Hiller shuts out Red Wings in Ducks' skid-snapper

[March 15, 2012]  ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) -- Jonas Hiller made 23 saves in his 15th career shutout, rookie Kyle Palmieri scored two goals, and the Anaheim Ducks kept their faint playoff hopes flickering with a 4-0 victory over the struggling Detroit Red Wings on Wednesday night.

Teemu Selanne scored his 660th career goal and Bobby Ryan also scored as the Ducks shut out the Red Wings at home for the first time in Anaheim's franchise history. Playing without injured MVP Corey Perry, the Ducks also snapped a three-game skid with a thrashing of injury-depleted Detroit, which has lost five of six.

The Ducks' recent 2-5-1 slump reduced their playoff chances to minuscule size, but they're still among the NHL's best teams in 2012 (20-9-5) after their awful start to the season. Anaheim is 23-17-7 under new coach Bruce Boudreau.

Joey MacDonald stopped 20 shots for the Red Wings, whose slump hasn't knocked them out of fourth place in the Western Conference. The Red Wings traveled to the West Coast with a chance to sweep their season series with both Southern California clubs, but instead will limp to the Bay Area with two losses by a combined 9-2.

Hiller, who wasn't tested extensively in his fourth shutout of the season, made his 30th consecutive start to extend his own franchise record. The Swiss netminder hasn't taken a game off since Jan. 10.

With childhood idol Jari Kurri watching from the Honda Center stands, the 41-year-old Selanne added another accolade to his impressive season with his 1,400th career point, including a team-leading 60 this season. The 20-year NHL veteran is the 19th-leading scorer in NHL history after surpassing Kurri last week.

Palmieri still leads the AHL in goals after his latest callup to Anaheim last week, and he produced his first multigoal NHL performance in his 23rd career game. He put Anaheim up 4-0 after slipping behind the Detroit defense early in the third period for a pass from captain Ryan Getzlaf, who had two assists.

Perry missed his second straight game, and defenseman Luca Sbisa also is sidelined with an upper-body injury.

The Red Wings again played without stars Nicklas Lidstrom and Pavel Datsyuk, and goalie Jimmy Howard rested one night after looking shaky in a 5-2 loss at Los Angeles in his return from a one-week absence with a groin injury. Veteran forward Todd Bertuzzi returned to Detroit's lineup after missing four games with a lower-body injury.

Detroit's power play also went 0 for 3, extending its scoreless streak to 0 for 28 since Feb. 28.

After a scoreless first period, Selanne scored his 23rd goal of the season, tying him with Gordie Howe's 1969-70 performance for the second-most prolific season by an NHL player over 40.

Detroit's defense appeared to sag after Selanne's goal, and Palmieri capitalized for his third NHL goal after picking the pocket of Wings defenseman Brendan Smith. Ryan put the Ducks up 3-0 late in the period, collecting a long rebound of Getzlaf's shot and scoring while MacDonald was on his back in the crease.

Lubomir Visnovsky picked up an assist on Ryan's goal, snapping the Slovakian defenseman's 15-game scoreless skid. Visnovsky, who led all NHL defensemen in scoring last season, hadn't scored since Feb. 12 and has contributed just one goal in 2012.

NOTES: Before the game, the Ducks honored C Saku Koivu for playing in his 1,000th NHL game Monday in Colorado. Koivu's wife, Hanna, and two children joined him on the ice while NHL representative Rob Blake presented him with an award. Koivu is a cancer survivor and longtime Montreal Canadiens captain in his 16th NHL season. ... Anaheim has won 12 of 15 at home, while the Red Wings have lost seven of their last eight road games.

[Associated Press; By GREG BEACHAM]

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