Video’s Perfect for Ducks

He shoots, he scores . . . subject to review by the video goal judge, of course.

An apparent second-period goal for Edmonton was disallowed by an unseen fellow named Tom Wardell on Sunday at the Arrowhead Pond and the Oilers’ momentum went down the drain. They lost their cool and their lead in the first few minutes of the period. Soon enough, the Mighty Ducks surged ahead for a 6-4 victory over the Oilers before an announced sellout crowd of 17,174.

So, was it?

Or wasn’t it?

Everyone agreed Ryan Smyth’s disallowed goal 49 seconds into the second period represented an enormous momentum swing. Duck center Travis Green scored only 1:02 later and instead of facing a 4-2 deficit, Anaheim rallied for a 3-3 tie.

Teemu Selanne scored twice with the Ducks holding a two-man advantage, first at the 7:41 mark of the second period, then at 8:35. Matt Cullen then added a short-handed goal at 15:26.

“This is our barn and we’ve got to use all our energy to send a message to the rest of the league that this is not a fun place to play,” Selanne said after scoring his team-leading 20th and 21st goals.

Sure, fine, whatever.

But was the puck in the net on Smyth’s shot?

Referee Rob Shick indicated immediately that it was not. Wardell, the video goal judge, agreed after watching the play from all manner of camera angles.

Their opinions were all that mattered.

Television replays available to reporters clearly showed Smyth’s point-blank shot strike the upper portion of goalie Guy Hebert’s stick, then bounce off the left goal post.

The net appeared to ripple, but it was impossible to tell for certain whether the puck’s impact caused the movement or whether the nob of Hebert’s struck the twine.

Channel 9, which telecast the game, did not provide viewers with a shot from the Pond’s overhead camera, which was available to Wardell.

“At no time did I, or the replay judge, see the puck totally cross the goal line,” Shick said. “It never, ever crossed the goal line.”

Said Smyth: “One of the linesmen told us he couldn’t believe they were going upstairs [to consult Wardell] because it was a goal.”

That was the most-talked about play of Sunday’s game, but there were others that fell quickly in line.

Hartsburg pulled starter Dominic Roussel, replacing him with Hebert after Edmonton took a 3-1 lead. Matters still looked grim for the Ducks until Paul Kariya’s goal, which went into the net off the stick of Edmonton defenseman Tom Poti with 24 seconds left in the first period and cut the Oiler lead to 3-2.

Green’s goal not only tied the game, it changed it for good.

“It’s a game of momentum,” Green said. “They go up, 3-1, and it seemed like it might be getting away from us. Then, we had a big second period.”

Selanne scored twice--both while stationed in the slot--to give the Ducks a 5-3 lead and prompt an Edmonton goalie change. Bob Essensa replaced former Duck goalie Mikhail Shtalenkov at 8:35 of the second.

Cullen’s goal, his first since Dec. 6 against the San Jose Sharks, provided insurance in a game that often ranged from wild to out of control.

There was plenty to drive Coach Craig Hartsburg batty, but he took the high road after the Ducks returned to the .500 mark with a 16-16-8 record.

“It was winning ugly,” Hartsburg said. “Nobody said they all had to be masterpieces. It’s a big two points for us.”

Neither team could figure out how to stay out of the penalty box, which contributed to the ragged play. Edmonton scored on two of eight power-play chances. The Ducks clicked on three of nine opportunities with the man advantage.

The Ducks, who defeated Phoenix, 4-1, Friday, also seemed frozen in cement at times against the smooth-skating Oilers, who tied the Kings, 1-1, Friday.

“It was such a loose game,” Hartsburg said. “Who knew who was going to score next? There wasn’t much solid defensive play. . . . Certainly, that was the best our power play has been. Our power play won us the hockey game. Well, that and Guy coming in and stopping them.”

* NEW OUTLOOK: Donald Audette has made a difference since joining the Kings. Page 4