Ailing Marshall Out; Olausson Plays

The Ducks played without one of their top defensemen Wednesday against the Ottawa Senators. But it was Jason Marshall and not Fredrik Olausson who couldn’t skate.

Marshall suffered from flulike symptoms and did not play against the Senators. His status for tonight’s game against the Kings at the Great Western Forum was uncertain.

Olausson, who did not practice for the last two days because of a strained muscle in his side, was in the lineup against the Senators. Olausson, the Ducks’ fifth-leading scorer with 14 goals going into the game, was termed questionable to play by Coach Craig Hartsburg on Tuesday.

Olausson played with his customary defense partner Ruslan Salei. Kevin Haller, who plays most often with Marshall, was paired with Pascal Trepanier. Jamie Pushor and Pavel Trnka formed the third defense pairing.

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Rookie forward Johan Davidsson, recalled Tuesday from Cincinnati of the American Hockey League, was in the lineup Wednesday and enforcer Stu Grimson was a healthy scratch.

“He played very well down there,” Hartsburg said of Davidsson. “It wasn’t like he filled the net with pucks, but he created a lot of scoring chances. I think it was a good experience for him to go down there and play a lot in all sorts of situations.”

Davidsson had one goal and six assists in nine games with Cincinnati. Wednesday, he played on the Ducks’ checking line with Jim McKenzie and Antti Aalto.

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King General Manager Dave Taylor, assistant coach Jay Leach and scout Ace Bailey attended Wednesday’s game, no doubt looking for a way to end the Ducks’ five-game winning streak against their team.

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The Ducks said they will put first-round playoff tickets on sale March 27 at the Arrowhead Pond box office starting at 9 a.m. Tickets also will be available at all TicketMaster locations or by calling (714) 740-2000 or (213) 480-3232. Tickets start at $20 and there is a six-ticket limit.