[0] UNLIKELY CAST HELPS DUCKS TOP KINGS DUCKS 5, KINGS 3.

Byline: Greg Christensen Staff Writer

The Mighty Ducks a one-line or two-man team?

Try telling that to the Kings, who were defeated 5-3 by the Ducks before 18,118 at Staples Center on Tuesday night.

The Ducks extended their unbeaten streak to five games (3-0-2).

Anaheim scored five times on its first 13 shots even though Paul Kariya or Teemu Selanne combined for just two shots in the first two periods.

The Ducks took a 3-1 lead thanks to the play of a promising young center, a precocious 19-year old defenseman, a journeyman forward, a winger picked up in the waiver draft and a defenseman who is beginning to play like the star many expected him to become.

And after those unlikely suspects threw the body shots, Steve Rucchin, Kariya and Selanne delivered the knockout blows in victory that moved Anaheim into ninth place and within one point of the eighth-place Kings.

The playoffs are two months away, but the Ducks know their playoff hopes are on the line right now and they sent a strong message to a stunned Los Angeles team that was booed off the ice after giving up four goals in the last 10:09 of the second period.

With the score tied 1-1 midway through the second period, the most unlikely Duck opened the floodgates for Anaheim. Rookie defenseman Vitaly Vishnevski, playing in his seventh NHL game, made the most of some rare power-play time and fired a point shot through a screen after veteran winger Kip Miller (two assists) kept the puck alive by knocking it off the dasher and getting it to Cullen. The Ducks second-line center sent it back to Vishnevski, who scored at 9: 51. It was his first career point and marked the fifth straight game the Ducks have scored a power-play goal.

Next it was little-known Ladislav Kohn's turn to make a big play. The winger, who the Ducks acquired just before the season in the waiver draft, bounced off a big hit by Sean O'Donnell and got the puck to Mike Leclerc. Stephane Fiset stopped Leclerc's shot, but Oleg Tverdovsky extended his point-scoring streak to eight games when he picked up the rebound and scored at 14:33.

With a two-goal cushion, Anaheim's stars went to work. From behind the net, Selanne extended his scoring streak to eight games by setting up Rucchin for a one-timer from the slot at 16:09 that upped the lead to 4-1.

The recently energized Ducks power play, ranked 24th in the league, has scored nine goals in the last five games. It's the third time in that span that the Ducks have scored two power-play goals in a game.

Kariya was held without a shot for 39 minutes, but he made the most of his first chance when he was set off on a breakaway by Rucchin. Alone from the red line in, Kariya put a shot through Fiset's legs at 19:00 for his 31st goal of the season.

The Kings, who outshot the Ducks 32-21 in the game, got goals from Glen Murray and Bryan Smolinski in the third, but it was far too little too late.

Most of the first period was played in the Ducks end of the ice and the Kings had a 11-5 advantage in shots, but Anaheim left the ice tied 1-1 after 20 minutes and might have taken a lead to the dressing room if not for an overaggressive hit by Pascal Trepanier while the Ducks were attempting to kill off a penalty to Ted Donato.

Trepanier got a good hit on the Kings' winger at the Anaheim blue line but was unable to get back in the play again. That allowed Gary Galley to leave a nice drop pass for Jozef Stumpel and the center beat Guy Hebert on the stick side from inside the right circle to tie the game 1-1 at 6:34.

The goal was only the sixth of the season for Stumpel, who has missed 25 games due to injuries, but he has scored in three consecutive games and four times in the last seven games.

Even though neither Kariya or Selanne managed a shot on goal in the first period, the Ducks took a 1-0 lead at 2:49 when Cullen scored on the Ducks' first shot of the game. The Anaheim center got a pass from Miller at the right side of the net and fanned on his first attempt, but he got another chance and knocked it home for his ninth goal of the season.

CAPTION(S):

2 photos, box

Photo: (1 -- color) Kings captain gives a mighty hip check to the Mighty Ducks' Steve Rucchin in the first period.

(2) Luc Robitaille of the Kings and Fredrick Olausson of the Ducks collide.

Tina Burch/Staff Photographer

Box: Head to Head