Ducks 3, Kings 2, SO

LOS ANGELES (AP) _ The Ducks and Kings spent more time on the ice than in the penalty box, a rarity for the rivals who typically beat up on each other. <br/><br/>Their latest clash came down to finesse,

Monday, October 23rd 2006, 8:55 am

By: News On 6

LOS ANGELES (AP) _ The Ducks and Kings spent more time on the ice than in the penalty box, a rarity for the rivals who typically beat up on each other.

Their latest clash came down to finesse, anyway, with Ryan Getzlaf successfully faking out backup goalie Mathieu Garon in a shootout as Anaheim beat Los Angeles 3-2 Sunday.

``This was a game typical of the new NHL,'' said Ducks goalie Jean-Sebastien Giguere, who made 29 saves in regulation and overtime. ``The players are hopefully starting to learn what it means not to have penalties. We talk about it every day in this room, and lately we've done a good job of that.''

The teams combined for seven penalties and 20 minutes in the box.

``It wasn't a matter of it not being a physical game, but I think guys are adapting to the new rules in the league a little bit more, and we made that part of our focus _ to stay out of the box,'' Getzlaf said.

``The rivalry's there and the energy's going to be there, but we've got to have to control our emotions.''

Getzlaf played it cool in the fifth round of the shootout, skating slowly toward Garon and faking to the right before pausing and going left, catching Garon sprawled flat on the ice.

``We talked before the game about what his tendencies are,'' Getzlaf said. ``I had an idea on my mind of where I was going to shoot, but it was just a matter of where he was going to be in the net.''

The Ducks won their third straight and are off to the best start in franchise history. They lost shootouts against the New York Islanders and Dallas earlier this month.

``Maybe our shooters are better today,'' Ducks coach Randy Carlyle said. ``It takes the pressure off when you get a 1-0 lead. We did not have a very good start to the game, but we got our legs underneath us and we played better as the game went on.''

The Kings have lost five of their last six, including an overtime loss against Minnesota. Sunday marked the start of five games in seven days for them, including four on the road.

``Everybody has pegged those guys as one of the top teams in the league and we gave them everything they could handle,'' Kings coach Marc Crawford said.

Teemu Selanne struck first for Anaheim in the shootout, going top shelf on Garon's left side.

Alexander Frolov answered for the Kings, beating Giguere through his pads, leaving Getzlaf to settle things.

``It shows we're battling and that we never quit,'' Giguere said. ``We were down 2-0, and in the past it would have been real hard coming back from a deficit like that after the first period. But that's what this league has come to. If you don't quit and keep working hard, you'll have your chance.''

The Ducks tied the game at 2 when a shot by Dustin Penner hit Garon's right glove and skittered end over end before striking the left post and going in at 14:10 of the third period. Ryan Shannon notched his second point of the game on the play.

Los Angeles led 2-0 in the first, on goals by Lubomir Visnovsky and Michael Cammalleri. Ryan Shannon made it 2-1 in the second with his first NHL career goal for Anaheim.