Flames Come Back to Tie Ducks : Hockey: Calgary’s Nieuwendyk scores with 20 seconds left in regulation to make the score 2-2.

There is a certain progress being made when an expansion team is disappointed with a tie.

The Mighty Ducks were seconds away from their second victory Sunday, but Joe Nieuwendyk’s shorthanded goal with 20 seconds left in regulation sent the game to overtime, and the Ducks settled for a 2-2 tie with Calgary in front of 16,527 at Anaheim Arena.

“We’re disappointed, but in the next breath, you have to say it’s still a good point,” said goaltender Guy Hebert.

The tie gave the Ducks a 1-2-2 record and their fourth point of the young season. They also have a three-game unbeaten streak, and haven’t lost in regulation since a 7-2 loss to Detroit on opening night in a performance Coach Ron Wilson says was “a disaster.”

But the victory against one of the better teams in their own Pacific Division was within sight, and it got away.

The Ducks had a 2-1 lead and a man advantage in the final minute after Theoren Fleury was sent off for boarding with 58 seconds left. But the Flames were firing away at the Ducks in their own end, and Al MacInnis’ slap shot from the right circle was redirected into the far corner of the net by Nieuwendyk, beating Hebert, who had two Flames defenders in front of him.

“Al MacInnis had the puck to my left side,” Hebert said. “He came in and faked a shot and my (defenseman) went down. I knew there were guys to my left side in front, but a guy like MacInnis, I had to stay with him and challenge him. He made a great centering pass. That’s all there was to it.”

It was Nieuwendyk’s second goal of the night, accounting for all the Calgary scoring and sixth of the season.

The Ducks, who outshot an opponent for the first time, 34-31, had four shots in overtime and numerous chances, perhaps none better than Myles O’Connor’s shot from the slot midway through the five-minute period, but Calgary goalie Mike Vernon gloved it for one of his 32 saves.

Hebert, who made 29 saves, had to fend off a final charge too, including two wrap-around attempts by Nieuwendyk. He got lucky once, when German Titov missed the net after a Duck defenseman fell down in the slot, giving him a beautiful chance that he couldn’t finish.

Hebert was the unfortunate goaltender picked to start the Ducks’ first game. He faced 43 shots that night, and seven got by him. It was an indication of how tough being in net for an expansion team can be.

When Ron Tugnutt got hot and played the next three games, Hebert had to live with a 7.00 goals-against average for more than a week.

Both of the Ducks’ goals Sunday night came in the first period.

Todd Ewen, best known as an enforcer, scored the first goal when he deflected a slap shot from the left circle by defenseman Mark Ferner at 18:18.

The second came with only five seconds remaining in the period and the Ducks on a power play after Fleury was sent off for holding an opponent’s stick. Tim Sweeney skated down the right side and tried to make a pass only to have the puck come back at him off a Flames’ skate. But he tried once more, and got the puck to Patrik Carnback, who beat Mike Vernon with a shot from the slot for a 2-0 lead.

The Ducks and Flames both had a goal disallowed in the first period. It was ruled that the puck never crossed the goal line on a short-handed shot by Duck defenseman O’Connor, and the video goal judge disallowed a goal by Calgary’s Wes Walz after replays clearly showed he kicked the puck into the net.

The Flames narrowed the lead to one goal at 1:07 of the second when Nieuwendyk swept a loose puck from in front of the net past an outstretched Hebert for his fifth goal of the season.

The Ducks’ power play wasn’t at its sharpest much of the game, and they managed one shot during two power plays in the third period. They had golden chances during a five-shot power play midway through the third, but Vernon held them off, just as he did at the end.

“It is a disappointment, especially when we get a break and go on a power play,” Wilson said. “Maybe we should have played it to score a goal like a real power play. . . . It’s baby steps.”

Duck Notes

Right wing Jim Thomson is still recovering from a bruised shoulder but could return within a week, as could defenseman Bobby Dollas (sprained left thumb) and winger Peter Douris, who sprained ligaments in his left knee before the exhibition season. . . . The Duck masks that had hung above both goals and flashed when the Ducks score have been moved to near the scoreboard. They were interfering with the view of the video goal judge. The Ducks averaged 16,301 during their first home stand. They begin a five-game trip against the Rangers in New York on Tuesday.

Count Don Cherry, Hockey Night in Canada commentator, among the fans of the Tinkerbell effect on television broadcasts and the scoreboard video when the Mighty Ducks score. Why? He sees a near-capacity crowd. “I look at the crowds in some rinks, and maybe they should have Tinkerbell,” he said. Lisa Seltzer, producer and director of the Duck broadcasts, is amused by the mini-controversy. “Well, high-sticking is part of hockey,” Seltzer said. “Tinkerbell comes and high-sticks the goal-scorer.”