Ducks, Kariya Have a Blast

His stoic expressions say little. His work ethic is well known. His answers are always correct.

If Paul Kariya has issues about his plight, and that of the Mighty Ducks, they are never betrayed. All that was seen Wednesday was what he can accomplish on the ice, given the opportunity.

Oleg Tverdovsky’s blast from the blue line with 12.6 seconds left gave the Ducks a 5-4 come-from-behind victory over the Philadelphia Flyers in front of an announced 13,614 Wednesday. But it was Kariya, who had his seventh career hat trick, who got mobbed by teammates at the end.

The Ducks trailed by two goals three times before scoring three third-period goals to extend their winning streak to six games, one shy of the team record.

The hats came flying when Kariya finally got them even eight minutes into the third period. He took a cross-ice pass from Mike Leclerc and fired in a shot past goalie Brian Boucher for a power-play goal that tied the score, 4-4.

Kariya, who had only one goal in the first 11 games, now has 22.

“Other than the puck going in the net easily for him, Paul has done everything you could ask of a star player,” Coach Bryan Murray said. “We have had a little bit of a problem getting him the puck some nights.”

Not Wednesday. Kariya scored the Ducks first goal when Mike Leclerc found him alone in the slot. He scored his second goal when Andy McDonald, all 5 feet 10, 186 pounds, cleared traffic from the net. Kariya scored his third when Leclerc him spotted alone on the right.

This was the type of performance that make pulses race north of the border, as Canadian fans eagerly anticipate Kariya’s appearance in the Olympics.

A gold medal, Canada’s first in 50 years, seems to be the only championship moment in Kariya’s near future. The Ducks may have tied the Minnesota Wild in the standings, but that’s for 13th in the Western Conference.

But Kariya has betrayed no sign of frustration, although his coach knows it’s there.

“He wouldn’t be much of a guy if he wasn’t frustrated,” Murray said. “I’m frustrated. I’m frustrated when we don’t win every night. I like to see the team in the playoff hunt right now. Paul wants to be in a competitive situation every night. It’s only fair that any good player wants that opportunity.”

The Ducks have had a week off to ponder their recent success. That their winning streak could be extended against the high-flying Flyers, who were 17-4-1 in their 22 previous games, seemed a challenge.

“Now we have to try to take another step and compete against good teams and obviously the Flyers are good team out of the east right now,” Murray said.

The Ducks’ problem was a sizable one ... John LeClair, Jeremy Roenick, Keith Primeau.

“Everybody is smaller than the Flyers and we’re smaller than everybody,” Murray said.

Yet the Ducks held their ground.

“I have heard a lot guys on other teams saying we’re hard to play against, which wasn’t the case at the beginning of the season,” Duck goalie Jean-Sebastien Giguere said.

The one Duck who didn’t seem overwhelmed by the Flyers’ thump-and-bump style was McDonald, who tied the Ducks’ rookie record with three assists. His play helped create Kariya’s two goals.

McDonald out-fought Luke Richardson, the Flyers’ 6-4, 220 defenseman, behind the net late in the first period. He managed to knock the puck to Leclerc, who centered to Kariya for a goal. .

“Playing against bigger guys always motivates me,” McDonald said. “You try not to change the way you play the game from team to team, but a little extra motivation always helps.”

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Flying High

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