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The Ducks allowed four power-play goals in Thursday's 4-0 series-opening loss to the Stars.

Five Things We Learned Thursday Night

By Scott Burnside

2. Speaking of the Ducks and Stars, Anaheim's Stanley Cup defense got off to a rocky start at home Thursday, when the Ducks gave up four power-play goals en route to a series-opening loss to Dallas. The Ducks, of course, play a hard-edged style, but the Stars showed that discipline might be one of the keys to this series. The Stars, who floundered down the stretch, were 4-for-7 with the man advantage, while the Ducks were 0-for-3. A year ago, en route to their first Stanley Cup championship, the Ducks did not trail in a series until the Western Conference finals, where they were down 1-0 and 2-1 against Detroit.

3. You had to wonder about the schedule makers when the San Jose Sharks and Calgary Flames opened the playoffs with back-to-back games, especially when the Sharks looked jumpy (as in jumping the Shark) in losing Game 1 by a 3-2 count. But the quick turnaround, while potentially devastating to the Sharks' significant Stanley Cup hopes, turned out to be just what the marine biologist ordered as they evened the series with a 2-0 victory Thursday. The score flattered the Flames, who were outshot 43-21. The Flames also gave the Sharks 10 power-play opportunities, while earning just four themselves, a trend that is a recipe for disaster if you're a Calgary fan.

4. Nice to see the Red Wings managed to sell out their playoff home opener after struggling all last spring to sell out home playoff dates. It is Hockeytown, after all. The Joe Louis Arena crowd was treated to a tight-checking affair as the Wings edged Nashville 3-1. The Wings, as will likely be the case throughout the series, enjoyed a wide edge in shots, but Dan Ellis, making his first start in the playoffs, turned aside 37 of 39 shots to keep the Predators close. They'll have to come up with more offense (gee, ya think?) if they want to keep their dreams of an upset alive.

5. What a scene inside the Bell Centre in Montreal, where the hometown Canadiens overwhelmed the Boston Bruins by a 4-1 count. With fans going crazy at the thought of the team's first Cup run since 1993, the Habs didn't disappoint, scoring twice in the first 2:02 as brothers Andrei and Sergei Kostitsyn each scored to bury the Bruins early. The Bruins, in the playoffs for the first time since the lockout, were outshot 32-18 and looked like the proverbial deer in the headlights even though they did score midway through the first period to make it 2-1. Marc Savard was back (he was out with a broken bone in his back thanks to a crosscheck from Montreal's Steve Begin down the stretch), but he couldn't help generate much offense, playing 14:56 and taking one shot on net. The Habs were without captain Saku Koivu (foot). It didn't seem to matter.

Scott Burnside is the NHL writer for ESPN.com.