By MATT BEARDMORE
STATS Writer
The Anaheim Ducks' top line was unable to get any offense going the last time they took the ice. That hasn't been a problem when facing the Phoenix Coyotes.
Corey Perry, Bobby Ryan and Ryan Getzlaf look to get the Ducks back on track Sunday night when they close a four-game homestand against the Coyotes, who have just five wins in their last 21 visits to the Honda Center.
After combining for eight assists and seven of the club's 13 goals in the previous three games - all wins - Perry, Ryan and Getzlaf were shut down in Friday's 4-0 loss to Western Conference-leading Detroit.
It was the second time Anaheim (13-12-3) has been shut out this season, both versus the Red Wings' Jimmy Howard.
"It's frustrating," said Perry, who has 12 goals and a team-best 28 points. "We had a couple of turnovers, a couple of mental lapses, and we're down 2-0. We battled hard tonight, and had a great work ethic, but we just couldn't find a way to get the puck past Howard."
Anaheim has fared much better against Coyotes goaltenders Ilya Bryzgalov and Jason LaBarbera this season. The Ducks' top line has five goals and 12 assists as coach Randy Carlyle's team has won both matchups with its Pacific Division rivals.
In a 3-2 victory over the visiting Coyotes (12-7-6) on Oct. 17, Ryan and Getzlaf assisted on Perry's game-winning goal past LaBarbera, who made 32 saves in his season debut.
Ryan finished with a career-high three assists and Getzlaf had two in that matchup as the Ducks improved to 18-3-3 with a tie against the visiting Coyotes since the start of the 2002-03 season.
Led by Ryan's second career hat trick, a goal and two assists from Perry and Getzlaf's season-high four assists, the visiting Ducks snapped the Coyotes' seven-game winning streak with a 6-4 victory on Nov. 27.
Atop the Pacific going into that matchup, Phoenix is now tied with Anaheim for second, four points behind Dallas following Saturday's 2-1 shootout loss to Florida.
"There were some good things, but at the end of the day we needed those points and let one get away," coach Dave Tippett said after his team failed to convert in its last two chances in the tiebreaker.
Bryzgalov was solid with 36 saves through overtime, but he allowed two goals in the shootout to drop his third consecutive start. Before giving up six goals in the Nov. 27 loss, Bryzgalov - a backup on the Ducks' Stanley Cup-winning team in 2007 - blanked his former team two straight times.
Tippett could give the nod to LaBarbera, who has won his last two starts, but is 0-3-1 with a 3.21 goals-against average over four career starts in Anaheim.
Coyotes leading goal scorer Scottie Upshall, who has five of his eight in the last 10 games, has four goals and three assists during a six-game points streak against the Ducks.
Phoenix forward Shane Doan has five of his seven assists this season versus Anaheim. Doan set up two goals in the Oct. 17 loss, but was later suspended three games by the NHL for a blindside hit to the head of the Ducks' Dan Sexton.
Anaheim's Jonas Hiller will likely make his eighth consecutive start on Sunday. He is 6-0-1 with a 1.95 GAA in seven career home starts versus Phoenix.
