Wisniewski 'never thought in a million years' he'd be scratched in playoffs

James Wisniewski didn't see this coming when he moved to California.

The veteran defenseman was viewed as a key trade deadline acquisition by the Anaheim Ducks, brought in from the Columbus Blue Jackets with a view to bolstering the blue line for a long playoff run.

But while his team has come through with 10 wins in 12 postseason games, Wisniewski has found himself taking on the role of a spectator, scratched by head coach Bruce Boudreau as the Ducks' apparent seventh defenseman.

"Incredibly tough, never thought in a million years I'd be doing this, but it is what it is," Wisniewski said Saturday of the situation. "Just accept it, be professional, come to work every day and work hard."

The 31-year-old averaged over 20 minutes of ice time through 13 regular season games with the Ducks, recording five assists and 20 shots on goal. Boudreau, however, decided to roll instead with the likes of Simon Despres (another deadline acquisition) and Clayton Stoner in the playoffs.

With the Ducks two wins away from the Stanley Cup Final, there's no reason to shake things up, leaving Wisniewski to work out his feelings on the matter in a positive way.

"It's hard to argue when we're 10-2 in the playoffs," he admitted. "There was confusion at first, then anger, but you need to be professional, because I never know when I'm going to get tapped. Injury could happen. They could ask me to fill a duty. The only way to do that is to stay at 100 percent, be ready to go when called on."

Boudreau credited the defenseman with being professional about the scenario, and due to the nature of playoff action, it's possible that Wisniewski will get his shot at some point due to injury.

Until then, he's going to try to keep it all in perspective.

"Dwelling on the situation, being negative, doesn't help," he concluded. "There's too much to live for rather than moaning about something. With age, you realize the important things in life."