ANAHEIM, Calif., May 31 (UPI) -- Defenseman Ruslan Salei scored 6:59 into overtime Saturday night , giving the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim a 3-2 victory over the New Jersey Devils in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Finals.
Adam Oates won a faceoff from Pascal Rheaume and slid the puck back to the top of the left circle. Salei wristed a shot past the glove of goaltender Martin Brodeur and inside the right goalpost for the most important goal of his seven-year career.
"It's an unbelievable feeling right now, but it's only one win for us," said Salei, whose other playoff goal came in Game 6 of the Western Conference semifinals against Dallas.
Anaheim's first win of the series was its sixth in overtime and 11th by one goal in the postseason.
Jean-Sebastien Giguere made 29 saves and broke Patrick Roy's record by extending his overtime shutout streak to 167 minutes, 4 seconds.
The Devils recovered from a stunning second-period gaffe by Brodeur but could not take a commanding lead in the series, which continues Monday in Anaheim.
Brodeur mishandled a seemingly harmless dump-in by defenseman Sandis Ozolinsh with 5:13 left in the second, giving the Ducks a 2-1 lead.
From a stride outside the New Jersey blue line, Ozolinsh flicked the puck at the net. One of the best puckhandling goalies in NHL history, Brodeur dropped his stick and was helpess as Ozolinsh's shot hit the stick and caromed through his legs.
It came just 45 seconds after Patrik Elias had beaten Giguere on a breakaway. But Anaheim could not protect the lead.
With 10:49 to go in regulation, Grant Marshall gloved down a clearing attempt by rookie defenseman Kurt Sauer above the right faceoff circle and wristed a shot. Tied up with defenseman Keith Carney at the right goalpost, Gomez deflected it over Giguere for his second goal in as many games and third of the playoffs.
Brodeur may have been unlucky in the second period, but he was fortunate in the third. With 7:11 remaining, he got the shaft of his stick on Paul Kariya's wrister from the low slot, then lunged to get a piece of rookie Stanislav Chistov's chance from the left circle.
Brodeur again used the shaft of his stick to stop Rob Niedermayer, who got a centering pass from Kariya and shot from the edge of the left circle with 3 1/2 minutes left.
Just the fourth team in NHL history to open the Stanley Cup Finals with consecutive shutout losses, the Ducks finally got the bounce they were seeking and solved Brodeur 3:39 into the second period.
Ozolinsh intercepted Brodeur's clearing attempt along the right boards and sent the puck toward the net. It hit Devils defenseman Tommy Albelin and deflected to the edge of the left circle, where Anaheim's Marc Chouinard swept it past the left pad of Brodeur.
It was the first career postseason point for Chouinard, who led the Ducks with four shots in the series opener, and ended Brodeur's latest shutout streak at 161 minutes, 46 seconds.
New Jersey got a scare with 14:20 to go in the second when center John Madden suffered an apparent injury to his left wrist or hand. While checking Mike Leclerc in the right corner, Madden was pinned against the boards by teammate Colin White and immediately grimaced in pain. He missed just one shift.
Despite killing two power plays, the Ducks had a 9-8 edge in shots in the third straight scoreless first period. It was the first time in the series Anaheim had outshot New Jersey.
The Ducks nearly grabbed the lead with 3:44 to go in the period, but Brodeur came up with a big save.
Held without a shot in Game 2 for the first time in his postseason career, Kariya got a rebound low in the right circle and had a healthy portion of the net at which to shoot. But Brodeur moved left and kicked out his left pad.
Chouinard's goal came on the Ducks' 42nd shot of the series. But Elias tied it 10 1/2 minutes later.
Sent in alone on a perfect cross-ice pass from Jamie Langenbrunner, Elias snapped a shot from low in the left circle over the right shoulder of a frozen Giguere. It was his fourth playoff goal and second in as many games.
