We're going to take tonight and enjoy this one and get back to work."
Andrei Kostitsyn got Montreal ahead 3:10 into the opening period for his sixth of the season while Getzlaf made the equalising shot with less than 20 seconds remaining before the final buzzer of the period sounded.
Devante Smith-Pelly made the tie-breaker nearly midway through the second on their second power play opportunity of the period as Montreal’s Tomas Plekanec was awarded a four minute double minor penalty for high sticking.
Corey Perry took advantage of another power play to extend the lead in the opening minutes of the third period while Niklas Hagman finalised the scoring with less than two minutes remaining to secure the match.
"This was an extremely difficult decision," Ducks vice president and general manager Bob Murray said in a statement after the match. "Randy is a terrific head coach, and did a tremendous job for us for six-plus seasons.
The Anaheim Ducks will be playing their first game with former Washington Capitals head coach, Bruce Boudreau, on Friday against the Philadelphia Flyers at home while The Canadiens have another road game against the San Jose Sharks on Thursday.
It will certainly be interesting to see how the team will play under new leadership as the season progresses.
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