A Matter to Attend To

A lack of sellouts at the Arrowhead Pond--only three in 17 games--has concerned Pierre Gauthier, Duck president and general manager. But he’s not ready to trim ticket prices or offer Beanie Babies giveaways to the first 10,000 children to boost attendance.

“We have some promotions planned, but there are no tricks,” Gauthier said. “The best promotion is to win hockey games.”

If that’s so, then Duck fans have been slow to respond this season. Average attendance at the 17,174-seat Pond is 15,587. Last season, it was 17,068.

“I think the fans can now see what we’re trying to do,” Gauthier said. “We’ve had a good home record [9-4-4]. The fans have been very supportive. As the team gets better, the crowds will get better. Our fans are still there, but they might not show up every night.

“It’s kind of different because we almost always sold out in the past. That’s a change.”

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Defenseman Jason Marshall was sidelined for the second consecutive game because of a partially torn left hamstring, suffered when he was checked into the boards in Friday’s 2-2 tie against the New York Islanders. He’s not expected to return to the lineup until next week at the earliest.

Coach Craig Hartsburg used the same lineup as in Monday’s 4-2 loss to Colorado. It meant former Colorado center Josef Marha did not play against his ex-teammates for the second straight night.

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The teams, which played Monday at the Arrowhead Pond, arrived in Denver at about 4 a.m. Tuesday morning. Each team called off its morning skate at McNichols Arena in order to get some sleep. The Ducks and Avalanche play again on consecutive nights Jan. 27 at Anaheim and Jan. 28 at Denver, wrapping up the four-game season series.