Kariya Helps, but Not Enough

Paul Kariya’s mere presence can change the complexion of a game, but he couldn’t add any beauty to the Mighty Ducks’ record Wednesday as he made his season debut after recovering from an abdominal injury.

The Ducks lost for the eighth consecutive game, this one a 6-3 defeat against Vancouver in front of 16,232 at the Pond of Anaheim.

It was the second below-capacity crowd in a row after 40 consecutive sellouts dating to early last season.

The loss extended the franchise record for consecutive losses and tied the record of nine games in a row without a victory. The Ducks are 1-9-2, the only victory coming against Chicago, 2-0, on Oct. 9.

Kariya injected a liveliness that the Ducks have missed, creating plenty of scoring chances and jump-starting the power play. His timing was a bit off, and he might have been a tad slower than usual, but he didn’t shy from contact and his playmaking skill was evident.

“He picked up our emotions,” Coach Ron Wilson said. “Guys were slapping each other on the back. I thought he played very well.

“Obviously he didn’t have his timing. He missed a few opportunities. The one I remember most, he had nearly an open net in the first period, he went to his backhand and it rolled off his stick.”

Kariya helped give the Ducks one last breath in the third when he got out front on a near-breakaway and was held by Pavel Bure, giving the Ducks a power play. Roman Oksiuta scored just after the penalty expired, lifting a rebound into the net with a backhander to make the score 4-3 with 2:19 remaining.

That was as close as the Ducks got, though, because Trevor Linden skated around Jari Kurri to score his second goal of the game with 1:07 left and Russ Courtnall added an empty-netter with 48 seconds remaining.

Progress? Well, it was the first time in six games the Ducks have scored more than one goal.

“I’m a ways away right now,” Kariya said. “My injury is fine. Game shape, I hope to pick up quickly.”

The score was tied, 2-2, before Linden’s power-play goal at 12:38 of the second period. It was the first goal of the season for Linden, the Canucks’ high-scoring captain. Vancouver was on a power play with rookie Duck defenseman Ruslan Salei off for cross-checking, and the Ducks allowed Linden too much time and room to wind up for a shot from the left circle that beat goalie Mikhail Shtalenkov.

Vancouver extended the lead to two goals in the third period when David Roberts beat defenseman Bobby Dollas to the front of the net, scoring off a pass from Alexander Mogilny at 5:15.

The Ducks’ start has been too wretched to blame it all on bad luck, but they got their first real stroke of good luck this season in the second period when Warren Rychel scored a short-handed goal, picking up a caroming puck for a breakaway as he came out of the penalty box at the end of a five-on-three power play for the Canucks.

It was the first short-hander for the Ducks this season after giving up four--including a club-record three in one game.

Rychel, signed mostly for his grit, scored his third goal of the season at 8:25 of the second, coming out of the box as a pass skittered past Vancouver point man Jyrki Lumme and into the open ice. Rychel swept to the far boards to pick it up and skated in on goalie Corey Hirsch, who made the first save only to see Rychel deftly put his own rebound into the net behind him.

Rychel’s goal made the score 2-2, and helped get David Karpa off the hook for a bad penalty. Karpa was whistled for dislodging the net--something of a habit of his--with the Ducks already killing a penalty. They had just survived two close calls--one when a shot hit the post and skittered along the goal line without crossing and the other when Bure fanned at the right corner of the net. The penalty against Karpa gave Vancouver about a minute with a two-man advantage. Remarkably, the Ducks came out of it with a goal scored and none allowed.

* KINGS SETTLE FOR TIE: Larry Robinson points to defensive mistakes after Ottawa rallies from a 2-0 deficit in the final period. C8