Campbell’s Game-Winner Gets His Point Across

Some mistakes are content to exist quietly. Others shout.

Jim Campbell, the unwanted Duck who has become one of the leading rookies in the NHL for the St. Louis Blues, made his point politely but emphatically Sunday when he scored what proved to be the winning goal in St. Louis’ 4-2 victory over the Mighty Ducks in front of 14,853.

“That was perfect,” the baby-faced Campbell said in a Kiel Center hallway as television cameramen lined up for interviews.

The goal was Campbell’s ninth of the season, which makes him the leading scorer on the Blues.

It also gives him more goals than anyone on the Anaheim roster except Teemu Selanne, to the dismay of the Ducks, who chose not to re-sign him after he scored two goals in 16 games last season after being acquired in a trade from Montreal.

St. Louis signed Campbell, 23, for $440,000 with a guaranteed minor-league minimum of $105,000, but had him pegged to be a hometown hero for their minor league team in Worcester, Mass.

“[The Ducks] didn’t re-sign him, didn’t want him,” said Geoff Courtnall, one of Campbell’s linemates. “We teased him before the game. He’s one of those guys who just slipped through the cracks with a couple of organizations. He’s really been excellent for us since the first day of training camp.”

St. Louis was ahead, 2-1, in the final 10 minutes when a persistent Campbell chased down his own long rebound and fired it toward the Ducks’ goal, beating Mikhail Shtalenkov with a shot to the top corner of the net.

It was a bit of redemption, because an earlier St. Louis goal was disallowed after Campbell was called for cross-checking Bobby Dollas in front of the net.

The Blues went up by three goals after Courtnall stole the puck from rookie defenseman Darren Van Impe to score an unassisted goal. Van Impe also was responsible for the first goal of the game, when Craig Conroy outraced him to the net to take a pass from Sergio Momesso.

The Blues’ lead was as large as 4-1, but Anaheim’s Roman Oksiuta scored with 3:23 left, turning Campbell’s goal into the game-winner--his league-leading fifth of the season.

“I knew I could play in the NHL, it was just a matter of someone giving me a chance,” Campbell said. “I was lucky to sign with the Blues. Coach [Mike] Keenan has given me lots of ice time, and it’s worked out great. I never got to play in the NHL with Montreal. Anaheim gave me a pretty good chance last year but didn’t sign me.”

St. Louis goalie Grant Fuhr was bidding for a second shutout in two nights until Steve Rucchin scored the Ducks’ first goal 9:27 into the third. Fuhr won his fifth in a row, and the Blues have won five in a row for the first time since 1993.

The Ducks, at roughly the quarter-season mark, have the worst record after 20 games in franchise history at 4-13-3.

They were without Paul Kariya for the 13th time this season Sunday--the second game in a row because of a recent concussion--and the frustration overflowed.

Selanne, hounded by St. Louis defenseman Chris Pronger all night, was called for a retaliatory cross-check on Pronger in the third after Pronger pulled him down on a near breakaway, with no penalty. Referee Rob Martell argued that Pronger got the puck before Selanne went down, but Selanne disagreed.

“He never got the puck. It should be an automatic penalty. [Pronger] was holding and grabbing and pulling. Enough is enough. I started doing the same things.”

The Blues’ Igor Kravchuk scored on the resulting power play to make the score 2-0.

“Teemu lost his cool, and we didn’t get the job done killing the penalty,” Duck Coach Ron Wilson said. “Our guys really wanted to do it because Teemu is working so hard out there. . . . I think everybody’s frustrated right now, myself included.”

The Ducks actually ended up even because Pronger got called for roughing Selanne a little later, and Rucchin scored on the power play.

In the end, though, Campbell made the difference.

“We’re winning,” he said. “I’m just having a great time.”

It’s a lot more fun than he’d be having if the Ducks had wanted him.