DUCKS TAKE 2-1 SERIES LEAD OVER RED WINGS WITH HOME ICE WIN

Behind another stellar goaltending performance by Jonas Hiller, the Anaheim Ducks defeated the Detroit Red Wings 2-1 on Tuesday night at the Honda Center to take a 2-1 lead in the best of seven Western Conference semifinal series.  Scott Niedermayer gave the Ducks the advantage with his second period power play goal, and Hiller preserved it by stopping 45 of 46 Red Wings shots on net.  Game four will be back at the Honda Center on Thursday night.

The Ducks struck first as Teemu Selanne scored his third goal of the playoffs at 12:49 of the first period assisted by Ryan Carter.  Scott Niedermayer would give Anaheim a 2-0 advantage with his power play goal at 8:16 of the second period assisted by Chris Pronger and Ryan Getzlaf.  The Red Wings would respond a few minutes later as Henrik Zetterberg lit the lamp on the power play set up by Mikael Samuelsson and Jiri Hudler.  The Ducks held a 2-1 lead heading into the final period, but the Red Wings mounted an all out assault on the opposing net and it looked to be a matter of time before they’d tie the game.

Second year Swiss goaltender Hiller, however, didn’t let that happen.  Despite facing an insane barrage of pucks as the Red Wings outshot the Ducks 35-9 in the second and third period, Hiller managed to preserve the tenuous lead and give his team a hard fought victory.  Anaheim did get a scare with just over a minute to play as Marian Hossa appeared to score the tying goal, only to have it waved off as the referee had whistled the play dead immediately before he touched it.  After the game, Hossa gave his account of the near miss:

"I just saw it lying there on the goal line and I just dove and thought for sure it was in, but he blew the whistle right when I touched. Sometimes it happens and it's frustrating, but the game is over and we just have to go through that and keep battling."

Wings’ coach Mike Babcock sounded more resentful over the call:

"We should still be playing obviously, right now. We've just got to make sure we stay determined and stay focused."

Ducks goalie Hiller, meanwhile, minced no words as he conceded that his team caught a break:

"I didn't know where the puck went, I saw it on the replay after, it was definitely an early call. We were lucky there. You're always going to get good calls or bad calls against you. But I always say to be lucky you have to fight for it and tonight we fought for 60 minutes. That's why we deserve to be lucky at the end."

Anaheim defenseman Chris Pronger admitted that the Ducks need to do a better job of limiting the pressure on their goalie who has faced a total of 108 shots in the previous two games:

"He's seen a lot of rubber, that's for sure. We don't want to play the way we did in the third with the lead, a couple penalties and they get momentum."

After game 4 Thursday at the Honda Center the series shifts back to Detroit’s Joe Louis Arena for game five on Sunday.  Game six, if necessary, will be back in Anaheim on Tuesday night.