Jean Sebastien Giguere

Jean-Sebastien Giguere is not the overnight sensation some people might think. Living in Calgary, where he used to play, I have been watching him for many years. I have seen where he was and I have seen where he has gone. His success is based purely on hard work. When he was in Calgary, he realized he had a long way to go to be a good NHL goaltender. He was willing to listen and put in the work to get to the next level. And then, he was willing to continue to work hard to get to where he is now.

KINGS TONIGHT At COLORADO When: 6 PST. Where: Pepsi Center. On the air: TV: NBC Sports Network; Radio: 1150. Records: Kings 27-21-12, Avalanche 29-27-4. Record vs. Avalanche: 0-2-1. Update: This will complete a back-to-back sequence for the Kings, who are 3-3-4 in the second game of previous back-to-back sequences. With a goal and an assist Tuesday in a 5-4 shootout loss at Phoenix, Dustin Brown had his first multi-point game since Jan. 14. The Avalanche on Tuesday added depth up front by acquiring gritty Steve Downie from Tampa Bay for defenseman Kyle Quincey, who was traded on to Detroit.

Ryane Clowe scored with less than seven minutes left in the third period, leading the San Jose Sharks to a 3-2 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs on Monday night. Dan Boyle and Joe Pavelski also had goals for the Sharks, who sent Jean-Sebastien Giguere to his first loss since being acquired from the Ducks on Jan. 31. Giguere had posted shutouts in his first two games with Toronto. Tyler Bozak and Phil Kessel scored for the Maple Leafs, who nearly tied it with a flurry in the final minute of regulation.

It takes a lot to build a successful homecoming. On and off the ice. The Ducks helpfully complied at both ends of Jean-Sebastien Giguere's return experience, honoring the former Anaheim goalie with a video tribute in the first period Saturday night. Fans at Honda Center paid homage too, with standing ovations for the man who helped the Ducks win the Stanley Cup in 2007. The current Ducks didn't do much to trouble Giguere, who was playing in Anaheim for the first time since he was traded in 2010.

Homecoming, delayed. After almost two years, former Ducks goalie Jean-Sebastien Giguere gets to say thank you to the fans in the building where he helped Anaheim win the Stanley Cup in 2007. Giguere, who is now with the Colorado Avalanche, was traded to Toronto on Jan. 31, 2010, and the Ducks happened to be on a trip when the deal was completed. The Ducks will honor him with a video tribute during the game's first TV timeout Saturday night at Honda Center. "It's going to be nice to be able to go to where I feel is my second home and where my kids have been born," he said Friday morning on a conference call with reporters.

Ducks tonight AT TORONTO When: 4 PST. Where: Air Canada Centre. On the air: TV: Prime Ticket; Radio: 830. Records: Ducks 26-19-4, Maple Leafs 18-22-5. Record vs. Maple Leafs (2009-10): 0-1-0. Update: The last time the teams met, Jean-Sebastien Giguere was still a Duck and his team was slumping. Different story now. The Ducks are going for their third win in a row and have won eight of their last 10 games. And Giguere?

Jonas Hiller is no longer a renter. He closed escrow on a place on the sand in Newport Beach in December, ending his annual ritual of moving out of a furnished rental at season's end to make way for summer tenants. Far more important for the Ducks, the 28-year-old Swiss goaltender has taken up residence in a small but very valuable piece of real estate between the goalposts at the Honda Center. That six-by-four-foot opening used to be the home of Jean-Sebastien Giguere, winner of the 2003 Conn Smythe Trophy and the 2007 Stanley Cup. Now it belongs to Hiller, whose 21 wins, 2.39 goals-against average, .929 save percentage and back-to-back shutouts earned him a spot on the NHL All-Star roster Tuesday, one of six goalies on the team announced for the Jan. 30 game in Raleigh, N.C. "It's a great feeling to have the chance go there and it's a great honor and I'm really excited," Hiller said.

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.

A couple of weeks ago, the Ducks couldn't trust their goaltending, and goalie Jean-Sebastien Giguere didn't seem to trust himself or the defense in front of him on the rare occasions he played. Even Coach Randy Carlyle was only partly joking Friday when somebody said his players hadn't looked like they'd played this game before. "I agree with you," he said to laughs all around. That's because the Ducks had just ended the Chicago Blackhawks' eight-game winning streak with a 3-0 shutout at Honda Center, two days after Chicago dealt a 7-2 defeat to San Jose, which has the NHL's best record.

at Montreal, 4 PDT Site -- Bell Centre. TV -- Ch. 56. Radio -- 830. Records -- Ducks 3-5; Canadiens 5-0-1. Record vs. Canadiens (2007-08) -- 1-0. Update -- Ducks goaltender Jonas Hiller, who started Friday night in Ottawa, probably will start again. If not, Jean-Sebastien Giguere is 3-2 in six career games against the Canadiens with a 2.64 goals-against average. The Canadians haven't played since a 3-1 victory Monday against the visiting Florida Panthers.

Homecoming, delayed. After almost two years, former Ducks goalie Jean-Sebastien Giguere gets to say thank you to the fans in the building where he helped Anaheim win the Stanley Cup in 2007. Giguere, who is now with the Colorado Avalanche, was traded to Toronto on Jan. 31, 2010, and the Ducks happened to be on a trip when the deal was completed. The Ducks will honor him with a video tribute during the game's first TV timeout Saturday night at Honda Center. "It's going to be nice to be able to go to where I feel is my second home and where my kids have been born," he said Friday morning on a conference call with reporters.

Jonas Hiller is no longer a renter. He closed escrow on a place on the sand in Newport Beach in December, ending his annual ritual of moving out of a furnished rental at season's end to make way for summer tenants. Far more important for the Ducks, the 28-year-old Swiss goaltender has taken up residence in a small but very valuable piece of real estate between the goalposts at the Honda Center. That six-by-four-foot opening used to be the home of Jean-Sebastien Giguere, winner of the 2003 Conn Smythe Trophy and the 2007 Stanley Cup. Now it belongs to Hiller, whose 21 wins, 2.39 goals-against average, .929 save percentage and back-to-back shutouts earned him a spot on the NHL All-Star roster Tuesday, one of six goalies on the team announced for the Jan. 30 game in Raleigh, N.C. "It's a great feeling to have the chance go there and it's a great honor and I'm really excited," Hiller said.

BOSTON (AP) — U.S. Olympian Tim Thomas, back from Vancouver and back from a slump that sent the reigning Vezina Trophy winner to the bench, made 24 saves in regulation and overtime and added three more in the shootout Thursday night to lead the Boston Bruins to a 3-2 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs. Miroslav Satan, who scored Boston's first goal, had the only goal in the shootout. Thomas stopped Tyler Bozak with a pad save to end it, then started pumping his glove to celebrate Boston's first win in Boston since the New Year's Day Winter Classic, and the Bruins' first win of 2010 in the TD Garden.

Ryane Clowe scored with less than seven minutes left in the third period, leading the San Jose Sharks to a 3-2 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs on Monday night. Dan Boyle and Joe Pavelski also had goals for the Sharks, who sent Jean-Sebastien Giguere to his first loss since being acquired from the Ducks on Jan. 31. Giguere had posted shutouts in his first two games with Toronto. Tyler Bozak and Phil Kessel scored for the Maple Leafs, who nearly tied it with a flurry in the final minute of regulation.

Jean-Sebastien Giguere became the first goalie in Toronto history to have shutouts in his first two games with the team, stopping 30 shots to help the Maple Leafs beat Ottawa, 5-0, Saturday night -- ending the Senators' winning streak at 11 games. Acquired in a trade with the Ducks on Jan. 31, Giguere beat New Jersey, 3-0, Tuesday night. Phil Kessel and Luke Schenn each had two goals and an assist, and Tyler Bozak also scored for the Maple Leafs against Ottawa. The Senators had not lost a game since Jan. 12, establishing a franchise record by reeling off 11 wins in a row. -- associated press

Jean-Sebastien Giguere and Dion Phaneuf made the most of their Maple Leafs debut Tuesday night, leading Toronto to a 3-0 victory over the New Jersey Devils that snapped a six-game losing streak. Giguere, acquired Sunday from the Ducks, finished with 30 saves, becoming only the second goalie in team history to record a shutout in his debut. By the end of the first period, Phaneuf, who arrived from Calgary in a Sunday trade, had landed a hit, taken part in a fight and received an ovation.