Anaheim Ducks goalie Jonas Hiller watches the puck fly past him Sunday against the Phoenix Coyotes in Anaheim, Calif. The puck missed the goal.
ANAHEIM, Calif. – The Anaheim Ducks have rediscovered what makes their power play tick. And just in time for their belated playoff push.
Ryan Getzlaf scored twice with the man advantage in the third period, Scott Niedermayer and rookie Andrew Ebbett also had power-play goals, and the Ducks beat the Phoenix Coyotes 6-2 on Sunday night for their fourth victory in five games.
The four power-play goals tied a franchise record for the Ducks, who climbed within a point of Nashville for the eighth and final Western Conference playoff spot and remained tied with Minnesota.
“We’re playing desperate hockey right now,” Getzlaf said. “The situation is pretty much do or die from here on out. Every night is a playoff game for us, and it’s nice to see that we’re recognizing the situation we’re in. We have a huge game coming up against Nashville on Tuesday, so we just have to continue playing the way we are.
“The games are against the teams that we’re going to be playing are going to be tough. We’ve got to get better and play harder, and we’re looking forward to the challenge,” Getzlaf added.
Anaheim is 7 for 12 on the power play over its last three games, after going 1 for 28 in the previous eight.
“The power play has been effective for us at times and ineffective at times,” Getzlaf said. “This was one of those games that we needed it big-time, and we were able to deliver.”
Petr Prucha and Shane Doan scored second-period goals for Phoenix. Ilya Bryzgalov, the backup goalie for the Ducks two seasons ago when they won the Stanley Cup, finished with 24 saves after allowing six or more goals for the sixth time this season.
“They shoot, they score. That is the difference,” Bryzgalov said. “We get a power play, we are not bearing down. They get a power play and they are scoring goals. We can’t take the dumb penalties against a team like Anaheim.”
Flyers 3, Penguins 1: At Pittsburgh, Simon Gagne and Scott Hartnell scored power-play goals, and Philadelphia handed Pittsburgh its first loss in a month.
Bruins 4, Devils 1: At Boston, Michael Ryder and Milan Lucic scored on deflections off New Jersey players for Eastern Conference-leading Boston.
Blackhawks 4, Kings 1: At Chicago, Patrick Sharp and Martin Havlat each scored two goals, Nikolai Khabibulin made 14 saves, and Chicago snapped a five-game winless streak (0-3-2).
Wild 3, Oilers 0: At St. Paul, Minn., Nicklas Backstrom made 31 saves for his seventh shutout of the season, and Owen Nolan scored twice for Minnesota.
Sharks 3, Avalanche 1: At San Jose, Calif., Milan Michalek had a goal and an assist, Evgeni Nabokov made 31 saves and San Jose reclaimed the overall NHL lead with its third home victory in four days.
Senators 2, Rangers 1: At New York, Ryan Shannon snapped a third-period tie, and Alex Auld made 28 saves in a rare start for Ottawa.