Final score: Ana 3 Van 2

Anaheim leads best-of-seven series 2-1.

Since it’s already the next day with Devils and Senators Game 3 about to faceoff up in Ottawa, we’ll just make an abbreviated entry on this penalty filled game in VanCity.

It was a back and forth affair in which each team traded the first four goals. The Ducks went in front when rookie Dustin Penner took advantage of a Roberto Luongo giveaway and put the puck into a vacated net at 3:08.

But before the end of the stanza, the Canucks had tied it on a power play thanks to captain Markus Naslund, who put home a Mattias Ohlund rebound with only 48 seconds left.

A Ducks power play would help give them the lead again when defenseman Francois Beauchemin got to a loose puck in front and stuffed a Chris Kunitz shot in via a four-on-three nearly halfway through the contest.

Just like the first period, the Canucks cameback to tie it at two on a great shift from the Sedins and linemate Taylor Pyatt. Daniel Sedin put in a rebound which was created from Pyatt to send the game deadlocked into the final 20.

In it, a disturbing trend seen also at MSG yesterday took place as the refs called everything sending legions of players to the box. The Ducks were forced to kill off an early two-man advantage and also killed off another thanks to a superb PK unit and goalie Jean-Sebastien Giguere.

They would get their own PP and cash it in quickly when Corey Perry took a Chris Pronger pass on the left wing and rifled one through traffic past Luongo. It might’ve deflected off someone in front. Kunitz provided a good screen. The goal came with 12:09 remaining and proved to be the difference to give the Ducks back home ice.

The reason the game didn’t need sudden death a la Game Two was because Giguere atoned for the bad goal he allowed to Jeff Cowan for the double OT winner. With Luongo to the bench for an extra attacker, the Canucks came very close twice to knotting it. But Giguere made two clutch stops from in close as the buzzer sounded to give his team the victory.

Our three stars from last night:

3rd star- Daniel Sedin (goal)
2nd star- Jean-Sebastien Giguere (24 saves)
1st star- Corey Perry (GW PPG)