Ducks Can Really Follow Regulations

Mike Leclerc leaned on one leg, his bad one, and let loose a shot that moments later had him buried by the mob.

Leclerc got only a glimpse of the puck in the net, which gave the Ducks a 3-2 victory over Dallas 1 minute 44 seconds into overtime Saturday at the American Airlines Center. Dog pile on Leclerc came at full speed and it was nearly a minute before he was able to get from beneath the mass of teammates.

“Who cares?” Leclerc said with a weary smile. “I could have laid on the ice a long time.”

That opportunity to lie down and play dead was presented to the Ducks earlier. They trailed, 2-1, with time running out in regulation. They already had one victory in the series, earned over 140 minutes in five overtimes Thursday.

Taking that and going home with a split in their Western Conference semifinal series would have been all the Ducks needed.

But the thrill-seeking Ducks, who swept Detroit in the first round and have won four of their six playoff games in overtime, craved more. Rob Niedermayer scored to tie it with 1:09 left in regulation, then Leclerc won his one-legged race to the puck and the Ducks had a 2-0 series lead.

“We’ve been doing this most of the season,” said Leclerc, who will have a second surgery on his left knee after the season. “It seemed like the whole second half we were behind and we found ways to win.”

They found that well-traveled route again. Petr Sykora did the grunt work, getting the puck away from two Star players, and Niedermayer collected a rebound and banged a shot off the skate of Dallas’ Stu Barnes to force overtime.

Unlike Thursday, the Ducks didn’t let the game drag on. Adam Oates knocked the puck away from Dallas’ Brenden Morrow deep in the Stars’ zone. Leclerc charged in and one-timed a shot.

“That’s us,” Coach Mike Babcock said. “We hang around, we hang around and we hang around. Then we find a way.”

Leclerc could be the poster boy for finding a way this season.

He has skated virtually on one leg since having arthroscopic surgery on his knee in November. Leclerc missed 11 games, returned, then missed 10 more in January and spent the rest of the season playing in pain.

“He has had a tough season,” defenseman Keith Carney said. “It’s been a continuous battle for him.”

Leclerc won the battle Saturday, becoming the fourth Duck to score an overtime goal in the playoffs this season.

“I saw that the puck was going to the middle of the ice, so I started to skate there,” said Leclerc, who assisted on Sykora’s game-winning goal Thursday. “I looked down to reach for it and just tried to put it on net. It was a great feeling. Then everyone tackled me.”

Now the Stars must find a way to pick themselves up off the ice.

Dallas seemed the fresher team coming off Thursday’s marathon. The Stars gave the Ducks three power plays -- one of which Oates converted for 1-0 lead midway through the first period -- but were in control of the game after Morrow tapped in a rebound for a power-play goal with 1.2 seconds left in the first period.

The Stars did everything they needed to do -- get traffic in front of the net, bang and skate, apply relentless pressure -- and were left with nothing but sound bites.

“We have to burst that bubble they are under right now,” Coach Dave Tippett said. “Everything seems to be going their way.”

The Ducks played again like the annoying younger brother who just won’t go home.

Mike Modano beat Duck goalie Jean-Sebastien Giguere with a shot from the top of the left circle 8:39 into the second period. In the Stars’ world, order had been restored.

The Ducks had a different view.

Giguere stopped 29 of 31 shots, 14 in the third period. The Ducks, who hibernated until the final seven minutes, made a last push to get the tying goal.

“We had life,” Carney said. “We gave ourselves an opportunity and hoped it wasn’t going to take 140 minutes to take it.”

Leclerc stopped the clock with his first playoff goal.

“It’s been frustrating trying to play this season,” Leclerc said. “I just had to find ways to get the job done.”

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(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX)

Ducks vs. Dallas

*--* Western Conference semifinals Ducks lead series, 2-0 Game 1: Ducks 4, at Dallas 3, 5 OT Game 2: Ducks 3, at Dallas 2, OT Game 3: Mon. at Pond, 7 p.m., ESPN* Game 4: Wed. at Pond, 7 p.m., ESPN* Game 5: Saturday at Dallas, Noon, Ch. 7 Game 6: May 5 at Pond, 7:30 p.m., ESPN Game 7: May 7 at Dallas, 4:30 p.m., ESPN Games 5, 6, 7 if necessary; *also being televised locally on FSN; Game 6 also being shown on FSN2

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*--* ALSO * Helene Elliott on the NHL ... D14

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