Few Are Witness to End of Kariya’s Slide

Paul Kariya’s scoring drought is a thing of the past as he had two goals and an assist in the Ducks’ 5-2 victory over Chicago on Friday.

Unfortunately, most of the team’s fans decided that starting their weekend off at the Arrowhead Pond was not something they wanted to do.

In keeping up with the team’s poor attendance trend, the Mighty Ducks announced a crowd of 12,893 but about only half that total was actually in the arena. It’s something that team president and General Manager Pierre Gauthier understands is a growing problem.

“We hit rock bottom on the ice last year and right now, because of last year, we’re hitting rock bottom in attendance,” Gauthier said before the game. “As soon as we start winning, then attendance will come back.”

Gauthier realizes that the Mighty Ducks are under the microscope to start winning now and that his word has been questioned in the past. But he said he’s confident that the team is going in the right direction.

“I know I’ve been hurt by perception in the media, but that’s really because I’ve been too honest,” he said. “But I believe that we’re there now. There is too much [talent] on the ice not to make [a playoff run]. We’re better in every position. Now the big challenge is building the identity of how we play as a team.”

Only time will tell if the Mighty Ducks’ play on the ice supports Gauthier’s words.

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The Russian drama regarding Stanislav Chistov, the Mighty Ducks’ first-round draft pick in June, took another turn recently. Chistov along with Alexander Svitov, Tampa Bay’s top draft pick, and Kiril Kostov, were returned to play for Avangard Omsk of the Russian Super League on Friday after Russian officials decided that they do not have to play for CSKA Moscow, the former Red Army team.

“As long as he plays in either one of those leagues, we don’t have any problems,” Gauthier said about the decision.

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Recently acquired forwards Patric Kjellberg and Sergei Krivokrasov, who were picked up in trades on Thursday, were in the lineup for the Mighty Ducks on Friday.