Ducks win in overtime on Bobby Ryan’s penalty shot

The unnatural curve on goaltender Dan Ellis’ mask, with the bar protecting his nose bent back — “It was up against my nose” — was as symbolic as it can get.

Battered, not beaten.

The Ducks found all kinds of ways to twist and bend Thursday night, while giving the Detroit Red Wings far more opportunities than an elite team should be allowed. But the final chance was on Bobby Ryan’s stick and his goal on a penalty shot in overtime gave the Ducks a 2-1 victory at Honda Center.

“It was a hairy game for us,” Ducks Coach Randy Carlyle said.

Not that it’s going to get any easier.

The Ducks slipped into ninth place in the Western Conference, a point behind the eighth-place Kings, when Ryan beat goaltender Jimmy Howard on a penalty shot with 2 minutes 10 seconds left in overtime.

Ryan came in on a breakaway and was hooked by Detroit’s Ruslan Salei. Ryan picked his spot on the penalty shot, and zipped a shot to Howard’s left.

“I knew what I was going to do,” Ryan said. “He’s a different kind of goalie. He gets his arms out and legs back. If I didn’t hit that one spot, it was going to be a save. I closed my eyes and found the right place.”

When he opened them, the Ducks had their second consecutive victory.

“We’ll enjoy this tonight and come back to work tomorrow,” Ryan said.

There was no reason the Ducks should have finished the night in celebration.

Detroit came in with a six-game road winning streak and had mauled the Kings, 7-4, on Monday. The Red Wings picked up where they left off intensity-wise, aggressively attacking the net.

Ellis, making his third consecutive start since being acquired from Tampa Bay, stopped 28 shots, one with his face. Pavel Datysuk’s shot late in the third period ricocheted off — and bent —his mask.

Ellis has stabilized the Ducks’ goaltender situation, at least through his first three games since being acquired from Tampa Bay.

The Ducks gave up 4.7 goals a game in losing five of six, a red-light trend that began when Jonas Hiller was sidelined with vertigo.

“I like this team,” Ellis said. “I liked the way we play defense. You see the puck.”

The Ducks gave the Red Wings every chance to fling pucks Ellis’ way, beating a path to the penalty box as if a team bonus was attached.

The Red Wings, with the NHL’s fifth-best power play, had nine chances. Only one resulted in a goal, when Datsyuk bounced a centering pass from behind the net off Ellis’ leg and into the net five minutes into the second period for a 1-0 lead.

But the Ducks didn’t break after that. They killed off a five-on-three situation late in the period, holding the Red Wings without a shot. They survived a four-on-three at the start of overtime.

“Guys were diving all over the place, sacrificing their bodies,” Ryan said. “That’s how we have to play down the stretch.”

The Ducks tied the score late in the second period. Teemu Selanne cruised into the Detroit zone and dropped a pass for Jason Blake, who buried a shot from just inside the blue line.

chris.foster@latimes.com