Adam Brady is the Director of Publications & New Media for the Anaheim Ducks and Honda Center. Email him by CLICKING HERE. Archives Ducks Blog on OCRegister.com Get updates of this blog on Twitter

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Updated February 9 at 1:38 p.m.

Gotta say, that one felt pretty good last night.

It's always gratifying beating the Kings, sure, but that one felt just a little juicier -- and for a number of reasons.

For one, it brought L.A.'s gaudy nine-game winning streak to a screeching halt. It also marked the first Ducks win over the Kings this season, with the bitter taste of last Thursday's defeat at Staples Center still lingering entering last night. It kept the Ducks that-much-closer in the playoff race, with the seventh spot now just four points away. It gave the Ducks a pretty impressive 10th straight win at Honda Center, tying a franchise record. Also, it came against the Kings (maybe I mentioned that).

But this one came with a price, and one that is dominating Ducks talk this morning much more than last night's win. Not long after scoring a big goal to put the Ducks up 2-1 (more on that later), Ryan Getzlaf went down with an ankle injury after getting twisted up with L.A.'s Dustin Brown on the same play where Corey Perry's goal was waved off when officials determined (possibly incorrectly) that he interfered with goalie Jonathan Quick. In fact, this photo here dutifully illustrates both of those unfortunate circumstances (clearly Teemu Selanne isn't pleased).

Getzlaf left the game and didn't return. X-rays were negative but he left the arena in a walking boot. (Let's just say the postgame spring in my step got a lot less springy when I passed him in the hall as he headed out, a noticeable grimace on his face.)

Getzlaf, however, was somewhat optimistic when he talked to reporters this morning prior to getting an MRI.

"I feel a lot better actually," Getzlaf said. "Last night was pretty ugly at times and painful. The swelling reacted perfectly. There is not much swelling in it. I am going to get an MRI right now and we’ll see how it goes from there.

"With the way the play went and the way it felt, it was definitely a scary time. Last night was tough for me. This morning, it looked really positive. My meetings with our trainers so far have gone really well. I’m crossing my fingers going to get the MRI this afternoon."

Yeah, you're not the only one. There might be some toes crossed right now -- all the way from Orange County to the Great White North, where Getzlaf's availability for Team Canada is also riding on how the ankle responds.  

Getzlaf, of course, is likely to play on a line with Corey Perry on that team (trust me, I'm going somewhere with this), and if there was ever a time those two put their chemistry on display, it was on that Getzlaf goal. Perry made it happen by beating two Kings to the puck behind the net, and then dropped a pass to Getzlaf as if he just knew he'd be there. From there, all Getzlaf had to do was bang it past a somewhat caught-off-guard Quick.

That was just part of a tremendous night for Perry, who did it both with and without Getzlaf out there with him. He set up Anaheim's first goal in the first, picking up a loose puck and firing a shot that was blocked in front, but Selanne was able to lift it just inside the far post. It was a big goal because to that point Quick was quite stingy -- -- including on that very play (Johnny Ahlers' call: "If at first you don't succeed, try, try, try, try, try again.").   

Perry's goal late in the second was a monster one as well, giving the Ducks a little more comfort with a two-goal lead they took into the intermission and held for the final 20. Not to mention, it came 24 seconds after Anze Kopitar brought the Kings to within a goal.  And he did it pretty much all himself, snaking into the offensive zone and then slinging a sick wrist shot from a tough angle that somehow fit into the inches-wide gap between Quick's leg pad and the far post. Let's also not forget that some thought the Perry goal that was waved off for goalie interference should have been allowed.

Perry's workmanlike effort the entire evening was emblematic of the entire Ducks team that clearly showed how crucial that game was. That includes Jonas Hiller, who sparkled yet again, notably in a third period in which the Kings peppered him with 18 shots and he allowed none to get by him.

"I think," Scott Niedermayer said, "we were tired of losing to them."

And it showed.


I've tried not to write about any of the contestants in the Who Wants to Host Ducks TV? contest for fear of showing favoritism, but I can't help myself when it comes to Kevin Erdman, who hosted last night. Erdman, you might remember, has appeared in this space before for representing the Ducks with hats and shirts he wore while a contestant on the Golf Channel reality show, "The Big Break."

Known for his gaudy attire (in addition to his Ducks gear) on the show, Erdman topped himself last night with this phenomenal suit. And giving Wild Wing a quick golf lesson at the end? A nice touch.

Click here to watch the entire episode.

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Updated February 8 at 2:54 p.m.

Right about now, it doesn't get much bigger than this one tonight.

It's the Kings here at Honda Center, a team the Ducks haven't beaten yet in three tries, a team the Ducks suffered a heartbreaking loss to at their place four nights ago. But more than that, it's a critical time for Anaheim, which came out of a rare game-free weekend five points back of Nashville's eighth spot with 24 games to go.

Ironically, the Kings gave the Ducks a little help by ensuring that Detroit didn't also reach Nashville's 66-point plateau by making a comeback from down 3-0 to knock off the Red Wings on Saturday afternoon. That was the Kings' ninth straight victory, a streak that really needs to come to an end tonight. The Ducks, meanwhile, have won nine in a row at home, not having lost at Honda Center in more than two months.

None of those games, however, have been more crucial than this one. "We were able to battle back last game and show we can play with that team," Ryan Getzlaf said after the skate this morning. "We need to take that confidence into tonight's first period.

"We're coming down to crunch time now."

Man, do I want this one. Badly.




Goalie Vesa Toskala, picked up with Jason Blake in the J.S. Giguere trade with Toronto, finally arrived in Anaheim after getting through the immigration process and obtaining a work visa. Toskala practiced with the team Sunday, donning his Toronto mask with a Ducks practice jersey. When asked when he would get a new mask, Toskala told reporters, "Hopefully soon, so I can wash that blue and white out of my gear.”

Toskala had his struggles in Toronto, but certainly wasn't the only one. “As a team in Toronto, we weren’t very good in front of him … the defense and the forwards just didn’t get the job done," Blake told the O.C. Register. "There were so many nights when we left him and our other goaltender out to dry.”

It wasn't enough for Toskala to lose confidence in himself. “I don’t think I’m a backup goalie,” he said. “I obviously want to play a lot, and I know how good I can play. But like I said earlier, there are lots of things you can’t control in this league. I just do whatever I have to do here to help the team make the playoffs. I’m not going to complain or anything. If it’s my call, I would play every game because I love to play. When I play a lot, I play my best.”

Toskala will be wearing 36, by the way.


Our sincerest condolences go out to Brian Burke and his family for the loss of his son Brendan, who died Friday in a car accident in Indiana. Brendan was 21 years old. The weather-related accident also claimed the life of his friend Mark Reedy, 18.

You might remember Brendan was the subject of a fantastic ESPN.com story that centered around him revealing to his family and others that he was a homosexual. The author of that piece, John Buccigross, offered these thoughts on Brendan for the Toronto Star:

A select few people on this earth illuminate. They shine from an energy deep within their cores. Brendan Burke was one of those people. You liked him 10 seconds after you met him. His wasn't a flamboyant or self-serving gallop. He was there for you. He connected quickly because he had a genuine like and interest in you. And he had that youthful energy that he used to float through life. I imagine he would have had that bounce until every hair on his head was grey and brittle. He was a modern man with an old-school heart.

Several members of the Ducks organization are headed to the Boston area for Tuesday's memorial service, and there will be a moment of silence before tonight's game.

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Updated February 5 at 2:24 p.m.

The question is, does it hurt more to take a 4-0 loss to the Kings (as occurred three weeks ago), or to come all the way back from a three-goal deficit in the third and lose anyway (as happened last night)?

The answer: They both stink.

But that one last night was certainly tough to take after the Ducks found new life in that third period and fought to tie the game 4-4 on goals by Troy Bodie, Matt Beleskey and Ryan Carter. But last night's game -- the second of a back-to-back -- seemed to be all about energy for the Ducks. They came out flying in the first, slowed down in the second, found another gear in the third, but seemingly ran out of gas after scrapping to tie it.

"Fundamentally we made a couple mistakes that gave them an opportunity to attack in the neutral ice for their fifth," Randy Carlyle told reporters. "That's a sign of a tired group. We played a lot of hockey in the last little while. We came off a 13-day road trip. We played last night against Detroit. To me, it was mental tiredness more than physical tiredness, and we made some mistakes."

Indeed they did, which led to that three-goal deficit in the first place. But give it to the Ducks for not giving up and scoring three times in 6:24 to tie it. Unfortunately, they couldn't manage anything more, and instead gave up a go-ahead goal and insurance to the Kings, who haven't lost yet this season when leading after two periods.

If you believe in momentum, how about this? Less than four minutes after Ryan Carter scored the tying goal, Ryan Getzlaf put a big hit on Matt Greene that sent a pane of glass tumbling into the crowd. There was a pretty significant delay as they replaced the glass, and one minute after they finally resumed play, Dustin Brown got the eventual game-winner at 14:28.

Either way, it was a gut-twisting loss to what admitedly is a very good Kings team, a team that Ducks fans are going to have to begrudgingly root for (I'm sorry to say) tomorrow afternoon. That's because the Ducks have one of those rare weekends where they don't play a single game (not resuming until Monday night against the Kings at Honda Center). Meanwhile, the Kings face the Red Wings at Staples Center tomorrow at 1:00, with Detroit three points ahead of the Ducks in the ninth spot. Calgary, who like Detroit has 64 points, is in the eighth spot and plays tonight at Florida and tomorrow at Tampa.
Slight delay from our hockey operations guys on further explaining the Dan Sexton reassignment, so look for that this weekend.

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Updated February 4 at 2:57 p.m.

When your team wins a game it desperately has to have, it's pretty satisfying. When said game is against a team like the Detroit Red Wings, it's really satisfying. And when that win is spearheaded by another brilliant performance by the goalie who just got a brand new contract, that's off the charts.

There was a sign held up by fans at Honda Center last night that simply said:

HILLER THE NO. 1 RED WINGS KILLER

It's a label the Swiss kid earned in last year's seven-game playoff series against Detroit, and he's maintained it in the last two home wins against Anaheim's bitter rivals in the last month. Last night he was near-flawless in denying 46 of 47 Red Wings shots (a season high for saves) and making a few huge stops on Detroit power plays.

None was more impressive than this one on a Pavel Datsyuk breakaway, in which Hiller snatched a Datsyuk wrist shot out of the air with the glove, went into the splits and then sat there for five seconds like he was on his couch watching golf on a Sunday afternoon.

All the while, a huge roar rained down on him from an appreciative crowd who now know we'll be seeing stops like that for years to come. Datsyuk did eventually break through with a goal (Detroit's only one) on a very similar-looking play, and it broke a shutout streak of 155 minutes, 3 seconds for Hiller, best of his career.

If you're into numbers, try these on for size. Hiller in his last three games: 3-0 record, 0.65 goals-against average, .982 save percentage.

It was that type of goaltending last night that helped an early 3-0 Anaheim lead hold up with little doubt the rest of the way. Ryan Whitney, just added today to the U.S. Olympic team, wristed one through a Bobby Ryan screen just 1:11 in to put the Ducks up 1-0. Kyle Chipchura added to the lead later in the period when he got in the way of a Steve Eminger point shot enough to deflect it off his body and inside the post.

And Ryan put the Ducks comfortably in front with his 25th of the season in the second period, first whiffing on a one-timer try, then getting the puck right back from Ryan Getzlaf and calmly chipping it around Datsyuk and off the twine.(By the way, I know I give way too much love to BR, but I kind of dig that double-fist-pump-look-to-the-sky move he routinely does after he scores.)

All of it led to a mammoth win for the Ducks, because it kept Detroit from pulling away in the race for that eighth spot and got the Ducks to within three points.

But there is little time to celebrate it, as the Ducks had to turn around this morning and head up the freeway to take on the very hot (as much as it pains me to admit it) Kings tonight at Staples Center. The Kings have won seven in a row, and nine of their last 10, including that 4-0 victory at Staples on January 14 in which the third period got very violent (something neither team is likely to forget tonight). 

Like tonight, that game was the second in a back-to-back for the Ducks after a big home victory and the hope is that things will go a lot differently this time around. (I'll be up there doing the live game log, if anyone is interested.)

"This is, just like last night, our biggest game of the year," Ryan Whitney said this morning.

And James Wisniewski dismissed the back-to-back games concern. "We're working hard enough that we should be able to respond to this and understand it's such a  big game that we can put everything aside," he said. "We don't play for three days after this, so we should be able to come out flying."

Definitely looking forward to seeing that.

During a Ducks staff-wide meeting this morning, Bob Murray and David McNab candidly answered questions from all takers about the status of the team, the Giguere trade, etc. Among the questions brought up was the reassignment of Dan Sexton, something a lot of you fans have asked about in emails to me and on message boards. The move, which is temporary, is somewhat complicated and involves some provisions in the Collective Bargaining Agreement related to the Olympic break. McNab has agreed to explain it in writing, which he'll provide tomorrow and I'll run it here.

The other topic that I know is on a lot of Ducks' fans minds involves new goalie Vesa Toskala and the number he'll wear here. Toskala wore 35 in Toronto, which of course was Giguere's number. Murray confirmed that Toskala will likely wear a number in the 30s, but not 35.

So, you can breathe easy on that one.

Last night I got a chance to meet John T. Meyer, organizer of PickMyNHLTeam.com, the promotion the Ducks won in a landslide. He organized a "Tweetup" for last night's game and I was able to get together briefly before the game with John (who is extremely tall) and an enthusiastic group of Ducks fans.

Thank you again to John for putting that unique idea together and giving fans a chance to express why being a Ducks fan is so fun. 

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Updated February 3 at 12:13 p.m.

When it's the Red Wings, it's always big. But this one tonight is gargantuan.

That's because Detroit rolls into Anaheim on the strength of a 4-2 victory in San Jose last night that put them five points ahead of the Ducks in the eighth spot in the West. A Ducks victory tonight pulls them to within three or four (depending on it if comes in regulation or not); a loss drops them back to six or seven. That swing is huge, especially with the Ducks facing a tough one at Los Angeles the very next night.

That game will be the second of a back-to-back against a Kings team that isn't playing tonight. That's the same mini-luxury the Ducks are enjoying over the Wings tonight in Anaheim's first home game in more than two weeks. That time away from Honda Center slightly blurs the memory of the fact that the Ducks have won an impressive eight straight games in their rink, including a convincing 4-1 decision over these same Red Wings just under a month ago.

The Wings had been ravaged by injuries this season, a big reason they didn't creep into playoff contention until relatively recently. But (unfortunately) they're pretty much back to full health now, and it showed last night in San Jose where they crawled out of a 2-0 hole and rattled off four unanswered. Tomas Holmstrom got back into the lineup after missing 13 games with a broken foot, although d-man Niklas Kronwall injured his ankle late last night and won't play tonight.

That win in San Jose was also big for Detroit because it had lost seven of nine going in. Although, in four of those they went into extra time, so they still got points. And although most teams struggle in the back half of back-to-backs, Detroit has gone a surprising  5-3-1 in those this season.

Teemu Selanne, whose face is looking surprisingly alright as it continues to heel from that jaw fracture, had this to say about tonight's game: "It's going to be huge. We look at this game like a playoff game. We have to catch teams ahead of us. It's going to be fun, but same hand every point is so imporant right now."

Ah, "same hand." You haven't been around for a little while. Glad to see you're back.

Selanne was talking yesterday about his recovery from the injury and admitted he still needs to gain back about five or six pounds. "It's hard when you can pretty much only drink liquids the first 10 days," he said. "I highly recommend it to somebody who wants to lose weight. Don't break your jaw, but wire your mouth. It works."

Selanne also said the time away with the jaw injury allowed his once-broken hand to heal a little more, though it's still not 100 percent. "I'm good enough though," he said, "and I'm just happy to be back."

I think we're all happy about that, and happy the entire team is back from the road. Definitely looking forward to this one tonight.


It was odd being in the Ducks locker room this morning and seeing Justin Pogge's nameplate above the stall that J.S. Giguere owned for so many years.

And just as odd was turning on the TV last night and seeing images like this one (love the Ducks mask and pads with the Toronto uni).

And it was a nice debut with Toronto for Giguere, who pitched a 3-0 shutout for the Leafs in a win over the Devils. Although, Giguere wasn't overly tested by a New Jersey team that also has another former Duck on it, Rob Niedermayer.

In fact, I had almost forgotten that yesterday when I had the game on and heard them mention the name "Niedermayer." I had to look up at the screen to see who they were talking about. Watching a Toronto-New Jersey game and hearing the names "Giguere" and "Niedermayer" mentioned -- kind of strange.

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Updated February 2 at 12:49 p.m.

While the focus the last couple of days has been on the goalie the Ducks traded away, somebody made sure we didn't forget the one that's still here.

Jonas Hiller, playing his first game after signing a four-year extension with Anaheim on Saturday, shooed away all 33 Florida Panther shots in backstopping the Ducks to a 3-0 win.

It was the second shutout of the season for Hiller, and one that made the final minutes remaing compelling even after the Ducks had put the game away on a Corey Perry goal with 2:42 left (35-second mark of this highlight video). I for one was pulling hard for Hiller to polish off that blanking, though because of the TV blackout I had to do it while listening to the game on my laptop.

Hiller definitely had some help in that third period, as the Ducks PK was able to stifle three straight Florida power plays (including a 26-second stretch with the Panthers on a 5 on 3) to hang on to a two-goal lead.  And while Perry put the game away with his one-timer late in the third, that was hardly the biggest goal for the Ducks on the night. 

No, that would be the one with a half-second left in the second period, courtesy of a certain No. 8 playing his first game back after missing the last eight with a fractured jaw. Teemu Selanne, wearing a shield to protect that injury, punched in a rebound off a James Wisniewski one-timer off the post (23-second mark of this video) to give the Ducks a 2-0 lead. Wisniewski's shot rang the pipe and got behind goalie Tomas Vokoun, and Selanne was able to poke it over the stripe with barely enough time to spare. (A quick video replay courtesy of the video board feed confirmed it crossed in time.) “I knew there was not much time at all," Selanne said. "But still, you play until you hear the buzzer.”

That goal came on a Ducks power play that hasn't exactly been clicking on the road, and it's just the latest example of Selanne seizing the moment, something he's done so many times in his career. You might recall that the last time he came back from a long-term injury absence -- after missing 17 games with a broken hand -- he scored in his first game back in Nashville, then the next night in Chicago. (He's actually got goals in each of his last three full games, since he exited the next game against Boston with the jaw injury midway through.) Ryan Getzlaf was asked last night how many guys would be able to score in their first games back after lengthy injuries and he simply said, "Not many."

The fact that Getzlaf led off the Ducks scoring off a Florida turnover in the first (13-second mark), meant that all three Ducks goal-scorers found the net after not having done so in awhile. Getzlaf's goal was his first in the last six games, and Perry's was his first in the last seven (also his 20th of the year). Both, it would seem, benefitted from having Bobby Ryan rejoin them on the top line after newcomer Jason Blake was inserted with Selanne and Saku Koivu on the second unit.

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Updated February 1 at 11:21 a.m.

So overall, a pretty ho-hum weekend for the Anaheim Ducks.

It started Friday with a victory in Tampa Bay clinched in the third round of a shootout by a defenseman.

It continued Saturday with the Ducks solidifying their future by extending the contract of their No. 1 goalie.

And it ended Sunday with a monumental trade in which the team's one-time franchise goalie was traded away.

We'll start with the latter since it's freshest in our minds and certanly the most substantial. The trade of J.S. Giguere was almost like a bolt of lightning -- you can see it coming from a mile away, but it still surprises you. That's kind of how I felt when I woke up to this email yesterday morning from a member of our PR staff: Jiggy to Toronto. Be ready.

Soon enough, it became official: Giguere to the Leafs in exchange for winger Jason Blake and goalie Vesa Toskala.

It's a tough trade to make anytime you deal a guy who has been a face of your franchise for so long, but it's a trade that needed to be made. In the last year, Jonas Hiller has established himself as the No. 1 goalie in Anaheim, and the Ducks reinforced that by signing him to a four-year deal on Saturday. At the same time, Giguere struggled a bit and lost his grip on the top goaltender spot that belonged to him for so long.

But those struggles aren't what Ducks fans will remember about Giguere, who is unquestionably the best goalie in Anaheim Ducks history. They'll remember him almost single-handedly willing the team to within a game of a Stanley Cup title in 2003. They'll remember a heavily bearded Giguere accepting a well-deserved Conn Smythe Trophy in New Jersey, the look of that Game 7 disappointment written all over his face. They'll remember him bouncing back from the difficult birth of his first child in 2007 to help the Ducks win a Stanley Cup title. (And on that June 6, 2007 night when a cornucopia of emotions were in the air at Honda Center, this photo may have tugged at the heartstrings most of all.) They'll remember the class and dignity he showed -- while maintaining his signature competitive spirit -- when the No. 1 goalie spot was no longer his. And they'll remember him by virtue of the face that his name is pasted on virtually every Ducks franchise goalie record.

On Sunday we were reminded yet again that sports are a business, and the Ducks couldn't afford to keep both of their goaltenders. When Hiller established for the second straight year that he was the guy, a move had to be made. Giguere, meanwhile, will get the opportunity in Toronto to be a No. 1 again, and we wish him all the luck in the world in that journey.

Said Giguere yesterday, "I had 10 wonderful years living in Orange County and being part of the community. Both of my sons were born in Orange County so we’ll always have some very good memories of California and, of course, Anaheim. I think it was time for me to move on and try to get a fresh start. Try to get a new experience. But I’ll never forget what I had in Anaheim. It’s always going to be in my heart for sure.” There is a great Q&A with Giguere on the O.C. Register site, and if you want to join fellow Ducks fans in a special thank-you to Jiggy, check out this website.

As Bob Murray put it yesterday afternoon when he talked to reporters via conference call about the deal, "We feel we’re a better team today than we were yesterday." And that's because the Ducks made a significant upgrade at forward in getting veteran Jason Blake, a 36-year-old that can shoot the puck, has speed and can kill penalties. He scored 40 goals three seasons ago with the Islanders and 25 last year with the Leafs. Blake himself admitted things haven't been easy in Toronto the last couple of seasons, and the hope for everybody is that a change of scenery will do him some good. "He's a very good hockey player and getting out of Toronto is maybe a good thing for him right now," Murray said. Blake couldn't repeat the words "great opportunity" enough when he had his time with the media yesterday. (He's also excused for slipping and saying "Mighty Ducks" at one point.) And after joining the team in Florida in time for this morning's skate, he said, "I’m ecstatic. I haven’t smiled so much in three years.”

Meanwhile, in Toskala the Ducks get a capable veteran in net, at least for the remainder of this year, after which his contract runs out. And it also should be mentioned the Ducks dug out some significant cap room (not to mention $4 million in real dollars) that will come in handy for Murray this summer. That includes re-signing Bobby Ryan, though Murray said he didn't see that being a problem even before this trade was made. Nonetheless, he said, " I can’t tell you how much better I feel about having more [cap] room next year."

One of the unfortunate fallouts of the deal was the fact that soon afterward the Ducks found themselves with a surplus at forward and had to send Dan Sexton to Manitoba. But Murray insisted Sexton "will be back and I told him so. He’s going to be in the minors at this point, but he will return." (How ironic is it that Sexton's last act before being sent down was getting a 10-minute misconduct during that fracas near the end of regulation in Tampa?)

On the ice, the Ducks face the Panthers tonight (unfortunately no TV for either side because of the VERSUS exclusive window on Monday Nights), fresh off a thrilling shootout victory Friday night in Tampa. Right about now, that game seems like it happened about three weeks ago, but it doesn't take away from the fact it was a huge one for Anaheim -- not to mention James Wisniewski. Wiz scored one goal in regulation, and for the second time in less than a weak, potted the game-winner in the shootout. This time Randy Carlyle threw Wiz out there in the third round (he went in the seventh a week prior in St. Louis) and he responded by sending a quick wrist shot under Antero Niittymaki. And instead of celebrating with the brash come-and-get-it gesture he made in St. Louis, Wiz this time offered a Pronger-like uppercut with a smile he couldn't manage to wipe off his face.

“I’m riding a hot streak,” Wisniewski said. “They’re going with the big Polish righty.”

And you can bet everything you have that when the Ducks face their next shootout, Wiz will be among the first three shooters. Nevertheless, when Teemu Selanne (hanging around the locker room despite still being out with that jaw fracture) was asked to comment on Wisniewski's winner, he said with a smile, "Miracles happen." 

Overhearing that, Wisniewski responed, "Thanks, Teemu. I would say something else, but you have 595 goals."

And speaking of Teemu -- as if we haven't had enough to report in the past few days -- it's looking like he might be in the lineup when the Ducks drop the puck in Florida in a few hours. “I think I’m playing,” Selanne told reporters after the morning skate in which he took skated on a second line with Blake and Saku Koivu and tried on several versions of protective cages. “I talked to the doctors. Playing tonight or Wednesday isn’t going to be that much different. I’m very excited to be back in the lineup.”

Selanne making another triumpant return to the lineup after missing several games with an injury would normally be huge news in Anaheim. But after this weekend, just add it to the list.

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