Teemu Selanne is getting closer to completing his comeback from semi-retirement.
Selanne scored his first goal of the season and Samuel Pahlsson rammed in a rebound with 4:21 remaining in the third period, lifting the Anaheim Ducks to their fifth straight win by beating the Colorado Avalanche 2-1 on Tuesday night.
The 37-year-old Selanne contemplated retirement and sat out Anaheim's first 56 games before signing a one-year deal to return on Jan. 28. The Ducks have won all five games since Selanne made his debut Feb. 5 against the New York Islanders.
``I'm not 100 percent,'' said Selanne, whose power-play goal 1:09 into the second tied him with Paul Kariya as the team's career leader in points with 669. ``I have to be patient. There's still a price to pay, but it's getting better. It's like training camp.''
Anaheim concluded its franchise-record nine-game road swing on a winning streak. The Ducks went 5-3-1 on road trip, which was briefly interrupted by the All-Star game.
``Unbelievable road trip,'' Selanne said. ``You don't see that very often. We finished up very strong. We won the last five; that's a good sign.''
In other NHL games, it was: the New York Islanders 4, Philadelphia 3; Calgary 4, San Jose 3 in overtime; Carolina 3, Boston 2; Tampa Bay 3, Montreal 2; Buffalo 5, Ottawa 1; Nashville 4, Detroit 2; St. Louis 4, Los Angeles 2; and Edmonton 4, Minnesota 2.
At Denver, Jean-Sebastien Giguere stopped 32 shots and Ryan Getzlaf had an assist - the 100th of his career - as the Ducks broke a string of six straight regular-season losses at the Pepsi Center, spanning more than five years.
``We battled hard through the game, and that's what got us the win,'' said Pahlsson, who played in just his second game since an abdominal injury sidelined him for 21 contests.
The banged-up Avalanche had their two-game winning streak halted. They also lost defenseman Brett Clark to a shoulder injury early in the third period, and coach Joel Quenneville didn't know how serious it was.
``Probably not good,'' he said. ``We'll know more tomorrow.''Islanders 4, Flyers 3
Trent Hunter scored a goal and set up two others to help the host Islanders break a pair of skids.
New York hadn't won at home in seven games, since beating New Jersey on Dec. 29 (0-5-2). The Islanders also didn't have a victory anywhere since a 6-3 win at Carolina on Jan. 22, also a span of seven games (0-6-1).
Rick DiPietro made 26 saves to win for the first time since Jan. 16 and send the injury-riddled Flyers to their fourth straight regulation loss.Flames 4, Sharks 3, OT
Dion Phaneuf scored Calgary's tying goal during a two-man advantage with 49.8 seconds left in regulation, and Jarome Iginla got the overtime winner with 24.9 seconds to play.
Daymond Langkow and Mark Smith scored for the Flames, who opened a five-game road trip against every team in the tough Pacific Division.Hurricanes 3, Bruins 2
At Boston, Andrew Ladd scored twice in the first 6:33, and Carolina held on after Shawn Thornton had two goals in a 27-second span late in the third period.
Former Bruins first-round draft choice Sergei Samsonov had a goal and an assist to help the Hurricanes open a 3-0 lead with 1:31 left in the second. Boston made a furious charge in the last four minutes of the game, pulling goalie Alex Auld but failing to get the tying goal.Lightning 3, Canadiens 2
Vinny Prospal scored twice, including the go-ahead goal midway through the third for host Tampa Bay. Michel Ouellet also scored, and Lecavalier had two assists for the Lightning, who have won four of six.
Christopher Higgins and Tomas Plekanec scored for Montreal, which has lost three in a row.Sabres 5, Senators 1
Thomas Vanek scored three times for his first career hat trick to lead visiting Buffalo.
Clark MacArthur and Jason Pominville each had a goal and an assist in the third for the Sabres, who climbed back into the Eastern Conference playoff race by earning 16 of a possible 18 points while going undefeated through regulation in nine straight games.Predators 4, Red Wings 2
Alexander Radulov scored two goals, and Martin Erat and J.P. Dumont also scored for the Predators, who sent the visiting Red Wings to their fourth straight loss.
Johan Franzen and Pavel Datsyuk scored for Detroit, which still leads the NHL with 87 points.Blues 4, Kings 2
Low-scoring defenseman Jay McKee got the go-ahead goal off an aggressive play midway through the third period in St. Louis' slump-busting victory at home.
Martin Rucinsky and Jay McClement also had a goal and an assist for the Blues, who ended a four-game losing streak and won for only the third time in 14 games. The Blues have won five straight against the Kings.Oilers 4, Wild 2
Kyle Brodziak scored twice and Mathieu Garon made 38 saves as host Edmonton continued its playoff push.
Fernando Pisani and Jarret Stoll also scored for the Oilers, who won for the third time in four games.Copyright © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.
