DUCKS TRY BUT ONLY TIE WINGS : DUCKS 2, DETROIT 2.

Byline: Tim Trepany Daily News Staff Writer

They've vaulted into the playoff race with the most impressive run in franchise history, but the Mighty Ducks weren't ready to take a bold step Friday night.

The Ducks were a little more than three minutes from beating the Detroit Red Wings for the first time ever but couldn't pull it off.

Sergei Fedorov's power-play goal at 16 minutes, 52 seconds of the third period tied it for Detroit and the game ended deadlocked 2-2 at Anaheim Arena.

``It's a huge point no matter what because we're still moving forward,'' Ducks coach Ron Wilson said. ``We'll be initially disappointed, but by tomorrow morning we'll think, `We got a point against the Red Wings, that's great.' ''

The tie puts the Ducks, who are 8-2-2 in their past 12 games, within three points of the Winnipeg Jets for the final playoff spot in the Western Conference, but a victory would have served as a further symbol of their arrival as a team to be reckoned with.

Detroit (58-13-7), which remains two games shy of tying the league record for most wins in a season, has been struggling on this road trip, having lost on Tuesday at San Jose and having tied the Kings on Wednesday, but no team has given the Ducks more problems than the Red Wings. In 11 meetings over three seasons, the Ducks were 0-9-2 against them and in three previous meetings this season, had been outscored 16-4.

The Red Wings' vaunted power play - the third best in the NHL at 21.1 percent - had owned the Ducks in those three contests, getting seven goals on 15 man advantages.

Friday, the Ducks' penalty-killing unit stopped the Red Wings on three of their first four power plays, including one in the third period, but couldn't make it four out of five.

An elbowing penalty on defenseman Darren Van Impe put the Red Wings on the power play the final time, and Fedorov one-timed a cross-ice pass from Steve Yzerman to tie it up.

``It's a disappointment, we should have won the game,'' said Ducks forward Paul Kariya. ``We played well but at times we became tentative and gave them too much respect. We needed to prove to ourselves we can play with them. Even though we tied I think we gained some confidence.''

Roman Oksiuta and Kariya scored the Ducks goals. Both came on power plays, an encouraging sign for the Ducks because the Red Wings' penalty-killing unit is the best in the NHL. They have surrendered two or more power-play goals in a game only six times.

And the Ducks had plenty of chances to win the game. Right wing Teemu Selanne failed to convert on four great scoring chances, including one just 15 seconds into overtime.

``I think we have a lot to build on from this game,'' said Ducks defenseman Bobby Dollas. ``Check the line in Vegas, we were probably two-goal underdogs. We played hard, we took the game to them and it will be an interesting (playoff) series if we ever get to play them.''

The Ducks played strong defense throughout, holding the Red Wings without a shot at even strength for more than 13 minutes but a stupid penalty set up Detroit's first goal.

Notes: The Ducks signed right wing Igor Nikulin, their 1995 fifth-round pick, to a one-year contract that begins next season. In 35 games playing for Cherepovets in the Russian elite league, the 23-year-old Nikulin had 17 goals, 28 points and 18 penalty minutes. . . . Ducks defenseman Randy Ladouceur was a healthy scratch for the 11th straight game.

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Chart: NHL Playoff Race