Ducks Lose in Dress Rehearsal

Defenseman Sandis Ozolinsh chuckled when asked whether the Mighty Ducks’ 4-3 overtime loss to the Colorado Avalanche on Friday was anything like a Stanley Cup playoff game.

The momentum swung one way and then the other, with speed, intensity and even a little chippy behavior, all lapped up by a sellout crowd of 17,174 at the Arrowhead Pond, where there has been a thirst for quality hockey in recent seasons.

Only, this was barely a dress rehearsal for what the Ducks will go through when the playoffs begin next week.

“That wasn’t even close, you wait, you’ll see,” Ozolinsh said. “This wasn’t even a preview.”

This was enough for now.

The Avalanche blew a 3-1 third-period lead, which became less disastrous when Milan Hejduk skated into the Duck zone and fired a shot past goalie Jean-Sebastien Giguere with 10 seconds left in overtime. It was Hejduk’s second goal of the game and 49th of the season, tops in the NHL.

It also gave the Avalanche its franchise-record seventh overtime victory this season.

And it left playoff plans fuzzy for both teams.

The Ducks must wait until Sunday evening to learn whom they will play in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs, their first postseason appearance since 1998-99. The possibilities are Detroit, Dallas, Vancouver and Colorado. They could finish in seventh place in the Western Conference if Minnesota wins Sunday, or sixth if the Wild loses.

The Avalanche, meanwhile, can win the Northwest Division for the conference’s No. 3 seeding with a victory over the St. Louis Blues and a Vancouver loss to the Kings.

Confusing? So was the 64 minutes 50 seconds that left things that way. One thing was certain: this wasn’t up to playoff speed.

“Playoff games are so much more intense than that,” said Steve Thomas, who had two goals and his 500th career assist to rally the Ducks. “We didn’t even raise the roof tonight.”

Only their coach’s blood pressure.

“Tonight, [the Avalanche] battled for everything,” Duck Coach Mike Babcock said. “We just got taught a lesson that I can’t teach our guys. Cute isn’t going to get it done. You got to get you noses dirty.”

Thomas provided the visual for that in bringing the Ducks back.

Adam Foote gave the Avalanche a 3-1 lead 7:27 into the third period. But with Jeff Shantz off for tripping, Thomas found himself alone to the left of the net. He one-timed a Mike Leclerc pass for his second goal 9:57 into the third period.

Three minutes later, Thomas burst into the Avalanche zone and fired a shot that hit goalie Patrick Roy in the shoulder. Niclas Havelid kicked the puck onto his stick and buried the rebound to tie the score, 3-3.

Thomas has 10 goals in 13 games since the Ducks picked him up in a trade-deadline deal with the Chicago Blackhawks on March 11.

“I’m getting the chance to score here,” Thomas said. “I have been put in situations where I am able to score. I was playing 10 minutes a game in Chicago. Here, I’m playing 17 and able to do a lot more.”

Yet it wasn’t enough.

Hejduk danced through the Duck zone to give the Avalanche the lead 1:12 into the game. Peter Forsberg made it 2-1 with a goal 15 minutes into the second period, giving him 103 points this season.

“I felt we started well, but in the second period they won every battle, every power play, every one-on-one,” Babcock said. “You can talk about skill all you want, but this time of year, it’s about will.”