Selanne Undoes Tie After Dollas Knots It Up

EDMONTON, Canada — Think goal scoring and two names immediately jump to mind for the Mighty Ducks.

One is Teemu Selanne, whose goal 45 seconds into overtime enabled the Ducks to rally to a 2-1 victory over the Edmonton Oilers on Saturday at Edmonton Coliseum.

The other wasn’t Paul Kariya for a change.

Stumped?

Try defenseman Bobby Dollas, whose third-period goal enabled the Ducks to catch the Oilers, 1-1, and break a three-game losing streak.

Just when it looked as if the Ducks might never get the puck past scalding-hot Edmonton goaltender Curtis Joseph, Dollas and defensive partner Dmitri Mironov broke into the zone on a two-on-one break.

Joseph moved out to cut off Mironov’s path but couldn’t recover quickly enough to stop Dollas after Mironov slipped a cross-ice pass to his teammate for the goal at the 8:42 mark.

In overtime, Selanne zoomed off the bench on a line change, picked up the puck just over the blue line and fired a shot that beat Joseph just inside the far post.

“That’s why the defenseman couldn’t see me,” Selanne said. “[Edmonton] had a five-game winning streak. They are the hottest team in the league right now. This was very important for our confidence.”

The Oilers almost pulled out the victory in regulation, but Duck goalie Guy Hebert’s stick save on Jason Arnott with 48 seconds left preserved the tie.

Arnott broke in alone against Hebert but couldn’t get any lift on a backhander and Hebert made a spectacular save.

Selanne’s goal was the only scoring chance in overtime, and he didn’t miss.

Determined to shake up the lineup, Duck Coach Ron Wilson hoped breaking up the productive line of Kariya, Selanne and Steve Rucchin would spread the talent a bit.

Kariya and Rucchin played with Brian Bellows, who had scored only four goals since Jan. 1. Selanne played with Jari Kurri, whose last goal was Jan. 22, and Roman Oksiuta, who hadn’t played since Jan. 23.

That lasted for two scoreless periods before Wilson reunited Kariya, Selanne and Rucchin.

Although the line changes produced no goals, it can’t be termed a failed experiment. The Ducks played with a sense of purpose that had been missing in losses to the New York Islanders and Toronto Maple Leafs on Tuesday and Wednesday.

“That was huge,” Wilson said of the victory. “We were in danger of losing sight of the pack.”

Oksiuta’s addition to lineup certainly proved to be a bonus. He had been scratched in all but five of the past 33 games, hampered by a groin injury and the perception that he wasn’t a hard worker. Saturday, he was eager to show Wilson he deserved another shot.

“I had a good talk with Ron,” Oksiuta said before the game. “I just want to work hard and do my best for the team. I hate [watching games from] the press box. I want to play all the time.”

By game’s end, there was little question that Oksiuta was one of the Ducks’ most productive forwards. Although he didn’t score, he gave the Ducks a presence in front of the net they had been lacking.

The Ducks played perhaps their best all-around period on the trip so far, but had nothing to show for it after 20 minutes.

Even Sean Pronger’s holding penalty at the 11:30 mark was the right thing to do under the circumstances. His tackle of Edmonton’s Miroslav Satan, who was about to break in alone on Hebert, probably prevented a goal.

With Pronger in the penalty box, Andrei Kovalenko converted a cross-ice pass from Jason Arnott to give Edmonton a 1-0 lead.

It was only the Oilers’ second shot of the game, testimony to the Ducks’ newfound attention to better defense and sustained offensive pressure.