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Pronger helps Ducks get back in series vs. Stars

Apr 16, 2008 - 6:29 AM DALLAS (Ticker) -- The Anaheim Ducks are not quite ready to have their defense of the Stanley Cup come to an end.

Defenseman Chris Pronger scored a pair of goals and added an assist as the Ducks got back in their Western Conference quarterfinal series with the Dallas Stars by posting a 4-2 triumph in Game Three on Tuesday.

Todd Marchant and Ryan Getzlaf also scored for Anaheim, which still trails the series, two games to one.

"We've got to have our big guys step up," Pronger said. "You expect your star players to raise their level of play at the top of their game. I can't say we did that in our first two games."

"There was pressure to play a good hockey game," Ducks coach Randy Carlyle said. "We had to play our best game of the series, and we did. Are we going to have to play better? For sure. We were fortunate to jump out to an early lead, but we found a way to keep it exciting at the end."

Jean-Sebastien Giguere turned aside 31 shots for the Ducks, who look to pull even and regain home-ice advantage with a win in Game Four at American Airlines Center on Thursday.

"We couldn't afford to have a weak start of the game in their building," Giguere said. "We knew they would have energy going in, so we wanted to score some goals, and fortunately, we did. It made life a little easier.

"It wasn't pretty, but we still managed to find a way to win. Right now, we need to move on and focus on Game Four. We're still down, 2-1, and we need to win some more games."

Captain Brenden Morrow netted a pair of power-play goals for Dallas, which held Anaheim to just 15 shots - including three in the third period.

"I think we played well for 45 minutes," Morrow said. "Shot ourselves in the foot a couple times with penalties. ... It was probably more of what we did to ourselves."

"We still have the lead here and we need to win the next one," added Dallas' Mike Ribeiro, who had two assists. "We must regroup, stay confident and get back at it in practice (on Wednesday)."

After losing each of the first two games of the series at home in convincing fashion, Anaheim reversed its fortunes in this one, scoring three times in the first period and once more in the second to take a 4-0 lead into the final session.

"We were chasing the game early and had some penalty trouble in the second, and that was the way the game rolled out in the second," Stars coach Dave Tippett said. "Four of the six goals were on the power play, and we knew that the power plays were going to be big in this series. The reality check came tonight on how hard this series is going to be."

Marchant opened the scoring at 6:39 of the first. Travis Moen beat Stars defenseman Mattias Norstrom to the puck in the right corner and made a backhand pass to Marchant, who beat goaltender Marty Turco from in front for his 11th career playoff goal.

The tally also gave the Ducks their first lead in the series.

Getzlaf doubled the advantage 3 1/2 minutes later, deking Turco and sliding a backhander past the netminder following a turnover by Dallas in its own zone.

"I think we got what we deserved," Dallas defenseman Stephane Robidas said. "This is a good wake-up call for us. Next game, we need to be ready to compete from the beginning."

Anaheim's captain, Pronger took over from there, converting a cross-crease pass from below the end line on the right side by Todd Bertuzzi during a power play with 5:29 to go in the first. The former Hart and Norris Trophy winner added his 20th career postseason goal with a slap shot during a 5-on-3 advantage at 5:34 of the second.

"It was kind of a bang-bang play," Pronger said of his second goal. "(Teemu Selanne) made a one-touch pass. It just came back to me and I fired it."

"We never expect to win every game or make every save," said Turco, who made 11 saves. "That's hockey. Tonight was no exception, and it's not going to get easier. We gained some momentum in the third, but it was too little, too late."

The Stars attempted to get back in the contest in the third as Morrow scored power-play goals 99 seconds apart in the first half of the period.

"I thought we were right there," Morrow said. "In the third period, we got some momentum."

"They came hard in the third," Moen said. "They got two power-play goals. That just proves we can't take penalties."

From the right faceoff dot, Mike Modano dished to Morrow, who redirected the puck past Giguere from the doorstep at 5:43. Less than two minutes later, the 29-year-old buried the rebound of Modano's shot from near the right goalpost for his 10th career playoff tally.

With Morrow's goals, the Stars are 8-for-20 with the man advantage for a 40 percent success rate - the best in the league this postseason.

Three minutes after Morrow's second tally, Anaheim defenseman Mathieu Schneider received a double-minor for high-sticking, giving Dallas a four-minute power play. But the Ducks were able to successfully kill the penalties and hang on for the victory.

"We needed to kill that to get some confidence," Giguere said. "We sure didn't want them to get to 4-3."

"That was a big penalty kill," Carlyle added. "That could have changed the momentum. ... We were trying to calm the storm. That was a big opportunity for them. This place was rocking, there was a lot of energy in the building."