Karpov Scores, So Do Ducks : Hockey: Rookie ends early scoring drought with his first pro goal in 3-2 victory over Winnipeg.

Incredible as it seems that a rookie could be overdue before he had played five games in the NHL, Valeri Karpov was--and everybody knew it, most of all him.

Karpov, one of the best of the Mighty Ducks’ batch of rookies, had three goals and two assists during the exhibition season in September, trailing only fellow rookie Paul Kariya. But when the season started for real, it seemed there was plexiglass blocking the goal. Known as a finisher, he simply couldn’t finish.

Not until Friday night, when Kariya fed him for his first NHL goal in the first period and then Karpov returned the favor in the second period of the Ducks’ 3-2 victory over Winnipeg before 17,174 at The Pond of Anaheim.

The victory was the Ducks’ third in five games this season, and it kept their record against Winnipeg perfect at 6-0 after sweeping all four games last season.

The Jets’ Teemu Selanne made them sweat out part of the final period, though, scoring at 14:38 of the third when the puck deflected back to him as he skated by and he put a low shot past Guy Hebert.

Hebert, who finished with 39 saves--two shy of his career record--had to fend off a two-man advantage for the final 1:15 after Bobby Dollas took a penalty for slashing and then the Jets pulled goalie Nikolai Khabibulin.

“He was like a brick wall out there,� Coach Ron Wilson said. “They weren’t going to get it past him.

Kariya and Karpov, who had been centered by Russian veteran Anatoli Semenov, were teamed with Swedish center Patrik Carnback for the first time Friday after Wilson, disappointed with Semenov’s play, scratched him from the lineup.

Karpov’s troubles had only to do with his nervousness, though, not with Semenov. Kariya has flung pass after pass to him right in front of the net, but Karpov couldn’t beat the goalie.

Before long, the other rookies had all celebrated their first NHL point, but Karpov was still waiting--and more and more visibly, he was pressing. His first goal finally came Friday in the first period of the fifth game of the season, when Carnback sent the puck to Kariya in the right circle and Kariya fired it to Karpov near the left goal post. Karpov tried once, was stopped yet again, but persisted and stuffed the puck past Khabibulin with his second effort for a 1-0 lead at 4:06 of the first.

“I thought he relaxed,� Wilson said.

Karpov nearly got his second a few minutes later, but Khabibulin snagged his shot with his glove, barely hanging on.

Kariya, Karpov and Carnback teamed up again just before the end of the second period for a 3-1 lead. This time, Carnback got the puck behind the net and passed it to Karpov, just above the goal line below the right circle. This time, it was Kariya who was in front of the net and Karpov slid the puck across to Kariya, who put it in the net with 27 seconds left in the period for his third goal of the season. He also has five points in five games.

Both goalies were sharp, and even though the Ducks managed only 17 shots, many of the scoring chances were from close range, and Nikolai Khabibulin was tested.

The Ducks’ Hebert was tested, too, sliding to cut off Teemu Selanne’s angle on a breakaway in the first period and withstanding a half-dozen shot barrage during a power play in the second. Keith Tkachuk and Alexei Zhamnov tried repeatedly from close range, but Hebert foiled them again and again.

“They’ve got some offensive talent that is among the best in the league with Selanne and Tkachuk,� Hebert said. “We don’t need to have 40 shots as long as we get two or three goals.�

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Ducks Notes

The Jets, led by captain Keith Tkachuk, have sent a get-well card to Duck defenseman Don McSween, who is out for the season after being severely cut on the right wrist during the Ducks’ 4-3 victory Saturday at Winnipeg. It was Tkachuk who inadvertently cut McSween with his skate blade . . . . Left wing Tim Sweeney, whose 43 points last season ranked fourth on the team, returned to the lineup after being a health scratch two of the previous four games. . . . Forward Joe Sacco is the only Duck who has appeared in every game in franchise history.