Entering the NHL Western Conference Finals, the Anaheim Mighty Ducks were on a roll.
Befitting their name, the team had taken flight. They were soaring.
After having outlasted the highly-regarded Calgary Flames in a fierce seven-game series, the Ducks overwhelmed the Colorado Avalanche in an impressive four-game sweep.
It was all coming together for Anaheim. They were in a zone. The song "Ain't No Stopping Us Now" seemed to be their theme.
The Ducks were riding the wave of a considerable momentum. It seemed as if they were destined to continue their run through the playoffs and reach the Stanley Cup Finals for the second time in the last three NHL seasons.
You just couldn't ignore the positive vibe surrounding the team.
Coach Randy Carlyle's club had won their last six playoff games.
Their youthful Russian goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov had turned into a stone wall and was playing with aplomb and poise.
Dynamic forwards Teemu Selanne, Andy McDonald and Joffrey Lupul were producing plenty of points with what seemed like incredible ease.
Their amazing defenseman Scott Niedermayer was logging major minutes and making them count. The Ducks' captain was starring at both ends of the ice.
Making matters even more encouraging was the scrappy and determined play of a bunch of young pup forwards. Center Ryan Getzlaf and wingers Corey Perry, Dustin Penner and Chris Kunitz were simply tearing it up. Not only were they scoring and hitting but they brought with them an energy that was perceptible.
Add to all this, the solid production of veteran center Todd Marchant and the notable efforts of blueline standout Francois Beauchemin and the Ducks looked very much like a runaway train.
Who could stop them?
Enter the Edmonton Oilers, the Ducks' opponent in the next round. Yes, they had performed well in dispatching both Detroit and San Jose but they didn't exactly frighten anybody. They hardly seemed a juggernaut.
Moreover, Edmonton began the playoffs as the eighth and last seed in the West. No team in league history had ever advanced to the Cup Finals from a position that low.
The Ducks also owned home ice advantage and their recent play at the Arrowhead Pond suggested that would be a huge plus.
So on the surface, Anaheim seemed poised to keep chuggin' along.
But those who follow the game will tell you that come playoff time, whoever has the hot goalie and gets the bounces will surely emerge victorious.
Simply put, the Oilers got both and the Ducks got neither!
The Ducks needed to get off to a quick start in the series for a very tangible reason. It had to do with their mind-set.
Anaheim had come up empty in four regular season meetings with Edmonton. Despite being favored in the series, the Ducks had yet to prove they could master the Oilers on the ice.
So an early win would have rid the Ducks of any thought that the Oilers might have their number. Anaheim needed to show there was no carryover effect from the regular season to the playoffs.
But game one set the tenor for the entire series and to the surprise of many, Edmonton demonstrated they were still in control.
Right from the outset, the Oilers set up a defensive roadblock at center ice and in their own zone that the Ducks never really solved.
It also didn't help matters that Anaheim started sluggishly. Having not played for eight days, the Ducks appeared lethargic and rusty. They went a startling eight minutes plus before they got their first shot on goal.
By that time, the Oilers had established their imprint on the game and they would go onto a 3-1 victory.
Edmonton's win featured superb goaltending from 36-year old Dwayne Roloson and stout work from his defense. Backliners Chris Pronger, Steve Staios, Jason Smith and Jaroslav Spacek blocked nearly as many shots as did Roloson. At times, it seemed as if the Oilers had multiple goalies on the ice.
With so many of their shots getting deflected, the Ducks couldn't generate any type of sustained attack. Edmonton had disrupted their flow and rhythm.
As a result, Anaheim's offense was out of kilter. They seemed a step slow and a split-second off. And there were very few rebounds for the Ducks to try to feast on.
The Oilers had spun a defensive web that entangled and entrapped the Ducks and try as they might, the home team couldn't shake free.
Yes, there was no denying the impact of that opening game because it set a trend into motion. A pattern had been established. One that was to be played out time and again.
Games two and five followed a similar scenario. The Oilers jumped out to a one goal lead after two periods and then went into major lockdown mode.
With Roloson leading the way and with able assistance from his trusty defense, the Ducks simply couldn't make anything happen at the end.
Shockingly, in the three games played at the Pond, the Ducks never scored in the final stanza. They got blanked big-time. Nothing but goose eggs in period three.
And that was their demise. They couldn't overcome such a lack of production when games hung in the balance.
As a result of their inability to tally late, Anaheim got skunked in the three games they played at home. Not even one win for the local fans to celebrate. Who'd have thunk it?
But just one glance at the stat sheet revealed why the Ducks fared so poorly at the Pond. Between them, offensive heavyweights Selanne, McDonald and Lupul scored but a scant two points. The big guns had run out of ammo. And without them, the Ducks came crashing down to earth as if they'd been shot from the sky.
On the eve of the Conference Finals, Anaheim's prospects looked so bright. Against Calgary, they played rugged and clutch. Versus the Avs, they seemed darn near unbeatable.
But in just eight days, Edmonton had reduced their dreams to rubble. It took only five games for the Oilers to pierce the Ducks' mystique. Anaheim's mojo was gone in a flash.
And so yes, there's a team from the Western Conference that's on a roll. A club that looks like quite formidable and perfectly capable of taking possession of Lord Stanley's Cup. You might even say they appear to be unstoppable.
But it isn't who you think. It's an unlikely eighth seed that's on the verge of hockey glory.
As for the Ducks, they didn't quite make it. They slipped on a slick of Oil(ers).