Carter Ends Rookie Camp with a Bang

Ryan Carter had a strong finish to his rookie camp experience, literally. Carter scored in overtime in the consolation game of the Pacific Division Shootout to help lead the Ducks to a 2-1 victory over San Jose. Carter took a pass from a Ducks teammate and fired a one-timer from a bad angle at the right side of the net and beat the Sharks goalie to give Anaheim the win.

Carter finished the tournament with 3 goals, which made him the leading scorer for the Ducks in the tournament. Carter was a bit of an unknown going into the tournament, but certainly helped make a name for himself with his performance. The Hockey's Future Board Moderator for the Ducks had this to say about Carter:

Carter: the kid got a good scoring touch. I was impressed with his contributions this week. He's going to start the season in Portland but I can definitely see him in our future plans. If there is a gem (ala Penner), Carter is the kid who will impress. What a great find.

Ducks Training Camp will start on Friday in Anaheim.

David Backes' rookie tournament ended on a less pleasant note, with St. Louis losing to Detroit in overtime, to finish in last place in the tournament. Backes did not factor in the scoring, but continued to exercise his leadership role. Backes was noted as one of the last players off the ice at every practice. He also took his entire team out for a round of mini-golf on Sunday.(Hopefully they went to Pirate's Cove, because that course is awesome.)