Monday, January 12, 2015
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Youngsters lift Ducks to shootout win over Jets

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[January 12, 2015]  ANAHEIM, Calif. -- On the night the Ducks retired Teemu Selanne's No. 8, two young players who figure to be big in Anaheim's future helped snatch victory from defeat.

Center Rickard Rakell, 21, had two goals and two assists for his first multi-point NHL game, and defenseman Sami Vatanen, 23, scored the decider in a six-round shootout as Anaheim came from two goals down in the third period to defeat the Winnipeg Jets 5-4 at Honda Center.

The Ducks (27-10-6) set an NHL record with their 11th consecutive home victory by a one-goal margin.

"In a perfect world, we'd like to win a couple 4-0 games, but until we do, it's a great alternative," Anaheim coach Bruce Boudreau said.

Rakell's second goal of the night, and third of the season, at 17:42 of the third period got the Ducks even at 4 after they fell behind 3-1 in the first period and 4-2 in the second. Rakell also put a nifty backhander past Jets goalie Ondrej Pavelec in the fourth round of the shootout to keep Anaheim alive.

"Getting the first goal (in the first period) gave me confidence for the game," said Rakell, who called former teammate Selanne a great role model.

"We hung out a lot in the stick room. ... It was just amazing, everything he's done in his career. He's amazing, as a hockey player and as a person."



Winnipeg coach Paul Maurice, who just missed out on his 500th NHL victory, said he was not down on his team for the blown lead, especially because the Jets (21-14-8) were coming off a 5-4 shootout victory the night before in Los Angeles. Getting a total of three standings points from back-to-back road games is always good, he said.

"It hurts because you lost a lead, but other than that, we battled hard and lost," Maurice said. "I'm disappointed with the loss, but not the team. We had enough energy to get to 4-2 after two, but that's the NHL.

"We had a real good start to the game, but I thought we competed throughout, though. I thought it got away from us a bit in the third period, when they put some pressure on us."

Pavelec made 39 saves in regulation and overtime. He was seeking his first victory since Dec. 16, and he came oh-so-close. Anaheim goalie Frederik Andersen made 28 saves, and he recovered nicely from his team's horrible start.

"We just kind of got away from our game," Jets left winger Mark Scheifele said. "We held back a little (in the third) ... instead of pressing.

"I think it's a matter of stepping off the gas pedal. We have to keep driving and continue to go for that next goal instead of sitting back, waiting for them to come to us. We have to go to them."

Rakell scored the equalizer off a feed from left winger Patrick Maroon.

Ducks right winger Kyle Palmeiri scored a power-play goal on a backhander at 6:25 of the third period, cutting the Jets' lead to 4-3.

Winnipeg took a two-goal lead for the second time at 17:42 of the second period. Left winger Andrew Ladd finished a two-on-one rush with his 16th goal, off a feed from right winger Blake Wheeler, to make it 4-2.

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Right winger Tim Jackman cut the Ducks' deficit to 3-2 at 13:38 of the second period, when he scored his third goal, off a feed from behind the goal by left winger Andrew Cogliano.

All four first-period goals came on rebounds, with the Jets netting three. The Ducks might have been mesmerized by the nearly two-hour-long Selanne ceremony, but as Rakell said, the Jets had the same wait.

"We don't have any excuses," Rakell said. "We just didn't play the way we wanted in the first period."

Scheifele made it 3-1 at 14:36 of the first period with his seventh goal, off a rebound of a shot by center Mathieu Perreault, a former Duck. Jets defenseman Dustin Byfuglien also got an assist on the play, his 200th in the NHL.

Jets defenseman Zach Bogosian scored his second of the season (and in as many nights) at 9:49, tipping in the rebound of a shot by right winger Michael Frolik for a 2-1 lead.

The Ducks got a tying, power-play goal from Rakell at 8:33, as he chipped in the rebound of Palmeiri's jam attempt. The goal came just 12 seconds after Winnipeg defenseman Jay Harrison went off for boarding.

Jets left winger Evander Kane started the scoring with his seventh goal, at 7:47, going down the slot unattended to put in the rebound of right winger Adam Lowry's wrist shot.

NOTES: Former All-Star RW Teemu Selanne's No. 8 became the first sweater retired by the Anaheim franchise. Selanne, who retired after last season, is 11th in NHL career goals with 684 and tied for third with 110 game-winning goals. ... The Jets players all wore the No. 13 in pregame warmups, which was Selanne's number when he played for the franchise. ... RW Corey Perry made his NHL debut with the Ducks during the 2005-06 season, which also represented Selanne's return to Anaheim after he signed a one-year contract over the summer. Perry is now a 10-year veteran with 682 games of experience. ... Jets D Dustin Byfuglien was selected as an All-Star for the third straight season. ... Ducks C Ryan Getzlaf was selected to the All-Star Game, his third career appearance.

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