Ducks Are Wing-Dinged

No kidding. The Mighty Ducks actually had the Detroit Red Wings on the run and in trouble for 20 minutes Sunday afternoon at the Arrowhead Pond. The Ducks outhit the Red Wings, outskated them and--get this--outscored them.

Then the second period started and it all went wrong for the Ducks. The Red Wings scored twice on the power play in a span of 2:33 en route to a 4-2 victory that gave them a three-games-to-none lead in the best-of-seven, first-round playoff series.

Game 4 is Tuesday night at the Pond. It figures to be nothing more than another tuneup for the Red Wings on their way to the inevitable confrontation with the Colorado Avalanche in the second round.

The Ducks certainly had a shot at prolonging this series Sunday, but it slipped away with a controversial call by the video goal judge and a foolish play by one of their veterans.

The Ducks led the Red Wings, 2-1, converting on power-play goals by Marty McInnis and Jason Marshall in the first period. The Ducks also outshot the Red Wings, 13-4. And captain Paul Kariya slammed Detroit defenseman Chris Chelios face-first into the glass to the cheers of the sellout crowd of 17,174.

It was the best hockey the Ducks had played since whomping the Phoenix Coyotes, 3-0, at the Pond two weeks ago. Suddenly, it didn’t look as if the Ducks would go meekly.

Then came the unraveling.

Marshall went to the penalty box for holding Detroit’s Brendan Shanahan 52 seconds into the second period. Tomas Holmstrom then battled a loose puck out of midair and into the Duck net at 1:51.

Enforcer Stu Grimson charged into the middle of a scrum along the boards to level Detroit’s Kris Draper and received a five-minute major for a deliberate attempt to injure an opponent at 3:04.

Steve Yzerman then scored the go-ahead goal for the Red Wings at 4:24.

“It was overly aggressive and it was inappropriate,” Grimson said of cross-checking Draper from behind in front of the Detroit bench.

Draper lay motionless on the ice for several moments but later played a regular shift, which prompted Grimson to say, “If I wanted him to be hurt, he’d be injured right now.”

Said Draper: “The best thing about it was we scored the winning goal off it.”

Yzerman deflated the Ducks with his fifth goal of the playoffs. Vyacheslav Kozlov’s first of the playoffs 1:54 into the third period gave the Red Wings an insurance goal.

“We had a chance to win the hockey game and we took it away from ourselves,” Duck Coach Craig Hartsburg said. “Detroit showed why they’ve won two Stanley Cups. They didn’t crack. They waited for us to crack. That was the turning point of the game.”

Unlike their 5-1 loss in Game 2 Friday or their 5-3 defeat in Game 1 last Wednesday, the Ducks came out swarming the Red Wing net in the first period. But Hebert failed to stop Sergei Fedorov’s long shot 1:43 into the game.

The Ducks rallied to take the lead after McInnis’ quick shot from the slot at 9:33 and Marshall’s blast from the right point at 15:14.

Certainly, a one-goal lead against a team with the talent, depth and experience of the Red Wings didn’t mean the Ducks had Game 3 in the bag. But it was an indication that they had at last regained their high-tempo style of play.

“That first period, that’s the team we want to be,” Hartsburg said.

The Ducks had 35 seconds left on a power play to start the second period, but merely chased the puck around and failed to get a third goal or even a shot on net. Marshall then was whistled for holding Shanahan, setting up Holmstrom’s much-debated goal.

Replays available to reporters in the press box appeared to show Holmstrom, stationed near the left goal post, swatted the puck into the net while it was above the crossbar. In that case, it should not have counted. But video replay judge Tom Wardell let the goal stand.

“We got a bad break on the high stick, but then we cracked and gave them a [power play] and that was the turning point of the game,” Hartsburg said. “[Grimson’s cross-check] was undisciplined. You can’t do it at any time, but you especially can’t do it in the playoffs.”

The Ducks had a chance to tie the score at 3-3 at the 12-minute mark of the second, but Paul Kariya’s slap shot from the right wing struck the left goal post and trickled through the crease behind Detroit goalie Chris Osgood, but did not cross the goal line.

“Kariya’s shot didn’t miss by much, but these things happen in hockey,” Detroit Coach Scotty Bowman said.

STANLEY CUP PLAYOFFS

HELENE ELLIOTT: The Red Wings aren’t about to say it out loud, but the players have to know this series is all wrapped up. Page 8

NOTES: Teemu Selanne insists he’s OK, but the winger doesn’t look himself as he is held without a shot on goal. Page 8

ELSEWHERE

Pittsburgh 4, New Jersey 2

Martin Straka scored three goals as the Penguins took a 2-1 lead in the series over the favored Devils.

Dallas 3, Edmonton 2

The Stars scored all three goals in the third period as the Stars pushed the Oilers to the brink of elimination.

Phoenix 5, St. Louis 4

Blues goaltender Grant Fuhr gave up three goals in the first 8:31 as the Coyotes regained control of the series.

Buffalo 3, Ottawa 0

Brian Holzinger scored twice as the seventh-seeded Sabres took a 3-0 series lead over the Senators.

COVERAGE, Page 9

BY THE NUMBERS

7: Consecutive playoff losses for Ducks to Red Wings

4-10: Ducks’ all-time record in playoffs

3-16-2: Ducks’ all-time record against Red Wings

2: Times team in any of the four major sports (NFL, Baseball, NBA, NHL) has come back from 3-0 deficit to win playoff series (1942, Maple Leafs; 1975 Islanders)

7: First-period goals for Red Wings in series

3: First-period goals for Ducks in series