Anaheim Ducks Hockey Team

Many eyebrows were raised last summer when the Ducks signed Todd Bertuzzi to a two-year, $8-million free-agent contract even though the big winger had been injured most of last season. And the whispers that Bertuzzi was on the decline as an impact player seemed to be supported by his slow start in Anaheim, which included a concussion that knocked him out for a month early in the season. The jury may still be out on his signing, but Bertuzzi is making a difference now.

Back in his early days of junior hockey, Ryan Getzlaf was like many youngsters who dreamed of being a star in the NHL but also worried if they would ever be drafted. Getzlaf's only worry now is dealing with impending stardom, after the Ducks' center earned his first All-Star game selection Thursday as the Western Conference reserves were announced for the Jan. 27 event in Atlanta.

Back at practice after a day off following their decisive victory over Toronto on Wednesday, the Ducks got some more good news Friday as forwards Samuel Pahlsson and Brad May went through a grinding session without a hitch. Both appear set to return from injury for the Ducks' home game Sunday against San Jose, leaving Coach Randy Carlyle with this question: Whom does he sit?

Having pulled themselves into the thick of the Pacific Division race, the Ducks can take direct aim at the two teams ahead of them in the standings. The Ducks play host to San Jose tonight and Dallas on Tuesday night in two games that could propel them into first place. But the results against each this season couldn't be any different. Anaheim has won four of five meetings against San Jose with its only loss coming in a shootout. It has dropped all three against Dallas.

Two moments that struck like bolts of lightning Sunday night sent the San Jose Sharks looking for cover and the thunder that followed at the Honda Center was the sound of 17,174 people in delirium. Less than a minute away from a key loss to the NHL's best road team, the Ducks snatched a win away from their Pacific Division rival with an improbable 4-3 overtime victory that extended their home winning streak to six games.

It isn't often that Francois Beauchemin has scored a game-winning goal in overtime. In fact, the Ducks' third-year defenseman couldn't recall Monday if he had scored an overtime goal in junior hockey or the minor leagues. "That's not something you really think about," said Beauchemin, a day after his second goal of the season beat San Jose, 4-3. "But I'm glad that it happened." Beauchemin hasn't had a lot of great moments.

Riding alongside each other atop the Pacific Division standings for much of the season, the San Jose Sharks and Dallas Stars have had the Ducks squarely in their sideview mirrors. It might be time for a warning as the object is closer than it appears. Two nights after a dramatic comeback victory over the Sharks, the Ducks pulled even closer to the division leaders with a thorough 4-2 victory over Dallas to finish off a four-game homestand without a defeat Tuesday night at the Honda Center.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Numbers have never truly defined Scott Niedermayer's impact on a team, but there is one set that is the clearest gauge of what he has meant to the Ducks since he ended his dance with retirement. 10-2-2. Before the defenseman's return, the Ducks were an inconsistent bunch stumbling along with a 15-15-4 record that had them sitting outside the Western Conference playoff picture. Since the return of Niedermayer, the Ducks sit one point out of the Pacific Division lead.

NASHVILLE -- Most of the Ducks' goaltending records that Jean-Sebastien Giguere holds are of the playoff variety. The club's career marks don't approach his way very often. Now the team's longest-tenured player with six-plus years of service, Giguere was well aware that he needed one shutout to surpass Guy Hebert and he did what he could to get it Thursday night against the Nashville Predators.

ST. PAUL, Minn. -- Todd Bertuzzi wouldn't go so far as to say that the chemistry he has going with Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry reminds him of his Vancouver days when he tore up the NHL with Markus Naslund and Brendan Morrison. But now that Bertuzzi is piling up the points along with his current linemates, the three are as hot a trio as there is in the league. They combined for three goals and six assists in the Ducks' 4-2 victory Friday night over the Minnesota Wild at Xcel Energy Center.