2002–03 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim season

2002–03 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim
Division	2nd Pacific
Conference	7th Western
2002–03 record	40-27-9
Home record	TBD
Road record	TBD
Goals for	203
Goals against	193
Team information
General manager	Bryan Murray
Coach	Mike Babcock
Captain	Paul Kariya
Alternate captains	Keith Carney Steve Rucchin
Arena	Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim
Team leaders
Goals	Petr Sykora (34)
Assists	Paul Kariya (56)
Points	Paul Kariya (81)
Penalty minutes	Kevin Sawyer (115)
Wins	Jean-Sebastien Giguere (34)
Goals against average	Martin Gerber (1.95)

The 2002–03 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim season was the Ducks' ninth season in franchise history. The club qualified for the Stanley Cup finals for the first time in franchise history.

Regular season

Divisional standings

Pacific Division

No.	CR		GP	W	L	T	OTL	GF	GA	Pts
1	1	Dallas Stars	82	46	17	15	4	245	169	111
2	7	Mighty Ducks of Anaheim	82	40	27	9	6	203	193	95
3	10	Los Angeles Kings	82	33	37	6	6	203	221	78
4	11	Phoenix Coyotes	82	31	35	11	5	204	230	78
5	14	San Jose Sharks	82	28	37	9	8	214	239	73

Note: CR = Conference rank; GP = Games played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; OTL = Overtime loss; GF = Goals for; GA = Goals against; Pts = Points
         Bolded teams qualified for the playoffs.

Game log

• Green background indicates win (2 points).
• Red background indicates regulation loss (0 points).
• White background indicates overtime/shootout loss (1 point).

2002–03 Game log
November Game Date Opponent Score Location/Attendance Record 1 Oct. 10 @ St. Louis Blues 4-3 St. Louis 1-0-0 2 Oct 11 @ Dallas Stars 2-4 Reunion Arena 1-1-0 3 Oct 13 Detroit Red Wings 2-4 Honda Center 1-2-0 4 Oct 16 Los Angeles Kings 2-4 Honda Center 1-3-0
December Game Date Opponent Score Location/Attendance Record
January Game Date Opponent Score Location/Attendance Record
February Game Date Opponent Score Location/Attendance Record
March Game Date Opponent Score Location/Attendance Record
April Game Date Opponent Score Location/Attendance Record
2002–03 schedule

Playoffs

Conference Quarter-finals

The series opened at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit, and a thrilling triple-overtime battle ensued, with the Ducks taking Game 1, 2–1, on a goal by Paul Kariya 3:18 in. Anaheim goalie Jean-Sebastien Giguere faced 64 shots in Game 1. Game 2 featured another close game, but Anaheim pulled out another close victory, this time by a 3–2 count, scoring two third-period goals to erase a 2–1 deficit. Second-seeded Detroit was in trouble, inexplicably struggling with a seventh-seeded but tough Anaheim team. Game 3, at the Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim, was a must-win for the Red Wings, but they dropped another one-goal game, 2–1. The Ducks completed the stunning four-game sweep of the Red Wings, who had missed the top seed in the West by one point, with another one-goal game in Game 4, a 3–2 overtime victory with Steve Rucchin delivering the knockout goal 6:53 into overtime.

Game-by-game			Score	DET goals	ANA goals
1	April 10	3:18, 3OT	Mighty Ducks 2, at Red Wings 1	Shanahan	Kariya, Oates
2	April 12		Mighty Ducks 3, at Red Wings 2	Robitaille, Woolley	Chistov, Krog, Thomas
3	April 14		at Mighty Ducks 2, Red Wings 1	Holmstrom	Chistov, Pahlsson
4	April 16	6:53, OT	at Mighty Ducks 3, Red Wings 2	Fedorov, Zetterberg	Kariya, Krog, Rucchin
Mighty Ducks win series 4–0

Conference semi-finals

The series opened at American Airlines Center in Dallas, where the heavily-favored Stars and underdog Ducks engaged in an epic battle that took over 140 minutes and four overtimes to decide before Anaheim's Petr Sykora scored the game-winner 47 seconds into the fifth overtime, winning the game for the Ducks, 4–3. Dallas goalie Marty Turco saw 54 shots while Anaheim's goalie, Jean-Sebastien Giguere, saw 63. Game 2 saw another game tied after 60 minutes, but this time, Anaheim needed only 1:44 to win the game in the first overtime, 3–2, on a goal by Mike Leclerc. Dallas, much like Detroit in its first-round series against the Ducks, faced a 2–0 deficit headed to Anaheim.

Game 3 at Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim was a must-win for the Stars, and they came through, winning the game, 2–1, getting two clutch goals from Jere Lehtinen. But the Ducks refused to let the Stars back in the series, winning Game 4, 1–0, behind a 28-save shutout from Giguere. Not wanting to be eliminated in front of their home fans, a motivated Dallas team captured Game 5, 4–1. Unfortunately for the Stars, their bid to take the series to a Game 7 was denied when they were edged in Game 6, 4–3.

Game-by-game			Score	DAL goals	ANA goals
1	April 24	0:47, 5OT	Mighty Ducks 4, at Stars 3	Arnott, Hatcher, Morrow	Krog, R. Niedermayer, Rucchin, Sykora
2	April 26	1:44, OT	Mighty Ducks 3, at Stars 2	Modano, Morrow	Leclerc, Niedermayer, Oates
3	April 28		Stars 2, at Mighty Ducks 1	Lehtinen 2	Rucchin
4	April 30		at Mighty Ducks 1, Stars 0	none (Giguere shutout)	Leclerc
5	May 3		at Stars 4, Mighty Ducks 1	Kapanen 2, Barnes, DiMaio	Kariya
6	May 5		at Mighty Ducks 4, Stars 3	Kapanen, Morrow, Muller	Chistov, Ozolinsh, Salei, Thomas
Mighty Ducks win series 4–2

Conference finals

The series opened at the Xcel Energy Center in Minnesota, and both teams ground it out down to the game-winning score, which came from Petr Sykora 8:06 into double-overtime in a 1–0 Mighty Ducks victory. Jean-Sebastien Giguere turned in a stellar performance in net for Anaheim, stopping all 39 shots he faced. With Dwayne Roloson replacing Manny Fernandez in net for the Wild, Game 2 was just as close, but the Ducks pulled out a 2–0 victory, both goals short-handed, as Giguere stopped all 24 shots he faced, making him 63-for-63 in the series. Minnesota was in trouble; not only were they down in the series, 2–0, headed to Anaheim, but they had yet to score a goal.

Out at the Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim for Game 3, Giguere continued his goaltending excellency, stopping all 35 shots he faced in a 4–0 Mighty Ducks victory that pushed the Wild to the brink. Giguere had now stopped the first 98 shots he saw in the series. In Game 3, Paul Kariya tallied two goals to help the Anaheim attack. Minnesota, demoralized at their offensive impotence, lost Game 4, 2–1, but at least they avoided a fourth consecutive shutout, as Andrew Brunette scored the first Minnesota goal of the series 4:37 into the game. Still, Giguere was 122-for-123 in the series, a robust .992 save percentage. Adam Oates scored both Anaheim goals, the decisive one coming midway through the second period.

Game-by-game			Score	MIN goals	ANA goals
1	May 10	8:06, 2OT	Mighty Ducks 1, at Wild 0	none (Giguere shutout)	Sykora
2	May 12		Mighty Ducks 2, at Wild 0	none (Giguere shutout)	R. Niedermayer, Sauer
3	May 14		at Mighty Ducks 4, Wild 0	none (Giguere shutout)	Kariya 2, Chistov, Rucchin
4	May 16		at Mighty Ducks 2, Wild 1	Brunette	Oates 2
Mighty Ducks win series 4–0

Stanley Cup finals

Anaheim vs. New Jersey
Date	Away	Home
May 27	Anaheim 0	3 New Jersey
May 29	Anaheim 0	3 New Jersey
May 31	New Jersey 2	3 Anaheim	OT
June 2	New Jersey 0	1 Anaheim	OT
June 5	Anaheim 3	6 New Jersey
June 7	New Jersey 2	5 Anaheim
June 9	Anaheim 0	3 New Jersey
New Jersey wins series 4–3 and Stanley Cup
J. S. Giguere (Anaheim) wins Conn Smythe Trophy

Player stats

Regular season

Scoring

Player	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
Kariya, PaulPaul Kariya	82	25	56	81	48
Sykora, PetrPetr Sykora	82	34	25	59	24
Rucchin, SteveSteve Rucchin	82	20	38	58	12
Oates, AdamAdam Oates	67	9	36	45	16
Havelid, NiclasNiclas Havelid	82	11	22	33	30
Chistov, StanislavStanislav Chistov	79	12	18	30	54
Leclerc, MikeMike Leclerc	57	9	19	28	34
Krog, JasonJason Krog	67	10	15	25	12
Carney, KeithKeith Carney	81	4	18	22	65
McDonald, AndyAndy McDonald	46	10	11	21	14
Cullen, MattMatt Cullen	50	7	14	21	12
Kjellberg, PatricPatric Kjellberg	76	8	11	19	16
Ozolinsh, SandisSandis Ozolinsh	31	5	13	18	16
Pahlsson, SamuelSamuel Pahlsson	34	4	11	15	18
Thomas, SteveSteve Thomas	12	10	3	13	2
Salei, RuslanRuslan Salei	61	4	8	12	78
Trnka, PavelPavel Trnka	24	3	6	9	6
Olausson, FredrikFredrik Olausson	44	2	6	8	22
Vishnevski, VitalyVitaly Vishnevski	80	2	6	8	76
Chouinard, MarcMarc Chouinard	70	3	4	7	40
Smirnov, AlexeiAlexei Smirnov	44	3	2	5	18
Bylsma, DanDan Bylsma	39	1	4	5	12
Niedermayer, RobRob Niedermayer	12	2	2	4	15
Sawyer, KevinKevin Sawyer	31	2	1	3	115
Sauer, KurtKurt Sauer	80	1	2	3	74
Brown, MikeMike Brown	16	1	1	2	44
Valicevic, RobRob Valicevic	10	1	0	1	2
Gerber, MartinMartin Gerber	22	0	1	1	0
O'Sullivan, ChrisChris O'Sullivan	2	0	1	1	0
Ward, LanceLance Ward	29	0	1	1	43
Giguere, Jean-SebastienJean-Sebastien Giguere	65	0	0	0	8
Hedstrom, JonathanJonathan Hedstrom	4	0	0	0	0
Severson, CamCam Severson	2	0	0	0	8

Goaltending

Player	MIN	GP	W	L	T	GA	GAA	SA	SV	SV%	SO
Giguere, Jean-SebastienJean-Sebastien Giguere	3775	65	34	22	6	145	2.30	1820	1675	.920	8
Gerber, MartinMartin Gerber	1203	22	6	11	3	39	1.95	548	509	.929	1
Team:	4978	82	40	33	9	184	2.22	2368	2184	.922	9

Playoffs

Scoring

Player	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
Oates, AdamAdam Oates	21	4	9	13	6
Sykora, PetrPetr Sykora	21	4	9	13	12
Kariya, PaulPaul Kariya	21	6	6	12	6
Leclerc, MikeMike Leclerc	21	2	9	11	12
Rucchin, SteveSteve Rucchin	21	7	3	10	2
Niedermayer, RobRob Niedermayer	21	3	7	10	18
Thomas, SteveSteve Thomas	21	4	4	8	8
Ozolinsh, SandisSandis Ozolinsh	21	2	6	8	10
Chistov, StanislavStanislav Chistov	21	4	2	6	8
Pahlsson, SamuelSamuel Pahlsson	21	2	4	6	12
Salei, RuslanRuslan Salei	21	2	3	5	26
Krog, JasonJason Krog	21	3	1	4	4
Carney, KeithKeith Carney	21	0	4	4	16
Havelid, NiclasNiclas Havelid	21	0	4	4	2
Sauer, KurtKurt Sauer	21	1	1	2	6
Chouinard, MarcMarc Chouinard	15	1	0	1	0
Bylsma, DanDan Bylsma	11	0	1	1	2
Giguere, Jean-SebastienJean-Sebastien Giguere	21	0	1	1	0
Vishnevski, VitalyVitaly Vishnevski	21	0	1	1	6
Gerber, MartinMartin Gerber	2	0	0	0	0
Kjellberg, PatricPatric Kjellberg	10	0	0	0	0
Olausson, FredrikFredrik Olausson	1	0	0	0	0
Severson, CamCam Severson	1	0	0	0	0
Smirnov, AlexeiAlexei Smirnov	4	0	0	0	2

Goaltending

Player	MIN	GP	W	L	T	GA	GAA	SA	SV	SV%	SO
Giguere, Jean-SebastienJean-Sebastien Giguere	1407	21	15	6		38	1.62	697	659	.945	5
Gerber, MartinMartin Gerber	20	2	0	0		1	3.00	6	5	.833	0
Team:	1427	21	15	6		39	1.64	703	664	.945	5

Awards and records

• Clarence S. Campbell Bowl
• Paul Kariya, left wing, NHL Second Team All-Star
• Jean Sebastien Giguere, Conn Smythe Trophy Winner

Milestones

Regular Season
Player	Milestone	Reached

Transactions

Free agents

Player Former team Contract terms

Player New team

Claimed from waivers

Player Former team Date claimed off waivers

Draft picks

The Ducks picks at the 2002 NHL Entry Draft in Toronto, Ontario.

Round	#	Player	Position	Nationality	College/Junior/Club Team (League)
1	7	Joffrey Lupul	Forward	Canada	Medicine Hat Tigers
2	37.	Tim Brent	Forward	Canada	Toronto St. Michael's Majors
3	71.	Brian Lee	Defense	United States	Erie Otters
4	103.	Joonas Vihko		Finland	HIFK

Roster

Mighty Ducks of Anaheim
Goaltenders 29 Martin Gerber  35 Jean-Sebastien Giguere		Defensemen 4 Lance Ward  28 Niclas Havelid  37 Chris O'Sullivan		Wingers 9 Paul Kariya  - C 14 Cam Severson  38 Rob Valicevic  51 Jonathan Hedstrom		Centers 20 Steve Rucchin  39 Petr Sykora  77 Adam Oates  GM: Coach: Mike Babcock

See also

• 2002–03 NHL season

Farm teams

• The Mighty Ducks farm team was the Cincinnati Mighty Ducks of the American Hockey League. The team finished third in the Central Division with a record of 26-35-13-6.

References

• Mighty Ducks on Hockey Database
• Ducks on Database Hockey