Ducks Can’t Overcome Offensive Doldrums

GREENSBORO, N.C. â€”  The Mighty Ducks swarmed the Carolina Hurricanes, overwhelmed them with their speed, knocked them against the boards with their brute strength and were rewarded with Teemu Selanne’s sensational goal.

But in those first two periods? Forget it.

The Ducks were running on a treadmill again, huffing and puffing but not really getting anywhere for the game’s first 40 minutes. Not surprisingly, they fell behind early and wound up losing, 2-1, in front of 8,309 Tuesday at Greensboro Coliseum.

Their goaltending and defense were sound for the second consecutive game. Guy Hebert stopped 24 of 26 shots and the beleaguered defensive corps turned in one of its better performances this season.

The Ducks took too many retaliatory penalties to suit Coach Pierre Page, but their penalty-killing was sharp and they shut out the Hurricanes on eight short-handed situations.

Meanwhile, Page’s search for scoring punch from someone other than Selanne and Paul Kariya continues. The rest of the lineup seemed to be missing in action until the third period.

The hard-driving offensive style Page has coveted all season finally emerged in the game’s final 20 minutes. The Ducks charged to the front of the net, won battles along the boards and dominated the period.

But after goals by Carolina’s Keith Primeau and Robert Kron, they were trailing 2-0 by the time they finally rolled up their sleeves and began to fight.

When Selanne scored as he was falling to the ice in front of goalie Sean Burke, there was only 1:19 left in the third period. The rally ended there and the Ducks were left wondering why they couldn’t play with as much fire in the first two periods as they did in the last.

“The third period was a perfect example of how we should always play,� said Selanne, who somehow managed to lift the puck over Burke’s shoulder while falling to the ice after Glen Wesley tripped him in the slot.

“We tried to keep the game simple and put the puck in the front of the net and put pressure there. We need to use our outside speed and go to the net more. Right now, we’ve practiced forechecking so much and our minds are too much on dumping the puck into the zone.�

Page found no fault with the play of Selanne’s line from start to finish. After all, Selanne and Kariya created numerous scoring chances--none better than Selanne’s breakaway midway through the second period.

Burke preserved the Hurricanes’ two-goal lead by squeezing his legs together when Selanne tried to beat him with a shot between the pads.

Others struggled until the third period, however.

“I don’t see Scott Young on the ice,� Page said. “I see [Jeremy] Stevenson. I see [Joe] Sacco in the third period. We didn’t have enough guys contributing. We need more guys contributing. It’s simple.�

The Ducks spent much of Monday’s practice performing a drill in which three players “crash� the front of the opposing net. They seemed to have it mastered by the end of the workout, but Page never saw the results Tuesday.

Most of their shots in the first two periods came from the perimeter, and Burke handled those easily. By game’s end, Selanne (four shots on net) and Kariya (six) accounted for 10 of the Ducks’ 26.

“We told the players, ‘Look, you’ve got to go to the net. Don’t play like an old retired player,’ � Page said.

Selanne recorded his NHL-leading 32nd goal by skating hard into the slot, accepting a pass from the right wing from Kariya and scoring despite Wesley’s trip.

It was highlight-reel material, to be sure, but merely the Ducks’ first goal since the third period of Saturday’s 5-5 tie against the St. Louis Blues. They had been shut out for 138 minutes 47 seconds over the course of Sunday’s 2-0 loss to the Chicago Blackhawks and almost all of Tuesday’s loss.

“We played the third period the way we should always play the games,� Selanne said. “Right now, we’re waiting and waiting for something to happen. Somehow we’re playing too carefully. We have to play with confidence. Right now, we go out and hope we don’t do mistakes.�