DUCKS HAPPY, NOW PREPARE FOR NEXT STEP.

Byline: A.J. Perez Staff Writer

Brian Burke didn't waste words when he described the atmosphere around the Pond in Anaheim on Wednesday.

``Jubilation,'' the Mighty Ducks general manager said.

That was soon tempered with the realization the deal to end the 10-month-long NHL lockout ushers in a new era, one that includes a salary cap that Burke and Co. will have to decipher in short order.

``We are going to have no tougher time than anybody else,'' Burke said in a phone interview. ``We're working under a very compressed time frame, but on a day like this I'm not complaining.''

Some players were doing that over the past several weeks once it became clear the deal they will be asked to approve next week was less than they were offered before the cancellation of the season last February.

But Ducks goalie J.S. Giguere attempted to put a positive spin on the stoppage that cost him a year's salary.

``We believed in our strategy at first, but maybe it didn't hold up as good as we thought it would,'' he said in an interview on Canadian sports network TSN. ``At the end of the day, we did what was best for the game.''

Giguere ($3.64 million) is one of eight players still under contract with the Ducks, a payroll that totals up to about $18 million once the 24 percent salary rollback is figured in.

The other players include center Sergei Fedorov ($4.56 million), winger Petr Sykora ($3.2 million), center Steve Rucchin ($2.26 million), defenseman Keith Carney ($2.05 million), defenseman Vitali Vishnevski ($950,000), center Joffrey Lupul ($900,000) and center Andy McDonald ($608,000).

All-Star defenseman Sandis Ozolinsh is the lone Duck player who stands to be a unrestricted free agent.

The Ducks also have 10 players - including center Rob Niedermayer - listed as restricted free agents, allowing Anaheim to match any offer. The team has club options on winger Garrett Burnett and goalie Ilya Bryzgalov.

``This shouldn't be news to anybody,'' said Burke, who will fly to New York with Ducks contract guru David McNab for a CBA tutorial this weekend. ``Rumors of what the CBA might look like have been around for a while. We think we have anticipated that and prepared for every eventuality.''

The new CBA allows teams to buy out existing contracts at two-thirds of their value, but the Ducks aren't expected to use that tool.

--Notes: There was some movement in the Ducks coaching vacancy. The team lost head coach Mike Babcock, who refused a one-year deal with the Ducks and reportedly is expected to be named Friday as the Red Wings' coach. Burke said he's conducted ``some interviews.'' Burke wouldn't divulge who he has interviewed or how many candidates he's brought in.

A.J. Perez, [phone]

aj.perez(at)presstelegram.com