Duck Winner Was No Luck of the Draw

On one side of the faceoff dot stood Pascal Rheaume of the New Jersey Devils, his own net looming over his left shoulder. Adam Oates of the Mighty Ducks stood on the other side, facing goaltender Martin Brodeur.

As the centers awaited the pivotal overtime draw that would decide Game 3 of the Stanley Cup finals Saturday at the Arrowhead Pond, this much was clear: This was the series’ first big mismatch in the Ducks’ favor.

The Ducks knew Oates could win the faceoff against Rheaume, so without hesitation they set up a play they had practiced from the first day of training camp in September. They knew they could get a quality shot on net from a spot just off the left circle if everything went their way.

“I didn’t even know who was back there,” Oates would say of the Ducks’ 51st and final victory in 81 faceoffs in Game 3. “I wasn’t concerned. You just have to be quick. I’m always trying to put it in the same spot.”

The Devils had a pretty good idea of what might happen, too, which was why Rheaume prematurely swiped for the puck and forced a false faceoff.

Oates held his ground and won the draw cleanly against an off-balance Rheaume, who was never able to re-set himself after the aborted first attempt. Defenseman Ruslan Salei collected the puck after it slipped between Oates’ legs, whistling a wrist shot past Brodeur’s glove for the winning goal 6:59 into overtime.

“Oatsie has been doing that for what, 19 years or whatever?” Paul Kariya asked rhetorically after Oates-to-Salei gave the Ducks a 3-2 victory that narrowed their series deficit to two games to one. “He’s one of the best ever at winning faceoffs. We know Oatsie is going to get those draws for us.”

Indeed, that coveted skill was one of the many reasons Kariya urged General Manager Bryan Murray to sign Oates as a free agent last summer.

Oates, who turns 41 in August and is eight months older than Coach Mike Babcock, helped one of the league’s better faceoff teams become second to none in 2002-03. The Ducks won draw after draw against stiff competition in the playoffs, handling Steve Yzerman of the Detroit Red Wings and Mike Modano of the Dallas Stars with ease in the first two rounds.

With top center Joe Nieuwendyk sidelined by an injury for the first three games, the Devils were expected to be vulnerable in the faceoff circle, and that was particularly the case in Game 3.

“I have been worried all year long about my faceoff situation,” New Jersey Coach Pat Burns said. “It’s nothing new. Joe Nieuwendyk not being here really hurts us. We struggled for a good part of the season. It came down to that tonight.”

Rheaume drifted into the circle to face Oates with nine victories in 18 faceoffs, making him the Devils’ most successful player on the draw. Burns also had Sergei Brylin available for the final faceoff in case Rheaume was kicked out for an infraction.

“You look at the stats and most of the time your wingers end up winning the draws for you,” Oates said, referring to the battles for the puck fought by teammates after faceoffs. “But that was a clean win. It was a great job by Rusty [Salei]. He really walked into the shot and had a great angle. I just saw it again on the replay.”