Anaheim Ducks Hockey Team

It's a dilemma that storied franchises like the New York Yankees, Los Angeles Lakers and Pittsburgh Steelers have gotten used to: not enough room on the bandwagon for the marginal fan. But the Anaheim Ducks hockey team? New territory indeed. With a season-ticket base expanding by the minute, casual Ducks fans will have a tough time watching the Stanley Cup finals in person -- unless they get lucky online or feel compelled to shell out upward of $1,500 for a seat.

Defenseman Drew Doughty was not expected to report to the Kings' El Segundo training facility Friday for the first day of training camp, clouding the start of the season for a team that had finally assembled the scoring power, depth and maturity to contend for the Stanley Cup. Doughty, a restricted free agent, was home in Canada late Thursday while his agent, Don Meehan, and the Kings remained at odds over a new contract. Meehan said he had received communication from the Kings on Wednesday and replied Thursday after talking to Doughty.

Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry met at a selection camp for an under-18 team -- or so Perry recalls. Getzlaf thought it wasn't until after the 2003 draft, in which the Ducks chose him 19th and Perry 28th, that they began forming the bond that led to having their names engraved on the Stanley Cup in 2007 and on Team Canada's roster for the Vancouver Olympics. After a moment's thought, Getzlaf decided Perry was right. "He made that team and I didn't," the rangy center said, "so that's why he remembers it."

When all seemed lost for the Ducks, Lubomir Visnovsky stepped up, stepped into a blistering shot and led them to an unlikely victory while becoming the first defenseman in club history to record a hat trick. Visnovsky took a pass from Ryan Getzlaf during an overtime power play and ripped a long shot past Dallas goaltender Kari Lehtonen with 3.8 seconds left in the sudden-death period, giving the Ducks a 4-3 victory and a three-game winning streak. In a short time the Ducks went from despair to absolute joy, still nipping at the heels of the top teams in the ridiculously congested West standings.

Chris Pronger owed his employer, the Edmonton Oilers, his undivided attention every minute he was on the ice. He gave it to them for an average of 27 minutes 59 seconds during the regular season and a staggering 30:57 during an unexpected playoff run that ended with a loss in the seventh game of the Stanley Cup finals, a grueling two-month stretch during which he was consistently their best player.

The crowd at the Bell Centre today will roar for one of its own, the hometown kid who made it big in the NHL and brought the Stanley Cup back to Montreal -- though only for a visit -- in the summer of 2007. But when the starters are announced for today's All-Star game and Jean-Sebastien Giguere's name is called for the West, the Ducks' goaltender will be looking for someone who is not there, listening for a voice that was silenced too soon.

Before the 2006-07 season, Anaheim shortened its nickname from Mighty Ducks to Ducks. On Wednesday night, their name again got longer: Stanley Cup champions. After a strong regular season, the Ducks were overpowering in the playoffs, winning 16 of 21 games.

The Ducks ended the Kings' streak, but the two points in the playoff race might have come at a high price. Ryan Getzlaf , the team's leading scorer, sprained his left ankle during the second period and left the arena wearing a boot and on crutches. X-rays were negative, but an MRI exam is scheduled for Tuesday. "That will give us a better indication of the severity of the sprain," Coach Randy Carlyle said. The Ducks have three games remaining before the Olympic break, when Getzlaf is scheduled to play for Canada in Vancouver.

Any questions about the Ducks' long layoff or the lack of output from their top line in the Stanley Cup playoffs were firmly put to rest to begin the Western Conference semifinals. The trio of Andy McDonald, Teemu Selanne and Chris Kunitz are alive and well as they cut through the Vancouver Canucks for four goals to take Game 1 with a 5-1 victory Wednesday night at the Honda Center. Game 2 is Friday in Anaheim.

The stands at Anaheim Ice were nearly deserted as Saku Koivu skated with his Ducks teammates for the first time last week, the silence broken only by the occasional blast of a whistle or the crunch of blades biting into the ice. Had this been Montreal, where he spent 13 seasons and united a sometimes-fractured city in admiration of his victory over non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, the stands would have been jammed with reporters and photographers interested...

The kids gave the Ducks a lift at the Honda Center on Wednesday before captain Ryan Getzlaf and 40-year-old Teemu Selanne finished off a 3-2 victory over the Tampa Bay Lightning by combining on a goal two minutes 53 seconds into overtime. The win over one of the top early-season teams in the Eastern Conference broke a two-game losing streak for the Ducks. "We're under pressure all over the place," said Getzlaf, who scored his fifth goal of the season and second career overtime goal.

The Ducks earned a point on Friday. But they also gave one away. And given their desperate situation in the NHL's Western Conference playoff chase, it's the one that got away that mattered most. Needing a win to move up a spot in the conference standings, the Ducks fought back from deficits twice in the third period Friday to force a 4-4 tie, only to lose in a shootout to the Vancouver Canucks at the Honda Center. Corey Perry was the only Duck to score in the shootout while Vancouver got goals from Kyle Wellwood and Pavol Demitra.

VS. EDMONTON When: 7. Where: Honda Center. On the air: TV: FS West; Radio: 830. Records: Ducks 28-24-7, Oilers 18-34-6. Record vs. Oilers (2008-2009): 2-2-0. Update: Coach Randy Carlyle tried a new line with Saku Koivu centering Matt Beleskey and Corey Perry as he prepared to play without leading scorer Ryan Getzlaf, who is day to day because of a sprained left ankle suffered Monday against the Kings. The Ducks will try to extend their 10-game home winning streak.

Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry met at a selection camp for an under-18 team -- or so Perry recalls. Getzlaf thought it wasn't until after the 2003 draft, in which the Ducks chose him 19th and Perry 28th, that they began forming the bond that led to having their names engraved on the Stanley Cup in 2007 and on Team Canada's roster for the Vancouver Olympics. After a moment's thought, Getzlaf decided Perry was right. "He made that team and I didn't," the rangy center said, "so that's why he remembers it."

The Kings' winning streak ended Monday at a club-record nine games, halted not by lack of effort but by a more desperate effort by the playoff long shot Ducks. It took every bit of determination the Ducks had to subdue the Kings, 4-2, at the Honda Center and set a record of their own with a 10-game home winning streak. It took Scott Niedermayer frantically batting the puck away from Dustin Brown while on his knees near the net midway through the third period. It took Corey Perry contributing a goal and two assists despite losing his center, Ryan Getzlaf, to a sprained ankle in the second period.

There's a lot of Ilya Kovalchuk gear on sale at the Thrashers' team store, so Devils General Manager Lou Lamoriello won't be the only one getting a bargain after the left wing was traded from Atlanta to New Jersey last week. The Devils had the depth to give away promising kids like Niclas Bergfors and Patrice Cormier and a first-round draft pick for Kovalchuk, who can walk away as a free agent July 1. The Kings wouldn't surrender any two of Dustin Brown, Jack Johnson and Wayne Simmonds, so Thrashers GM Don Waddell took the best deal available.

Fans entering General Motors Place on Sunday found rally towels on each seat, suitable for waving and creating a blizzard-like effect to support the home team. That's not unusual in itself. What's noteworthy is that Sunday marked the 25th anniversary of the day that spurred Canucks fans to make the towels so popular.

The words of Ricky Bobby, scrawled on the dressing-room message board, sent the Ducks onto the ice: "If you ain't first, you're last." So the Ducks' frustration had reached the point they were taking inspirational cues from a fictional character in "Talladega Nights." "Whatever works," Teemu Selanne said, grinning. For one night, it was magic. The Ducks were told to collect "firsts" Monday at the Honda Center and returned with a big one in a 4-1 victory over the battered Colorado Avalanche.

The Ducks ended the Kings' streak, but the two points in the playoff race might have come at a high price. Ryan Getzlaf , the team's leading scorer, sprained his left ankle during the second period and left the arena wearing a boot and on crutches. X-rays were negative, but an MRI exam is scheduled for Tuesday. "That will give us a better indication of the severity of the sprain," Coach Randy Carlyle said. The Ducks have three games remaining before the Olympic break, when Getzlaf is scheduled to play for Canada in Vancouver.