Ducks Get Technical Support

The Mighty Ducks teetered on the brink of disaster heading into the third period Monday afternoon at the half-empty Arrowhead Pond. Their momentum was history and their lead would have been too, if not for a kind judgment by the video goal judge.

Instead of caving in to the feisty San Jose Sharks, the Ducks regrouped at the second intermission, dominated the final period and took a 5-3 victory in front of an announced crowd of 13,571.

Next step: playing a full 60 minutes at peak efficiency.

The Ducks don’t have long to get their act together. They begin a five-game trip Wednesday against the New Jersey Devils, far from an easy opponent under any circumstances.

Certainly, the Ducks showed resiliency Monday. They scored twice late in the first period while on two-man advantages and had a 3-1 lead after 20 minutes. After a sluggish second period, they rebounded in the third.

Right wing Teemu Selanne assisted on three Duck goals. Defenseman Oleg Tverdovsky, left wing Marty McInnis and center Steve Rucchin each had a goal and an assist. Goaltender Guy Hebert made 22 saves.

But it took a nullified goal in the second period to get the Ducks on the right track after it appeared their 4-1 lead would be erased.

Ron Sutter’s apparent game-tying goal was disallowed when it was ruled the Shark center kicked the puck into the net at the 16:30 mark. The Ducks took their second chance and skated with it--all the way to their second consecutive victory after getting shut out in their first two games.

“We stopped skating and we stopped working,” Selanne said. “They came back and if they got that fourth goal, it could have been a lot different. Guys woke up on that play.”

The third period was no contest. The Ducks muzzled the Sharks and still managed to create numerous scoring chances. If not for the standout goaltending of Steve Shields, the Ducks might have won in a rout.

“In the third period, we played smart,” Selanne said. “We played the way we have to play. We’re still in the learning process. We have to keep playing hard. These are the kinds of games we have to win, especially when we’re winning, 3-1 or 4-1.

“We had a 4-1 lead and they should have had no life. We are not a good enough team to take a period off like that. But the third period is how we should play.”

Hebert, under pressure in the second period, hardly broke a sweat in the third. He faced only four shots.

The Ducks created turnovers with an aggressive forecheck, breaking in repeatedly on Shields, who replaced starter Mike Vernon early in the second period. Vernon gave up four goals on 12 shots.

McInnis’ even-strength goal only 2:40 into the second period gave the Ducks a 4-1 lead and sent Vernon to the bench in favor of Shields.

It was just the spark the Sharks needed after trailing, 4-1. They were badly outplayed and outsmarted after Alex Korolyuk scored the first of his two goals at 13:33 of the first period.

Finally, Rucchin sealed the victory with an empty-net goal from near the red line with two seconds remaining. It seemed to be a fitting reward.

Duck Coach Craig Hartsburg credited the Rucchin-McInnis-Ted Donato line with igniting the strong third-period play.

“The power play got us going,” Hartsburg said of first-period goals by Tverdovsky and Fredrik Olausson. “Rucchin’s line was the reason we had such a good third period.”

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RISING SHARKS: Once dismal San Jose is expected to go places with young, talented team. Page 10