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Ducks hope to continue winning ways against Blues

Nov 5, 2008 - 11:40 AM St. Louis (5-5-0) at Anaheim (8-5-1), 10:00 pm EST

ANAHEIM, California (Ticker) -- In the beginning of the season, the Anaheim Ducks were scrambling for answers while the losses piled up. Lately, their opponents have been doing the same.

Enjoying a torrid stretch that has made their shoddy start a memory, the Ducks look for their eighth win in nine tries when they host the St. Louis Blues on Wednesday.

After posting just one win in its first six games, Anaheim is 7-0-1 in its last eight.

The Ducks' power play had been extremely effective, going 10-for-29 (35.5 percent) over a six-game stretch before coming up empty on five opportunities on Tuesday.

Nevertheless, they found a way to win as defenseman Chris Pronger scored 40 seconds into overtime, giving the club a 1-0 victory over the Los Angeles Kings. Teemu Selanne's assist on the goal tied him with Paul Kariya (369) for the most in franchise history.

Jean-Sebastien Giguere stopped all 35 shots he faced to post his second shutout of the season and 31st career. Giguere made 10 saves in the first period, 16 in the second and nine in the third.

Meanwhile, St. Louis seems to be heading in an opposite direction. The Blues opened the season in surprising fashion, notching four wins in their first five games, but have since dropped four of five.

Perhaps their struggles can be traced to the sudden decline of Keith Tkachuk. The 36-year-old began the season with seven goals in the first six games but has just one in the last four.

The Blues went 2-1-1 against the Ducks last season, losing twice on the road. St. Louis is 1-7-2 in its last 10 visits to Anaheim since December 2002.