Time for Ducks to Break the Ice

The Mighty Ducks have come to a point of no returns, on the ice and at the gate.

They aspire, team officials claim, to be among the elite in the NHL. Yet, just about everything that has happened the last two seasons, be it injuries or front office inefficiency, has arrested that development.

The Ducks, after finishing last in the Western Conference, are faced with a put-up or be-put-down season.

Some team has to replace the improving Clippers at the bottom of the Southland’s professional sports heap and the Ducks can consider themselves frontrunners.

They open training camp today with what they hope is a retooled defense and an improved goalie situation, preparing for a season that looms as crucial to the future of the franchise.

“Other organizations have gotten better and we’ve been, like, treading water,” captain Paul Kariya said. “We have to keep improving and get to the playoffs. Anything less than that is failure.”

The Ducks are coming off their worst season. Bryan Murray is their third coach in nine months. Another dismal display and the damage may be beyond repair.

“Any time you have a failure, the following year is a challenge,” said Tony Tavares, the team’s chairman. “From my perspective, I want to--and expect to--make the playoffs. We had a bad year and we’ve paid the price.”

Actually, it’s more that Duck fans are refusing to pay the price ... for tickets.

Attendance has declined 21% in the last four seasons. Disney officials are so concerned that they tried to browbeat Southern California businesses into buying season tickets this summer.

This from what was once a cash-cow franchise that sold out 90 of 93 games from October 1993 to December 1996.

Anaheim, an expansion team in 1993-94, reached the second round of the 1997 playoffs. Last season, it finished behind first-year teams Columbus and Minnesota.

This summer, Disney--not the Ducks--sent out a heavy-handed letter to 3,000 businesses, asking them to support the team by buying season tickets. The letter said that unless the drop in attendance was reversed “the long-term impact will reach far beyond the Mighty Ducks and have negative consequences for us all.”

General Manager Pierre Gauthier remains convinced that to fill seats with paying customers, the Ducks need to do only one thing.

“Everybody says the same thing: ‘We want a winner,”’ Gauthier said of Duck fans. “We got to prove it on the ice. That’s fair.”

Which puts things firmly on the shoulders of the players and Murray, hired after the season to replace Guy Charron, who replaced Craig Hartsburg in December.

The Ducks shored up their defense, they hope, during the off-season. Veteran Keith Carney was acquired in a trade with the Phoenix Coyotes. Jason York, who played with Ottawa last season, was the team’s top free-agent signer. But the defense may be hurt by the absence of Niclas Havelid, who is still rehabilitating after knee surgery.

Goalie Jean-Sebastien Giguere performed well after winning the job at midseason. Steve Shields, acquired along with left wing Jeff Friesen from San Jose last spring in the Teemu Selanne trade, should give the Ducks a solid 1-2 goalie tandem, provided he has fully recovered from shoulder surgery.

The offense needs improvement too. Friesen had a career-low 14 goals last season. Center Steve Rucchin and left wing Mike Leclerc must avoid the kinds of injuries that sidelined them for large chunks of last season, and German Titov must show he is worth the three-year, $4.6-million contract he signed before last season.

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King, Duck Facts

Today--Ducks begin practice at Disney ICE. The first week of sessions, through Sunday, is open to the public.

Wednesday--Kings begin practice at Health South Center in El Segundo. Sessions are open to the public. Scrimmages will be held Sunday and Sept. 19.

Saturday--Preseason opener for both teams: Kings vs. Ducks at Staples Center, 7:30 p.m.

Monday--Ducks at Phoenix, 7 p.m.

Sept. 19--Ducks vs. Minnesota at Arrowhead Pond, 7:30 p.m.

Sept. 20--Kings at San Jose, 7:30 p.m.

Sept. 21--Ducks vs. Phoenix at Arrowhead Pond, 7:30 p.m.

Sept. 22--Kings vs. San Jose at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, 7:30 p.m.

Sept. 23--Ducks vs. San Jose at Arrowhead Pond, 5 p.m.

Sept. 25--Ducks at San Jose, 7:30 p.m.

Sept. 26--Kings at Ducks, 7:30 p.m.

Sept. 28--Ducks at Minnesota, 5 p.m. PST

Sept. 29--Kings vs. Colorado at Staples Center, 7:30 p.m.

Oct. 1--Kings at Colorado, 7 p.m. PST

Oct. 4--Regular-season openers for both teams: Kings vs. Phoenix at Staples Center, 7:30 p.m.; Ducks at Boston, 4:30 p.m. PST