Ozolinsh Pays Off Quickly

In case anyone was unclear about what defenseman Sandis Ozolinsh can do for the Mighty Ducks, he provided a snapshot moment.

Ozolinsh burst up the ice and was a tad surprised to find a pass from Adam Oates coming his way. That was only a momentary glitch before he fired a shot that bounced off the leg of Calgary goalie Roman Turek and -- barely -- trickled across the goal line.

That shot, and the review by the video judge a minute later, turned Ozolinsh’s first game as a Duck into a happy occasion. His goal gave his new team a 3-2 victory in front of 14,110 at the Pengrowth Saddledome on Tuesday that, for the moment, has the Ducks in a playoff spot.

There were many things for the Ducks to feel good about in this victory, including, oddly, the fact that they let a 2-1 third-period lead slip away when Rob Niedermayer scored the second of his two goals. These were games that got away from the Ducks this season. This time things were different.

Ozolinsh and Mike Leclerc each had a goal and an assist. Goalie Jean-Sebastien Giguere stopped 23 shots with several critical saves. All of which meant so much more because of Ozolinsh’s rush up ice midway through the third period.

“I don’t know how Adam got that puck to me,” Ozolinsh said. “I sure didn’t expect it. But Petr Sykora warned me to always be ready with Adam.”

Ozolinsh has been cramming for this game the last 24 hours. He was even tutored by team captain Paul Kariya on the flight to Calgary from the All-Star game.

“I was curious what was awaiting me,” Ozolinsh said. “I wanted to know what the coach was like. How the practices were run. How they handled the players. There is still a lot I need to pick up on.”

Ozolinsh had to wait to celebrate his goal. Chris Drury batted the puck away from the net and play continued. The review, moments later, clearly showed the puck crossed the line, giving the Ducks an immediate return on Thursday’s trade, which brought Ozolinsh from Florida.

“He’s a big, strong guy with great offensive skills,” Oates said. “It’s not easy to change teams. It’s nice that he was able to have a big goal for us tonight.”

The Ducks got a glimpse at Ozolinsh’s weakness as well.

Niedermayer slipped between the boards and Ozolinsh, curled in front of the net and then stuck a shot between Giguere’s legs to cut the Duck lead to 2-1, 13 minutes into the first period.

But Ozolinsh, and the Ducks, finished a goal ahead in the end.

“When you believe you’re suppose to win, you find ways to win,” Duck Coach Mike Babcock said.

In one-goal games, the Ducks were 13-21 last season but are 15-10 this season, having won their last three games by one goal.

“There is more confidence about us winning, but we’re still a little hesitant,” center Steve Rucchin said. “We got to bury teams when we have them down. I’ve seen a lot of empty nets at the other end in games lately, not that I’ve scored in any of them. It would be nice to win a game by two or three goals.”

That is the plateau the Ducks have reached. They are not completely satisfied with one-goal victories. This one, though, seemed like it would be a lot easier, particularly with Leclerc back in the lineup playing his brutish style.

Leclerc, who has missed 22 of the last 33 games with knee problems, looked as effective as ever Tuesday. He assisted on Stanislav Chistov’s power-play goal six minutes into the game. A minute later, Leclerc picked up a loose puck in front of the net and scored his first goal since Dec. 15.

“That was a big win,” Leclerc said. “We found a way to weather the storm.”

With Ozolinsh holding the umbrella.