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BOX SCORE
SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) – Stephane Matteau was just inches away
from his first hat trick.
"It was a good shot, it just missed," Matteau said after
scoring two goals – and nearly a third – in San Jose's 3-1 victory
over the Mighty Ducks on Friday night.
Matteau beat Anaheim goalie Jean-Sebastien Giguere on a
breakaway late in the second period to give the Sharks a 2-1 lead.
He added the insurance goal midway through the third on a perfect
pass from Patrick Marleau.
When the Mighty Ducks pulled Giguere in the final seconds,
Matteau had his chance. But the empty-netter wasn't to be.
"I told the guys on the bench I haven't had a hat trick in my
career," said Matteau, who has played more than 700 games. "I'm
about due."
Giguere finished with 32 saves, while Sharks goalie Evgeni
Nabokov stopped 19 shots.
While captain Owen Nolan has served an 11-game suspension, San
Jose has stepped up its defense, allowing just nine goals during
the span.
"It's the last stretch of the season, and that's what
championship teams are made of," Matteau acknowledged.
Niklas Sundstrom gave the Sharks a 1-0 lead with less than two
minutes to go in the first period on a top-shelf rebound against
Giguere. It was Sundstrom's 10th goal.
Less than two minutes into the second period, the Mighty Ducks
tied it on Teemu Selanne's 25th goal. Selanne has three goals and
four assists in his past three games.
Selanne has scored 36 goals against the Sharks in just 41 career
games, more than any other NHL player.
"There's no explanation," he said. "I just try to play well
every game. The intensity is always there when you play the Sharks
because it's two California teams, but there's no secrets."
Giguere, who recently replaced veteran Guy Hebert as Anaheim's
No. 1 goalie, stopped 24 shots in Wednesday's 1-0 victory over San
Jose for his first NHL shutout.
The Sharks kept him busy Friday, and he had little help from his
teammates on both of Matteau's goals.
"If it weren't for him I'd hate to think what the score would
be,"' Anaheim coach Guy Charron said.
Nolan, suspended for a hit on Dallas' Grant Marshall back on
Feb. 1, will not be back until San Jose's game against Ottawa on
March 1.
The Sharks also were without defenseman Marcus Ragnarsson, who
has missed five games with a bruised shoulder.
San Jose, first in the Pacific Division, is 5-2-2 without Nolan.
The Mighty Ducks are in last place in the division.
Game notes
Anaheim center German Titov was back on the ice after
missing four games with a bruised right shoulder. ... Three of
Selanne's eight career hat tricks have come against San Jose. ...
Gary Suter played for the Sharks after missing two games with a
knee injury. ... Despite missing 17 games with a dislocated
shoulder, Vincent Damphousse still leads the Sharks in total points
with nine goals and 37 assists. Damphousse could miss the rest of
the season because of the injury.
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ALSO SEE
NHL Scoreboard
Anaheim Clubhouse
San Jose Clubhouse
RECAPS
Phoenix 7
Buffalo 3
Carolina 3
New Jersey 2
Washington 3
Montreal 1
Pittsburgh 6
NY Rangers 4
Detroit 4
St. Louis 2
Chicago 1
Atlanta 0
Dallas 5
Boston 4
Colorado 4
Minnesota 1
San Jose 3
Anaheim 1
AUDIO/VIDEO
 Niklas Sundstrom puts the backhand past Jean-Sebastien Giguere.
avi: 455 k
RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1
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