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Ducks want sweep of home-and-home with Sharks

Apr 5, 2009 - 6:45 AM By Alan Ferguson Stats Writer

San Jose (51-16-11) at Anaheim (41-32-6), 8:00 p.m. EDT

ANAHEIM, California (AP) -- Facing the NHL-leading San Jose Sharks on their home ice and one of the league's best goaltenders proved no problem for the Anaheim Ducks and their high-powered top line.

Looking to move closer to their fourth straight playoff berth, the surging Ducks will search for another victory over their short-handed Pacific Division rivals in Sunday night's finale of a home-and-home series.

Anaheim (41-32-6) has charged up the Western Conference standings by scoring 42 goals while winning nine of its last 10. In seventh place with a two-point lead over Nashville and St. Louis, the Ducks will look to match their season high with a fifth straight win.

Bobby Ryan has six goals during the Ducks' run, and he scored twice against Evgeni Nabokov in Saturday's 5-2 win in San Jose, becoming the team's first rookie to reach 30 in a season.

A likely Calder Trophy candidate, Ryan has six goals and four assists during a five-game streak, and his 56 points also set a franchise rookie record.

With Ryan, linemates Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry have helped the Ducks score at least three goals in 10 straight games and at least four in each of its past four wins.

"They were flat-out dominant," Sharks coach Todd McLellan said of the Ducks' top line "They were the top players in the game. We had last change, we could have matched anybody we wanted, but it wouldn't have mattered. They were playing that well."

Getzlaf, leading Anaheim with 85 points, had four assists Saturday for a franchise-best 60 this season, and has two goals and 10 assists during his own five-game streak. Perry, tied with Ryan for the goal-scoring lead, has tallied eight with four assists in the past 10 contests.

The Ducks also have converted 42.1 percent of their power-play chances during that time, going 16-for-38 and scoring on the man advantage in six straight games.

That has helped Jonas Hiller win each of his last seven starts, posting a 2.19 goals-against average. He recorded his first win in five lifetime appearances against the Sharks by stopping 28 shots Saturday.

Despite a slew of injuries, San Jose has remained in the hunt for their first Presidents' Trophy, but have a one-point lead over Boston heading into Sunday's play. The Sharks (51-16-11) are close to clinching the West's top spot, holding a six-point advantage over Detroit with five games left for the Red Wings.

With leading goal scorer and captain Patrick Marleau missing the last three games due to a lower-body injury, San Jose has managed just two goals in each, and 11 in the last five. The Sharks have also been without forwards Ryane Clowe (lower body), Mike Grier (knee) and Torrey Mitchell (fractured leg), but are 3-2-0 in their last five thanks to Nabokov.

Despite missing 14 games, the San Jose netminder is second in the league with 40 wins and had given up 30 goals in his last 16 appearances before Saturday while going 12-2-1. The Ducks scored twice in the first 5:46 and had the game's final three goals.

"We weren't very good, and we were playing against a determined team that's fighting for its playoff lives," forward Jeremy Roenick said. "We can't have games like this. It's unacceptable."

In his last trip to Anaheim, Nabokov stopped 34 shots in a 1-0 victory - his sixth shutout of the season - and he is 4-2-0 with a 1.84 GAA in his last six starts against the Ducks.

Despite their drop in offensive production, the Sharks have scored a power-play goal in 10 consecutive games, converting 11 of 30 opportunities.

The Sharks hold a 3-2-0 edge in the season series and are 5-2-2 in the last nine visits to the Honda Center.