Lesson Planner Pays Dividends for Ducks

SUNRISE, Fla. â€”  School was in session.

The Mighty Ducks’ Adam Oates had the puck. He went this way, then that, through two Florida Panther players. He then waited before slipping a pass between the legs of another defender. Petr Sykora finished.

Here ended the lesson. A bewildered group of Panther players had better have been taking notes.

Oates’ dipsy-doodle got the Ducks back on track with a 2-1 victory in front of an announced 14,644 at the Office Depot Center Wednesday.

There was nothing fancy about getting these two points.

The Ducks just got Oates the puck. Then came the fancy stuff. It ended with Sykora’s goal at 12 minutes 10 seconds of the third period that eased any concerns about losing to Tampa Bay Tuesday. The victory put the Ducks back into sixth place in the Western Conference, a point ahead of Minnesota.

Paul Kariya had a goal and an assist. Jean-Sebastien Giguere stopped 31 of 32 shots. The Ducks continued on their way, having not lost consecutive games since Jan. 3.

Oates was the centerpiece to the evening.

“That was a great play by one of the greatest players of all time,� Kariya said. “Adam has made his living out of doing that for a long time. I don’t know anybody but him who could make that play. It was a big goal at a big time for us.�

There are moments that take a team forward. The Mighty Ducks now have players to provide that kind of a nudge. Oates signed as a free agent and Sykora came in a trade.

The Ducks are 15-6-1-1 since the six-game winless streak that followed the Christmas break. Connecting the dots on that success is easy. That was when Kariya, Oates and Sykora were teamed for the first time.

The trio is only a piece to the Ducks’ rosy picture, but a big piece. Kariya, Oates and Sykora have 25 goals and 68 points in the 23 games since they were put together.

“When you play with good players, good things are going to happen,� said Oates, who has six goals and 32 points in 48 games this season.

Oates was signed to orchestrate a scoring line. He has an extensive resume for such a job, as he ranks sixth all-time in assists. A broken hand cost him 15 games, but he has lived up to his end of the $3.1-million bargain since returning.

“For me to get to play with Oates every day is a great learning experience,� said Sykora, who is tied with Kariya for the team lead with 24 goals. “I’m enjoying this.�

The Panthers weren’t. They seemed to have the game tilted their way after a clearing attempt by Niclas Havelid had the bad luck to hit Viktor Kozlov in the stomach. Kozlov whipped a wrist shot past Giguere for a power-play goal that tied the score, 1-1, nine minutes into the third period.

“I was really happy Oatesie made that play,� Havelid said.

Kariya got the game-winning moment in motion, digging the puck free on the boards in the neutral zone. He pushed a pass to Oates, who kicked the puck onto his stick at the blue line.

“I just had to get open for him,� Sykora said. “He makes that play all the time. That was an unbelievable pass.�

Kariya gave the Ducks an early lead when he slipped onto the ice as play went into the Duck zone. Samuel Pahlsson, deep in the Ducks’ end, spotted him at the red line and fired a pass, sending Kariya on a breakaway. He put the puck over goalie Roberto Luongo’s left shoulder for his 24th goal 2:17 into the game.

“That was Kariya being clever,� Florida Coach Mike Keenan said. “He let the line change. There were only four players and then he came out. Our defensemen are inexperienced, but they should be aware there are only four people there.�