ANAHEIM — Coach Dallas Eakins had a talk with right wing Sonny Milano not long ago about playing a style the Ducks need from him rather than one that might suit him best. Eakins’ message was simple: Go to the net, get inside the opposing defenders and take your best shots from close range.
“You’re either going to play inside here or you’re going to play outside somewhere else,” Eakins said. “The kid took it to heart. He’s done an excellent job. It’s kind of like when you go on a diet. You’ve got to be all-in for 30 days. So, now we’ve got to get him to 30 games of continuing to play inside.”
Milano’s speed made him a threat on the perimeter, on the rush, as he rose through the ranks of hockey. Listed as standing 6-feet and weighing 194 pounds, Milano wasn’t someone who willingly crashed the net in search of rebounds. He wasn’t the player involved in scrums around the net.
It didn’t mean he couldn’t find seams in the defensive alignment in order to exploit it, however. That’s what Eakins asked him to do this season, to go to the unprotected areas of the ice and see what kind of damage he could do from there. Long-range hockey wasn’t in the cards.
Milano responded with two goals and three assists in seven games going into the Ducks’ game Sunday against the St. Louis Blues at Honda Center. His latest goal, a power-play strike in Friday’s victory over the Arizona Coyotes, was a perfect example of Eakins’ edict.
Milano accepted a cross-crease pass from teammate Adam Henrique and slammed the puck into the back of the net from below the left faceoff circle. No goaltender on the planet could have moved quickly enough from his left to his right to thwart Milano’s close-range shot.
“He likes to get on the outside and make plays from there, but with his speed and his hands, he’s got to get on the inside,” Eakins said. “When you think about a player like that, he doesn’t have to be inside on every shift. Let’s say Sonny is going to play 22 shifts a night. If he could just get inside on eight more shifts, he’s going to get more production. So, that’s a brand new habit and it’s formed and he’s not going back to the old. He’s done extremely well.”
Milano’s speed also has been beneficial in pressuring opposing teams as they attempt to move the puck out of their own zone and down the ice. He’s been a relentless forechecker at times and that’s aided the Ducks as they attempt to disrupt their opponents and keep up the pressure.
“We need speed,” Eakins said. “We’re getting better, but we’re still not a quick team. To have Sonny’s speed, it’s an important element. Getting in on the forecheck, too. If you can rush defensemen, they won’t make clean plays. It doesn’t mean you have to be heavy on the forecheck. For Sonny, he just needs to be there.”
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