Ducks Stay Alive!

The defending Stanley Cup champion Anaheim Ducks found themselves in a very unfamiliar situation tonight as they faced an elimination game against the Dallas Stars. During their 2006-2007 title run, the Ducks never faced such a game. In order to continue their title defense, the Ducks would have to win three straight games starting with tonight's game at the Honda Center.

The Ducks played like a team with a purpose all night long, one with the heart of a champion. Corey Perry scored a goal 8:25 into the first period to give the champs a 1-0 lead. The Stars tied it up a little more than 10 minutes later on a Mattias Norstrom score. After one period, the game was tied at 1.

The rest of the game though, it was all Ducks as they took advantage of two power plays to take control. Ryan Getzlaf scored 11:03 into the second period on a traditional one man advantage to give the Ducks a 2-1 lead. Teemu Selanne converted on a 5-on-3 advantage less than a minute into the third period to give the Ducks a 3-1 lead. Mike Ribiero answered Selanne's goal for the Stars less than four minutes later to narrow the Ducks lead to a goal. A Sean O'Donnell goal at 12:05 gave the Ducks a 4-2 lead to effectively put the game away. Todd Marchant added an empty net goal with 1:24 to play to close out the scoring in the Ducks 5-2 win.

Stellar goaltending by Jean Sebastian Giguere (40 saves in 42 shots) and great penalty killing (Dallas was 0-for-7 on power plays) complimented the Ducks offensive outburst. Game six of the series will be in Dallas at 9PM ET/6PM PT.

-----