Sandis Ozolinsh

The suspects were usual. Running through a list -- a short one -- of who played well, Mighty Duck Coach Mike Babcock said: "I thought Dan Bylsma grinded it hard. I thought [Samuel] Pahlsson has been real good. We're getting contributions from some of those guys." Missing from that roll call were some hefty names, including Sergei Fedorov and Vaclav Prospal. "You win together, you lose together," Babcock said. * The news on injured Duck defenseman Sandis Ozolinsh was ambiguous Sunday.

Saying he has found sobriety after a month-plus stay in the NHL's substance abuse and behavioral program, Sandis Ozolinsh was back in a Mighty Duck uniform Thursday as the team resumed practice after a 10-day break for the Winter Olympics. Although unwilling to divulge specifics about the nature of his problem or his time in the program -- run jointly by the NHL and the players' union -- Ozolinsh said he was glad to be back.

Sandis Ozolinsh scored with 1:59 remaining to give the San Jose Sharks a 1-0 victory over the Chicago Blackhawks on Sunday at San Jose. Ozolinsh was too deep in the offensive zone and not in good position to get back on defense when he took a pass from Johan Garpenlov and scored the winner. "I was in the wrong place at the right time," the defenseman said with a grin.

Mighty Duck defenseman Sandis Ozolinsh has voluntarily entered the NHL's substance-abuse and behavioral health program and will leave the team for an indefinite amount of time, officials with the league, the players' union and the team said Thursday. Ozolinsh, 33, will receive treatment at an undisclosed facility under the joint care of Dr. Dave Lewis of the NHL and Dr. Brian Shaw of the NHL Players' Assn.

Six-time all-star defenseman Sandis Ozolinsh and top minor league prospect Byron Ritchie were traded by the Carolina Hurricanes to the Florida Panthers on Wednesday for three players. The Hurricanes received defenseman Bret Hedican, center Kevyn Adams and minor league prospect Tomas Malec. Ozolinsh, in his 10th NHL season, was picked as a starter for the World all-star team for the second consecutive season despite offensive numbers that didn't match his days with the Colorado Avalanche.

Sandis Ozolinsh may feel better walking up and down staircases but his balky left knee isn't ready for the ice. The Mighty Duck defenseman remained on injured reserve Wednesday as he sat out his sixth consecutive game because of the strained knee. Ozolinsh, 33, has played in only 13 games after signing a two-year, $5.5-million extension on July 29. The 14-year veteran injured the knee Nov. 27 against Chicago and hasn't skated since.

Sandis Ozolinsh skated with teammates for a second consecutive day, but it remained uncertain when he could play again. Ozolinsh, the Mighty Ducks' top offensive-minded defenseman, underwent shoulder surgery Jan. 2 and has played only 28 games this season. "He looks good to me," Coach Mike Babcock said after the Ducks' workout Thursday at their Anaheim practice facility. "We'd love for this guy to play."

Cross-check him in the back. Make him skate laps. Just don't ask Sandis Ozolinsh to assess how he's playing. "I do not know. I do not watch the games," the Latvian-born defenseman said Sunday after scoring the Mighty Ducks' only goal in a 1-1 tie with the Minnesota Wild. "I'm my worst critic. I'll take the Fifth Amendment." And how does he know the U.S. Constitution well enough to offer that excuse? "Watching way too much CNN," he said.

Each day, defenseman Sandis Ozolinsh gets a little more comfortable, a little more knowledgeable, playing for the Mighty Ducks. Ozolinsh, acquired from Florida on Jan. 30, has been playing more or less on instinct. That has been good enough for a goal and two assists in four games. But practices, like Monday's, are getting him up to speed. "There is a big difference in the way we played in Florida and the way this team plays," Ozolinsh said. "The systems are different.

Mighty Duck defenseman Sandis Ozolinsh practiced with his teammates for the first time since injuring his left knee Nov. 27 against Chicago. In what has been an injury-plagued season, Ozolinsh had reason to be in an upbeat mood Monday. The 13-year veteran said there is minor discomfort but none of the persistent pain that has kept him out of the lineup the last eight games.

Mighty Duck defenseman Sandis Ozolinsh practiced with his teammates for the first time since injuring his left knee Nov. 27 against Chicago. In what has been an injury-plagued season, Ozolinsh had reason to be in an upbeat mood Monday. The 13-year veteran said there is minor discomfort but none of the persistent pain that has kept him out of the lineup the last eight games.

Sandis Ozolinsh may feel better walking up and down staircases but his balky left knee isn't ready for the ice. The Mighty Duck defenseman remained on injured reserve Wednesday as he sat out his sixth consecutive game because of the strained knee. Ozolinsh, 33, has played in only 13 games after signing a two-year, $5.5-million extension on July 29. The 14-year veteran injured the knee Nov. 27 against Chicago and hasn't skated since.

Sandis Ozolinsh skated with teammates for a second consecutive day, but it remained uncertain when he could play again. Ozolinsh, the Mighty Ducks' top offensive-minded defenseman, underwent shoulder surgery Jan. 2 and has played only 28 games this season. "He looks good to me," Coach Mike Babcock said after the Ducks' workout Thursday at their Anaheim practice facility. "We'd love for this guy to play."

The suspects were usual. Running through a list -- a short one -- of who played well, Mighty Duck Coach Mike Babcock said: "I thought Dan Bylsma grinded it hard. I thought [Samuel] Pahlsson has been real good. We're getting contributions from some of those guys." Missing from that roll call were some hefty names, including Sergei Fedorov and Vaclav Prospal. "You win together, you lose together," Babcock said. * The news on injured Duck defenseman Sandis Ozolinsh was ambiguous Sunday.

Cross-check him in the back. Make him skate laps. Just don't ask Sandis Ozolinsh to assess how he's playing. "I do not know. I do not watch the games," the Latvian-born defenseman said Sunday after scoring the Mighty Ducks' only goal in a 1-1 tie with the Minnesota Wild. "I'm my worst critic. I'll take the Fifth Amendment." And how does he know the U.S. Constitution well enough to offer that excuse? "Watching way too much CNN," he said.

Relief, or perhaps refuge, was supposedly one question away and one door away for the tortured defenseman under the lights. "One more, one more," said the Mighty Duck public relations assistant. This was more for the benefit of Sandis Ozolinsh than the media. The handlers know how he feels in regard to his obvious dislike of the television cameras, in particular, the blinding confessional lights. In fact, he had switched nameplates in the morning before Game 2 to avoid such a moment.

He might have been the last man on his team, the last player on the ice, or quite frankly, the last person in the Arrowhead Pond to know he had scored one of the most improbable goals of the playoffs. Of course. Especially when his shot wasn't really intended to be a shot. He was trying to create something out of nothing in the second period from the neutral zone, trying to get the puck deep and maybe generate a scoring opportunity. Opportunity, thy name is Sandis Ozolinsh.

Sandis Ozolinsh didn't trust himself to look up when he received a hearty ovation before Sunday's NHL All-Star game. Uncomfortable about returning to the Office Depot Center after the Florida Panthers traded him to the Mighty Ducks on Thursday, he considered pulling out of the game. He was talked into it by friends and was glad he got a chance to savor the affection of Panther fans who stuffed ballot boxes to get him into the East starting lineup.

He might have been the last man on his team, the last player on the ice, or quite frankly, the last person in the Arrowhead Pond to know he had scored one of the most improbable goals of the playoffs. Of course. Especially when his shot wasn't really intended to be a shot. He was trying to create something out of nothing in the second period from the neutral zone, trying to get the puck deep and maybe generate a scoring opportunity. Opportunity, thy name is Sandis Ozolinsh.

Hockey is offense. Sandis Ozolinsh, a defenseman, has held that thought from Latvia to the United States. It is what brought him from Florida to Anaheim. The Mighty Ducks plucked Ozolinsh from the Panthers in a January trade. In the largest dividend he has paid to date, he lured the Dallas Stars to one side of the rink Wednesday night, then slid a gotcha-pass to Mike Leclerc for the game-winning goal in a 1-0 victory. That is what has made him special through 10-plus seasons in the NHL.