Ducks Suffer Through Another Detroit Disaster, 5-2

DETROIT — This time there were no distractions, no parades. Nobody set off fireworks in Joe Louis Arena or treated the Mighty Ducks like stars.

The Ducks were trying to avenge their embarrassing opening-night defeat against the Detroit Red Wings, but they ended up reliving it, at least at the outset of their 5-2 loss Tuesday before 19,687.

Opening night was Oct. 8, but the Ducks had not forgotten the 7-2 loss that christened the franchise at Anaheim Arena.

Still, instead of showing improvement, they let Detroit’s high-powered, speed-driven offense run them over. It was the Red Wings’ fourth consecutive victory.

“It felt like Game 1 again back in Anaheim,” said Terry Yake, who scored both goals and barely missed on several chances for his second hat trick. “They really took it to us for a good part of the game.”

Detroit outshot the Ducks, 19-4, after the first period. That was an even bigger margin than the 20-7 advantage the Red Wings held in the first period on Oct. 8.

Detroit gained a 4-0 lead midway through the second period, on a goal by former King Paul Coffey, two by Sergei Fedorov and a shorthanded goal by Vyacheslav Kozlov.

Yake scored on a power play at 13:34 after Jarrod Skalde sent the puck across the slot at the bottom of the left circle for the first of two assists.

“We wanted to prove something to us ,” Yake said. “This was the only team that really took it to us. . . . We wanted to come out and show them that the team they saw in the first game wasn’t the team that’s been playing the rest of the year. I think they probably got the feeling they were playing the same team in the first period.”

Yake, who scored the team’s first hat trick Oct. 19 against the New York Rangers, scored his ninth and 10th goals of the season.

An 11th would have given him his second hat trick.

“I hit the crossbar once, and the post another time, on the power play, then I missed the open net on the power play right after that,” said Yake, who had six shots. “It’s not so much the hat trick, it’s just I had an opportunity, and other guys had an opportunity to put us back in the game. It’s frustrating for me as well as everyone else.

“After I had two goals, I had probably three or four glorious opportunities to score. If I could have finished off one more, if anybody could have finished off one more, it would have put us back in the game.”

Goaltender Ron Tugnutt’s frustration in the first period was best illustrated when he was sprawled behind the net with Kozlov on top of him while Fedorov scored.

One of Tugnutt’s defensemen, Sean Hill, pushed Kozlov on top of him, but only after Kozlov’s momentum sent Tugnutt past the net.

“I thought Kozlov took out the goaltender, and I think the replay shows that,” Coach Ron Wilson said. “He made no effort to get out of the way.

“At the end, our defenseman gives him a push over the top of him, but at the moment of impact, it was certainly Kozlov’s initiative that created that.”

Tugnutt, who saw the play unfolding and fell back to protect his knees, agreed.

“I’ve been caught behind the net before, but I’ve never been hit before,” Tugnutt said. “I’ve been caught (going out to handle the puck) and that’s more embarrassing, but on the other hand I was sitting there behind the net. I was defenseless.”

Duck Notes

An emergency recall of San Diego defenseman David Williams is likely after defenseman Mark Ferner left in the second period with a charley horse after being hit by Darren McCarty. Coach Ron Wilson did not expect Ferner to be available against Toronto tonight. . . . Captain Troy Loney, who underwent arthroscopic surgery on his right knee Nov. 17, skated for the first time Tuesday and should be able to return within two weeks. . . . Paul Kariya, the Ducks’ No. 1 draft choice in June and the fourth pick overall, joined the Canadian Olympic team Sunday from the University of Maine. Kariya had eight goals and 14 assists in 11 games for Maine. He says he is undecided about whether he will join the Ducks late this season or return to Maine.