Success in the Postseason Is the Long-Term Goal

Guy Hebert had a simple message after the Ducks’ 3-1 victory Sunday over the Detroit Red Wings.

“We want to get out of the first round of the playoffs,” the goaltender said. “‘We’ve made some big strides. [But] we don’t want to go through the season winning two games, then losing two.”

There is more work still to be done.

The Ducks stumbled down the stretch last season, then were swept from the Stanley Cup playoffs in four one-sided games by the Red Wings.

“The key for us is not to change,” Coach Craig Hartsburg said. “We’ve got to keep playing the same way. When we lose, we’ve got to play the same way. When we win, we’ve got to play the same way.”

The Ducks’ four-game winning streak is their longest since a franchise-record seven-game streak last season. It has put the Ducks (17-13-4-1) four games over .500 for the first time since April 5.

“It’s that passion and feeling of pride we’re trying to build,” Hartsburg said. “We’re at Step 1 or 2 right now. We’re a team that’s still trying to get better.”

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Sunday’s victory was the Ducks’ 17th in 34 games. Last season, the Ducks didn’t get their 17th win until their 43rd game.

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Defenseman Pavel Trnka was pronounced fit to play in Wednesday’s game against the Phoenix Coyotes, but Hartsburg wasn’t certain Trnka would be in the lineup. Trnka has been sidelined since suffering a groin strain Dec. 8 against the Vancouver Canucks. . . . Defenseman Pascal Trepanier, knocked woozy after a collision in Friday’s victory over the Chicago Blackhawks, probably won’t play again until after the holiday break, Hartsburg said. . . . Left wing Mike Leclerc, who aggravated an elbow injury Friday, also won’t play until after Christmas.