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The Sports Network
(Sports Network) - The Ducks' Teemu Selanne continues to produce despite being
on the other side of 40, while Steven Stamkos of the Lightning has established
himself as one of the best young stars in the game.
Even with their difference in age, the goal for the two remains the same: make
the playoffs.
Anaheim and Tampa Bay continue that quest this evening in the lone meeting
between the two clubs this season.
Neither the Ducks or Lightning looked like playoff contenders early on in the
season, but the franchises have been doing an excellent job of making up
ground. Anaheim comes into tonight five points behind Calgary and Los Angeles
for the eighth seed in the Western Conference, while Tampa Bay is six points
back of the East's final playoff position.
The Ducks have not suffered a regulation loss since Feb. 1 and are in the
midst of a 6-0-3 run that was extended with Sunday's shutout victory over the
hosting Panthers. Selanne netted his 20th goal of the season and Niklas Hagman
sealed the 2-0 win with an empty-net tally.
Jonas Hiller made 31 saves for his third shutout of the season and 14th of his
career for the Ducks, who bounced back from Friday's shootout loss to the
Devils to improve to 4-0-2 on an eight-game road trip that ends at Carolina on
Thursday. Anaheim hasn't logged points in 10 straight games since going 8-0-2
from Feb. 25-March 16, 2007.
"Everybody has the belief that we can climb back (into the playoffs)," Selanne
said. "We're still not really there, but it's good to get a win tonight. I
don't think we played that well, but Jonas was really good today."
Selanne has been good all season. His 657 career goals moved him one ahead of
Brendan Shanahan for sole possession of 12th place on the all-time list and
the 41-year-old Selanne also became the oldest player to net 20 goals in a
season since Johnny Bucyk did so for Boston during the 1976-77 campaign.
Stamkos, meanwhile, continues to reach his own milestones. His league-leading
40th goal of the season on Saturday gave the Lightning a big 2-1 win over the
Capitals and made him just the fifth player in league history to log three
straight 40-goal seasons before turning 23. The other four are Wayne Gretzky,
Mario Lemieux, Dale Hawerchuk and Alex Ovechkin.
He also broke his own franchise record with his ninth game-winning goal of the
season.
"It's nice," Stamkos added. "Little kind of milestones you set before the
year, but it's also nice to get the win, especially at this time of year when
we're battling for that last playoff spot. It was a huge win for us. I thought
we played solid defensively and capitalized on our chances. We're inching
closer and we have to keep being hungry."
Tom Pyatt also scored for Tampa Bay and Mathieu Garon made 23 saves, including
eight in the third period to protect a one-goal lead. Tampa Bay bounced back
defensively after posting a 6-5 overtime victory against San Jose on Thursday.
"We isolated this game. Nothing before and nothing after. It was just one game
against Washington," said Lightning coach Guy Boucher. "There was a few things
we wanted to do better, namely not allow five goals."
The Lightning, who have won six of their last nine at home and close out a
four-game residency, held the Capitals to one goal on the same day they traded
defenseman Pavel Kubina to Philadelphia for a pair of draft picks and a minor
leaguer. Tampa Bay had dealt Dominic Moore to the Sharks last Thursday as
well.
The club could also find itself without Vincent Lecavalier tonight after he
left Monday's practice early. The Lightning said he has an upper-body issue
and is day-to-day.
The Ducks have won three straight -- all beyond regulation -- versus the
Lightning and six of the past seven encounters overall. They notched a 3-2
home victory in overtime last year after having posted a shootout victory in
Tampa Bay in their last trip there on Jan. 29, 2010.
Anaheim has won three straight as the guest in this series.
The Sports Network