Stars Finally Solve Ducks’ Mystique : NHL: After three losses, Dallas wins, 3-2, on Evason’s overtime goal.

It took 243 minutes and 20 seconds, but the Dallas Stars finally beat the Mighty Ducks.

They were 0-3 against the Ducks before Wednesday, and it took overtime before they pulled out a 3-2 victory on Dean Evason’s short-handed slap shot from the blue line at 3:20 of the five-minute extra period. The game was played in front of 17,174, the Ducks’ third Anaheim Arena sellout of the season.

Evason’s slap shot was the kind of what-the-heck shot a player might try before heading to the bench for a line change, but this one went in, finding its way between goaltender Ron Tugnutt’s pads.

“It was a shot from the blue line. It was going to be a nice easy shot,” Tugnutt said. “It was going to be a routine save but a couple of things happened to change that. First of all, it was tipped by my defenseman and it dropped about a foot and a half. Originally it was going up toward my midsection, then it dropped four feet in front of me. The puck bounced and kicked straight left and right through my five-hole. What can you do? The puck’s not round and it doesn’t really bounce true.”

Alexei Kasatonov, the defenseman on Evason near the blue line, said he didn’t think his stick touched the puck, or, if it did, only lightly. But Evason said his shot changed direction by at least a foot.

It was a great way to win, and a bad way to lose.

“I think the goalie should have that play,” Coach Ron Wilson said. “It took a weird bounce, but still.”

The Ducks had led, 2-0, after the first period, but Dallas pulled even on Brent Gilchrist’s power-play goal at 13:44 of the third.

It looked as if Dallas might manage not to lose a fourth time, but only by tying.

The Ducks got a rare overtime power-play opportunity when Grant Ledyard was called for cross-checking Jarrod Skalde at 1:41, but it was Dallas that managed to score.

“We were in position to win the game. It’s too bad what happened in overtime,” Wilson said.

A victory or tie would have assured that the Ducks would enter Sunday’s game against the Kings ahead of L.A. in the Pacific Division standings. As it is, they are two points ahead. The Kings play Dallas tonight before meeting the Ducks in a sold-out game at Anaheim Arena Sunday.

That game will mark the second meeting between Southern California’s two NHL teams. They entered the first game on Dec. 2 tied in the standings, and the Kings won, 3-2.

The Ducks led, 2-0, after the first period on goals by Skalde and defenseman Mark Ferner.

Skalde’s goal at 2:19 of the first was his fourth in seven games since joining the team from minor league affiliate San Diego after leading scorer Anatoli Semenov separated his left elbow on Dec. 7.

Ferner glided into the slot and scored off a pass from Shaun Van Allen on the side of the net at 18:11.

Dallas cut the lead to one goal only 38 seconds into the second period when Mark Tinordi skated into the open in the slot and scored off a pass from Ulf Dahlen from the side of the net.

“We had a lead, but I didn’t like the way we got the lead,” Wilson said. “We were sluggish, very tired tonight. It’s very understandable. This was our seventh game in 11 nights and five of those were on the road. But our guys battled against a team that was waiting here two days for us. We got a lead and we gave it away.”

Duck notes

Captain Troy Loney played for the first time since undergoing arthroscopic surgery on his right knee Nov. 17. The injury had limited him to 14 games.

Left wing Garry Valk played after missing the last four games because of the aftereffects of a concussion. Defenseman Sean Hill (bruised ribs) and center Patrik Carnback (groin) were scratched. Right wing Todd Ewen suffered a bruise on his right foot and is day-to-day.

Center Anatoli Semenov was a near-lock to be the Ducks’ first All-Star before his elbow injury Dec. 7. Now the contenders to represent the team at the Jan. 22 game at Madison Square Garden include goaltenders Guy Hebert and Ron Tugnutt, forwards Terry Yake and Valk, and defensemen Bill Houlder and Bobby Dollas. The player chosen could be determined by what positions Western Conference Coach Barry Melrose needs to fill out his roster.