Kariya Likes Intensity, Just Not Its Direction

Hopeless or hopeful?

No question, the Ducks were the former during a 7-2 loss Wednesday to the Vancouver Canucks. They were the latter the day after a humiliating defeat in which they were outshot, 43-38, and outhustled from start to finish.

Practice lasted 1 hour 15 minutes Thursday and was followed by an on-ice talk that went on for an additional 20 minutes.

Since starting the season with a franchise-best 6-3-1-2 record for 15 points, the Ducks have nose dived into a 0-3-2 winless streak.

“My sleep habits are really taking a pounding,” Coach Craig Hartsburg said when asked if the Ducks’ inconsistent play was driving him nuts.

“I think when we played the Phoenix game, we set a standard,” Hartsburg added, referring to a 1-1 tie Nov. 1. “I don’t know, maybe Phoenix feels they played poorly. I know we played a pretty strong game. To me, it was the type of game we should strive for every night.”

The Ducks outshot the Coyotes, 26-16, suffocating them at almost every turn before rallying to tie on defenseman Oleg Tverdovsky’s third-period goal. But the Ducks haven’t played adequate defense since and have given up the most goals, 60, and shots, 540, in the NHL.

“You’re going to have breakdowns,” left wing Paul Kariya said. “It’s happening too often. We’ve got to cut down on the volume. It is Xs and O’s, two guys going to cover one guy. In general, we’re not winning enough one-on-one battles. That’s where they’re getting wide-open spaces.”

Kariya wouldn’t fault the Ducks’ intensity Wednesday, but he thought it could have been better directed.

“You can go 100 mph and work your butt off and still not play the system,” he said. “Energy was not a problem. We were going good, just not in the right direction. We had a lot of speed, but we were going like this, this, this [weaving back and forth], instead of going straight ahead.

“It’s not like we’re a lazy team. We’re a hard-working team. We need to work smarter.”

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Defenseman Ruslan Salei is expected to play Saturday against the Colorado Avalanche. Salei has been sidelined for six games because of a badly bruised left foot. He was injured when a shot struck him in the Ducks’ 4-3 victory Oct. 21 against the Philadelphia Flyers.