GAME THREAD: NHL: COLUMBUS (7-4) at ANAHEIM (4-9)

NHL: COLUMBUS at ANAHEIM

<div class="pre">-----------------------------------------------------
COLUMBUS 0 0 1 0 (0) --1
ANAHEIM 0 0 1 0 (1) --2
-----------------------------------------------------

FIRST PERIOD -- Scoring: None. Penalties: Bench, Cob (too many men served by D
Fritsche), 4:11; M Peca, Cob (high sticking), 7:54; O Tollefsen, Cob
(tripping), 9:55; O Tollefsen, Cob (major fighting), 16:02; B May, Ana
(major fighting), 16:02; S Fedorov, Cob (holding stick), 16:48; R
Niedermayer, Ana (hooking), 18:13.

SECOND PERIOD -- Scoring: None. Penalties: J Chimera, Cob (tripping), 0:28; K Huskins,
Ana (tripping), 3:53; R Getzlaf, Ana (tripping), 8:26; T Moen, Ana
(major fighting), 14:47; J Boll, Cob (major fighting), 14:47; J
Chimera, Cob (major fighting), 18:34; A Mcdonald, Ana ( misconduct),
18:34; O Tollefsen, Cob ( misconduct), 18:34; S Hnidy, Ana (major
fighting), 18:34; R Klesla, Cob (cross checking), 20:00; F Beauchemin,
Ana (cross checking), 20:00.

THIRD PERIOD -- Scoring: 1, Anaheim, Rob Niedermayer 1 (Samuel
Pahlsson), 0:13. 2, Columbus, Nikolai Zherdev 3 (power play) (Ron
Hainsey, Sergei Fedorov)3:46. Penalties: M Mowers, Ana (tripping),
2:55; R Klesla, Cob (hooking), 9:35; K Huskins, Ana (tripping), 12:12;
A Mcdonald, Ana (holding), 16:02.

OVERTIME -- Scoring: None.

SHOOTOUT -- Anaheim, Ryan Getzlaf (missed), Mathieu
Schneider (goal), Chris Kunitz (missed). Columbus, Sergei Fedorov
(missed), Rick Nash (missed), David Vyborny (missed).

Shots on goal:
---------------------------------------------
COLUMBUS 6 4 7 3 --20
ANAHEIM 14 8 10 2 --34
---------------------------------------------

Power-play Conversions: COB - 1 of 6, ANA - 0 of 6. Goalies :
Columbus, Fredrik Norrena (34 shots, 33 saves; record: 1-2-1).
Anaheim, Jean-Sebastien Giguere (20 shots, 19 saves; record: 1-3-2).
A: 17,174. Referees: Brad Meier, Kelly Sutherland. Linesmen: Anthony
Sericolo, Mark Pare.

INDIVIDUAL PLAYER STATISTICS

COLUMBUS ANAHEIM
G A +/- Shots G A +/- Shots
J Novotny 0 0 even 0 C Perry 0 0 even 6
N Zherdev 1 0 even 4 M Schneider 0 0 even 2
G Brule 0 0 even 0 C Kunitz 0 0 even 3
M Peca 0 0 -1 1 R Getzlaf 0 0 even 2
K Russell 0 0 -1 0 G Parros 0 0 even 0
J Chimera 0 0 even 2 D Miller 0 0 even 1
M Malhotra 0 0 even 1 A McDonald 0 0 even 3
F Modin 0 0 even 0 S O'Donnell 0 0 +1 1
J Boll 0 0 -1 0 T Marchant 0 0 even 1
D Fritsche 0 0 even 1 F Beauchemin 0 0 +1 3
A Foote 0 0 even 1 B May 0 0 even 0
O Tollefsen 0 0 even 0 C Pronger 0 0 +1 3
R Hainsey 0 1 -1 3 S Pahlsson 0 1 +1 1
R Nash 0 0 -1 3 M Mowers 0 0 even 0
J Hejda 0 0 even 0 T Moen 0 0 even 2
D Vyborny 0 0 even 2 K Huskins 0 0 even 2
S Fedorov 0 1 even 1 R Niedermayer 1 0 +1 3
R Klesla 0 0 even 1 S Hnidy 0 0 even 1
J Shelley HEALTHY J DiPenta HEALTHY
D Westcott CONCUSSION M Kondratiev HEALTHY
C Glencross HEALTHY</div>

 

By Craig Schultz
PA SportsTicker Contributing Writer


ANAHEIM, California (Ticker) -- Mathieu Schneider returned to thelineup and made an immediate impact in his first game of theseason.


Schneider logged nearly 25 1/2 minutes of ice time and talliedthe shootout winner and Rob Neidermayer scored in regulation for<div class="pre">the Anaheim Ducks, who notched a 2-1 victory over the Columbus</div>Blue Jackets on Thursday.


Jean-Sebastien Giguere stopped 19 shots in 65 minutes and turnedaway all three shootout chances he faced for the Ducks, whosnapped the Blue Jackets' four-game winning streak.

Ryan Getzlaf had the first shootout chance for Anaheim but wasdenied by goaltender Fredrik Norrena, who stopped 33 shotsbefore the bonus format. After Sergei Fedorov hit the side ofthe net on Columbus' first opportunity, Schneider squeezed ashot between Norrena's pads to put the Ducks in front.

"I thought I had it first, but it just sneaked through my legs,"Norrena said.


Signed as a free agent over the summer to help alleviate theabsence of Scott Niedermayer, who still is contemplatingretirement, Schneider suffered a fractured ankle in thepreseason and missed Anaheim's first 13 games.


Schneider had never participated in a shootout before Thursday.

"I thought he was kidding at first," Schneider said when told bycoach Randy Carlyle he was participating. "(I just thought),'Don't fan on it.'


"I would have never imagined that finish. I thought we played agreat game. We deserved to win that in regulation. Even inovertime, we had some great chances."


Carlyle said it was a gut feeling to have Schneider shoot.

"Tonight, we found a way to win a shootout. We haven't had thatmuch success in shootouts," he said. "We decided to change itup a little bit. With (Schneider) not having been available tous for quite some time, we felt it was time for him to earn someof his keep.


"It was just one of those things that you do on the bench andyou make a decision, you go with it. We're not going to get toohigh with the shootout win because our motto's been, 'We won'tget too low when we lose one.' We won an extra point tonight.We competed hard. We were a physical team to play against. Itwas one of those hockey games that would have been a shame tolose."


Giguere stopped Rick Nash and David Vyborny to clinch the win,Anaheim's first in a shootout since March 4. The Ducks had lostfive consecutive shootouts.


"At the end of the day as a goalie, all you can do is try tomake saves," Giguere said. "You can't score goals and stufflike that, so you have to try to give your team a chance to winand hope that guys like Schneider are going to put it in."

Giguere said Schneider's return to the ice was a huge boost forthe Ducks.


"He has so much experience," Giguere said. "He's the type ofguy who gets the puck to the net on the power play. I thinkit's going to take a lot of pressure off of (Chris Pronger andFrancois Beauchemin), who were playing a big amount of minutes.I think to have three almost All-Star players like that on ourdefense is really going to help us."


Despite Anaheim totaling 22 shots in the first two periods, thegame remained scoreless until the final session.


The Ducks struck first just 13 seconds into the third, when RobNiedermayer took a pass from Samuel Pahlsson and skated from theright faceoff circle past defenseman Kris Russell to the slot,where he took a shot that went between Norrena's pads but cameout to the side of the net.


Rob Niedermayer drew blue-liner Ron Hainsey to the ice andskated to the front before finding the loose puck and putting itpast the goalie's right skate for his first goal of the season.

Returning to the lineup after missing three games with a groininjury, Rob Niedermayer scored for the first time in 38regular-season contests dating back to February 6.

Nikolai Zherdev tied it for the Blue Jackets with a power-playgoal at 3:46. Hainsey took a slap shot from the blue line thatGiguere stopped, but Zherdev put the rebound into an open netfor his third of the season.


"Our focus has been just trying to get pucks on the net forrebounds on the power play," Hainsey said. "There were somegood shots early on but through a lot of traffic. (Zherdev)just did a good job going to the net and finishing."

It was just the second power-play tally the Ducks have allowedat home in 35 chances this season.


"We were certainly a little nervous down the stretch, when theystayed in it as long as they did, but (Giguere) made some greatsaves when he had to, and that was the difference," Schneidersaid.


"I thought I played pretty well," Norrena said. "I haven'tplayed for a week, but I felt excellent. I just want to keep itup like that. All of us goalies just try to help the teamwin."


In a contest that was contentious throughout, the end of thesecond period saw a pair of fights. Anaheim 's Travis Moensquared of with Columbus ' Jared Boll, who had knocked Moen outof the team's previous meeting with a shoulder to the head.

The Blue Jackets' Jason Chimera then fought Ducks defenseman<div class="pre">Shane Hnidy. Throw in 10-minute misconducts to Anaheim 's Andy</div><div class="pre">McDonald and Columbus ' Ole-Kristian Tollefsen, and 11</div>penalties totaling 50 minutes were whistled in the period.

"They know that we're tough and they're going to finish theircheck against us, but we're not intimidated and we're going todo the same," Giguere said. "If anybody wants to fight, we haveguys that can step up, and we showed that tonight."

"They played a good physical game," Hainsey said. "Weresponded, I think, with some fights, so it was an exciting gameto play."


Columbus coach Ken Hitchcock said he was expecting a physicalgame.


"Anaheim's been sitting at home for four or five days, gettingrest and adding three (injured) players back in. For us, thiswas a great point," he said. "We're learning how to compete ata really high level to be successful. We just played againstthe Stanley Cup Champions, and we see what that level's like andwe're trying to get there."

 

By Craig Shultz
PA SportsTicker Contributing Writer


ANAHEIM, California (Ticker) -- Mathieu Schneider returned to thelineup and made an immediate impact in his first game of theseason.


Schneider logged nearly 25 1/2 minutes of ice time and talliedthe shootout winner and Rob Neidermayer scored in regulation for<div class="pre">the Anaheim Ducks, who notched a 2-1 victory over the Columbus</div>Blue Jackets on Thursday.


Jean-Sebastien Giguere stopped 19 shots in 65 minutes and turnedaway all three shootout chances he faced for the Ducks, whosnapped the Blue Jackets' four-game winning streak.

Ryan Getzlaf had the first shootout chance for Anaheim but wasdenied by goaltender Fredrik Norrena, who stopped 33 shotsbefore the bonus format. After Sergei Fedorov hit the side ofthe net on Columbus' first opportunity, Schneider squeezed ashot between Norrena's pads to put the Ducks in front.

"I thought I had it first, but it just sneaked through my legs,"Norrena said.


Signed as a free agent over the summer to help alleviate theabsence of Scott Niedermayer, who still is contemplatingretirement, Schneider suffered a fractured ankle in thepreseason and missed Anaheim's first 13 games.


Schneider had never participated in a shootout before Thursday.

"I thought he was kidding at first," Schneider said when told bycoach Randy Carlyle he was participating. "(I just thought),'Don't fan on it.'


"I would have never imagined that finish. I thought we played agreat game. We deserved to win that in regulation. Even inovertime, we had some great chances."


Carlyle said it was a gut feeling to have Schneider shoot.

"Tonight, we found a way to win a shootout. We haven't had thatmuch success in shootouts," he said. "We decided to change itup a little bit. With (Schneider) not having been available tous for quite some time, we felt it was time for him to earn someof his keep.


"It was just one of those things that you do on the bench andyou make a decision, you go with it. We're not going to get toohigh with the shootout win because our motto's been, 'We won'tget too low when we lose one.' We won an extra point tonight.We competed hard. We were a physical team to play against. Itwas one of those hockey games that would have been a shame tolose."


Giguere stopped Rick Nash and David Vyborny to clinch the win,Anaheim's first in a shootout since March 4. The Ducks had lostfive consecutive shootouts.


"At the end of the day as a goalie, all you can do is try tomake saves," Giguere said. "You can't score goals and stufflike that, so you have to try to give your team a chance to winand hope that guys like Schneider are going to put it in."

Giguere said Schneider's return to the ice was a huge boost forthe Ducks.


"He has so much experience," Giguere said. "He's the type ofguy who gets the puck to the net on the power play. I thinkit's going to take a lot of pressure off of (Chris Pronger andFrancois Beauchemin), who were playing a big amount of minutes.I think to have three almost All-Star players like that on ourdefense is really going to help us."


Despite Anaheim totaling 22 shots in the first two periods, thegame remained scoreless until the final session.


The Ducks struck first just 13 seconds into the third, when RobNiedermayer took a pass from Samuel Pahlsson and skated from theright faceoff circle past defenseman Kris Russell to the slot,where he took a shot that went between Norrena's pads but cameout to the side of the net.


Rob Niedermayer drew blue-liner Ron Hainsey to the ice andskated to the front before finding the loose puck and putting itpast the goalie's right skate for his first goal of the season.

Returning to the lineup after missing three games with a groininjury, Rob Niedermayer scored for the first time in 38regular-season contests dating back to February 6.

Nikolai Zherdev tied it for the Blue Jackets with a power-playgoal at 3:46. Hainsey took a slap shot from the blue line thatGiguere stopped, but Zherdev put the rebound into an open netfor his third of the season.


"Our focus has been just trying to get pucks on the net forrebounds on the power play," Hainsey said. "There were somegood shots early on but through a lot of traffic. (Zherdev)just did a good job going to the net and finishing."

It was just the second power-play tally the Ducks have allowedat home in 35 chances this season.


"We were certainly a little nervous down the stretch, when theystayed in it as long as they did, but (Giguere) made some greatsaves when he had to, and that was the difference," Schneidersaid.


"I thought I played pretty well," Norrena said. "I haven'tplayed for a week, but I felt excellent. I just want to keep itup like that. All of us goalies just try to help the teamwin."


In a contest that was contentious throughout, the end of thesecond period saw a pair of fights. Anaheim 's Travis Moensquared of with Columbus ' Jared Boll, who had knocked Moen outof the team's previous meeting with a shoulder to the head.

The Blue Jackets' Jason Chimera then fought Ducks defenseman<div class="pre">Shane Hnidy. Throw in 10-minute misconducts to Anaheim 's Andy</div><div class="pre">McDonald and Columbus ' Ole-Kristian Tollefsen, and 11</div>penalties totaling 50 minutes were whistled in the period.

"They know that we're tough and they're going to finish theircheck against us, but we're not intimidated and we're going todo the same," Giguere said. "If anybody wants to fight, we haveguys that can step up, and we showed that tonight."

"They played a good physical game," Hainsey said. "Weresponded, I think, with some fights, so it was an exciting gameto play."


Columbus coach Ken Hitchcock said he was expecting a physicalgame.


"Anaheim's been sitting at home for four or five days, gettingrest and adding three (injured) players back in. For us, thiswas a great point," he said. "We're learning how to compete ata really high level to be successful. We just played againstthe Stanley Cup Champions, and we see what that level's like andwe're trying to get there."