Mighty Ducks Take Advantage of Poor, Defenseless Oilers, 5-1

Imagine the Mighty Ducks without Teemu Selanne and Paul Kariya on a night when Guy Hebert isn’t sharp.

That’s about what the Edmonton Oilers were like Monday in a 5-1 loss to the Ducks at the Pond in front of an announced sellout of 17,174, though there were plentiful no-shows.

Edmonton’s leading scorers, Doug Weight and Andrei Kovalenko, were out because of minor injuries, removing 107 points from the lineup. Also, goalie Curtis Joseph was off his game.

The Ducks scored three goals on seven shots in the first period, and had five on 13 shots after two.

It was a laugher, and the Mighty Ducks needed to laugh again.

“A game like this was good,” said Selanne, who scored his 34th goal for a 4-0 lead only 5:26 into the second period. “We could relax. We didn’t have to pull the goalie. We could just enjoy hockey.”

Kariya scored his 27th goal, a short-hander off Steve Rucchin’s terrific pass. Rucchin had two assists and his 13th goal, Joe Sacco scored his 10th and rookie defenseman Dan Trebil scored his first in the NHL.

At least as importantly, the Ducks played with defensive composure and killed seven Edmonton power plays--including a five-on-three and a long five-minute opportunity.

It was a far cry from Saturday’s 4-2 loss at Vancouver, when the Ducks were the team that never had a chance.

“We worked harder in the first period today than we did the whole game against Vancouver,” winger Garry Valk said.

“That was another game we just blew away,” Selanne said. “Everybody was really frustrated.”

The injury-struck Ducks had lost five of seven before Monday, and Coach Ron Wilson had grown frank about how dire their playoff prospects might be if they don’t win 75% of their remaining home games and go .500 on the road.

Now they’ve won two of their last three--even if the wins were against Toronto, the NHL’s worst team, and hobbled Edmonton.

“It takes a little pressure off,” Wilson said.

Nine of their next 13 games are at the Pond, where the Ducks are 15-12-2.

“At the end of last year, we had the feeling playing at home that nobody can beat us,” Selanne said. “We had so much confidence.”

Now they’re trying to duplicate it.

They got a lift Monday from Trebil, one of the rookie defensemen under so much scrutiny because of injuries to veterans. Trebil has largely been up to the task, and he scored the Ducks’ first goal only 1:24 into the game. He also had an assist and was a plus-three along with defense partner Bobby Dollas.

“I’ve been more worried about our zone, keeping it out of our net, than scoring,” Trebil said. “I just feel like I’m riding on Dollas’ shoulders out there. When I do something wrong, he covers up for me first, and when we get back to the bench tells me what I did wrong.”

With the Ducks missing toughness because Ken Baumgartner and Warren Rychel are hurt, Edmonton was eager to tangle. The result was a combined 143 penalty minutes and 88 for the Ducks alone, both Anaheim records.

Defenseman Jason Marshall and rookies Peter LeBoutillier and Darren Van Impe were the Ducks’ heavies, though Selanne was no slouch, and he battled defenseman Kevin Lowe time and again, retaliating when Lowe shoved him into the boards and the goal posts.

“No Lady Byng for me,” said Selanne, a finalist for the NHL sportsmanship award won by Kariya last season. “It’s time to start playing more dirty. We’re too nice out there. Some players want to hurt us. We have to show them we can play hard, too. But 5-1 is a great score. They were so frustrated. You just tell them to look at the scoreboard. That’s the best revenge.”