Lemaire wants Gaborik to dig down a bit deeper

ANAHEIM, CALIF. -- The game was over. O-V-E-R.

All that separated the Wild from a 2-1 loss were 2.6 seconds. Fans were headed for the exits Wednesday night.

But . . . Marian Gaborik somehow found a way to extend the game and give the Wild a point. On a final rush, Gaborik blew past Anaheim's Ruslan Salei and fired a shot. The puck squirted through goalie Jean-Sebastien Giguere's pads, and the improbable became reality.

Gaborik gave the Wild new life with a game-tying goal with 2.6 seconds left in regulation. The Wild ultimately lost 3-2 on Keith Carney's goal with 57.6 seconds remaining in overtime, but it had to be happy with the point it earned -- no, stole.

Gaborik said it was "his biggest NHL goal."

"I saw there were 14 seconds [when the play started]," he said. "I tried to get up my speed. I went low [on his shot] and it went in. It was close, but was great that it went in."

Carney converted a pass from Andy McDonald for the game-winner, finishing a rush that started shortly after the Wild had two good scoring chances.

Giguere and Wild goalie Dwayne Roloson both had 27 saves.

"We battled to the end," said Wild coach Jacques Lemaire. "We never quit. We didn't ease up, and we kept coming at them."

Wild winger Richard Park popped in Andrew Brunette's rebound on a power play to the tie the score 1-1 with 4:39 left in regulation.

But Anaheim answered quickly as German Titov put the Mighty Ducks ahead 28 seconds later after taking a nifty pass from Marty McInnis.

Two goals is considered an offensive explosion for the Ducks, who average 2.1 goals per game and had two or fewer goals in 21 of the previous 24 games.

Even the Ducks' $10 million man, Paul Kariya, has sputtered offensively. Kariya entered the game with 34 points, nine fewer than the Wild's Gaborik and Brunette.

Kariya initially was credited with scoring the game's first goal, but it was reversed after further review. It has been that kind of season.

Mike Leclerc was awarded the second-period goal, but replays seemed to indicate that Wild defenseman Ladislav Benysek tapped the puck into his own net during a scrum in front of the net.

Given the Ducks' offensive problems, no one was complaining. Especially not coach Bryan Murray, who has devoted extra practice time in search of answers. He had to be pleased with the results in this one.

The Ducks were aggressive from the opening faceoff, peppering Roloson with nine shots in the first 10 minutes. The Ducks kept bodies in front of the net and fired from all angles.

Roloson kept his cool, stopping all 12 shots in the first period. McDonald had the best chance on a breakaway after splitting two Wild defenders, but Roloson deflected the shot to his right.

The Wild also had several good scoring chances in the opening period, but Giguere met the challenge. Giguere has played well despite his team's problems, recording a 2.22 goals-against average and .918 save percentage.

Wild newcomer Hnat Domenichelli took the first penalty on his first shift. Domenichelli, acquired Tuesday in a trade with Atlanta, was called for slashing 2:17 into the game.

Domenichelli played on the same line with Sergei Zholtok and Gaborik and had two shots in the first two periods.

-- Chip Scoggins is at [email protected] .