Break didn’t break Rakell and the team

RICKARD RAKELL scored two goals in the Anaheim Ducks’ 5-2 win over Toronto Friday night at Honda Center (Bridget Samuels photo).

By Pete Zarustica

The long bye week for the Anaheim Ducks didn’t seem to dull their fine edge as they belted the Toronto Maple Leafs 5-2 at Honda Center in Anaheim.

Rickard Rakell scored twice – his 25th and 26th goals of the year – and goalie Jonathan Bernier had 37 saves in his first game against his former team.

“Coming off that break, you never know how we’re going to play and if the timing is going to be there,” Bernier told the AP. “But we had a few good practices and got ourselves ready for tonight and played well.”

Other Duck scores were tallied by Jakob Silfverberg (his 18th), Sami Vetanan (third) and Patrick Eaves (22nd) in the win, which improved the Ducks’ record to 33-21-10. That’s worth 76 points and a tie for second place with the Edmonton Oilers for second place in the NHL Pacific.

Next up for the Ducks will be another game at Honda Center hosting the Vancouver Canucks (26-30-7) on Sunday night.