Gauthier’s Lecture Brings Out the Best in Motivated Ducks

The Mighty Ducks finally got it right, leaving nothing to chance in a comprehensive 6-2 romp Saturday over the Phoenix Coyotes before a crowd of 15,374 at America West Arena.

The Ducks skated purposefully right from the start. They handled the puck with care, stealing it repeatedly from the Coyotes, who did not. Their goaltending was sharp. And the Ducks maintained their composure when the Coyotes cut into a three-goal lead early in the final period.

So, the burning question after the Ducks ended a five-game losing streak and a 0-6-2 winless streak was why in the name of Lord Stanley don’t they play like this every night?

Perhaps more to the point, why does it take a 20-minute lecture from Pierre Gauthier, team president and general manager, to put some life into these characters?

Gauthier read the Ducks the riot act Thursday, a day after Colorado goaltender Patrick Roy stopped 41 shots in a 3-0 Avalanche victory. Gauthier also told reporters he was not about to fire Coach Craig Hartsburg or trade all-star wingers Paul Kariya or Teemu Selanne. It was up to the players to work things out because he wasn’t about to, in his words, “bail them out,” by making a knee-jerk move.

Saturday, the Ducks took Gauthier’s words to heart and played their finest hockey of the season, taking out their frustrations against the Coyotes, who went into the game second overall in the NHL with 28 points.

“Our players were tired of what’s been happening to them,” Hartsburg said after the Ducks’ first victory since a 6-3 rout Oct. 29 over the Calgary Flames. “There’s been enough stuff going on the last few days that our attention certainly was there when the puck was dropped.”

Duly motivated, the Ducks pried loose pucks away from the Coyotes and built a two-goal lead 2:48 into the game, right wings Marty McInnis and Jim Cummins scoring to give the Ducks their first lead in a week. They last led, 1-0, in the first period of a 3-1 loss Nov. 11 against Colorado.

When Phoenix’s Jeremy Roenick cut the Ducks’ lead in half with a power-play goal with 4:40 left in the first period, a funny thing happened. The Ducks did not get folded, spindled and mutilated. They got stronger. Centers Tony Hrkac and Antti Aalto scored 44 seconds apart midway through the pivotal second period and the Ducks had the game in the bag for all intents and purposes.

Travis Green, a former Duck, added a power-play goal for Phoenix early in the third period, but as Selanne would later say, “big deal.”

Selanne and Mike Leclerc turned the game into a runaway with third-period goals. Selanne, who assisted on Leclerc’s goal, ended a four-game streak without a point. Kariya, who set up McInnis’ goal with a deft centering pass, ended a three-game drought without a point.

“Every goal tonight was huge, especially since we got them from different guys,” Selanne said. “Every goal was like a little momentum boost for us.”

In the end, the Ducks won by taking small victories along the boards and in the corners and turning them into goals. For instance, German Titov intercepted a poor clearing pass, fed the puck to Kariya, who found an uncovered McInnis cutting toward the net.

Hrkac’s goal was another example. Left wing Dan Bylsma turned the right-hand corner into a mosh pit, knocking Roenick and defenseman Ossi Vaananen off the puck. Cummins gained possession and skated toward Sean Burke’s net for a point-blank shot. Hrkac, stationed near the left goal post, swatted the rebound into the net after Burke made the initial save.

“This was exactly the kind of game we wanted,” Selanne said. “When a team doesn’t have confidence, it’s huge to score that first goal. So, it was a good night for us, but we’re not out of trouble yet.”

Indeed, the Ducks’ victory Saturday means very little if they stink out the Arrowhead Pond tonight against the New York Islanders.

“Consistency is the key,” Selanne said. “We did good tonight. It was a great effort by everybody. This is a big confidence boost, but it’s only one game. We have another one [tonight].”