In This Game, Ducks Turn Things Around : Hockey: Valk leads come-from-behind victory over Sharks, taking some heat off Wilson.

The Mighty Ducks quit pointing their fingers at each other and used them to pick up their sticks and play hard instead Friday night--at least for one game.

With a 4-2 victory at The Pond of Anaheim over the San Jose Sharks--a struggling team that blew them out 10 days ago--the Ducks ended a five-game losing streak and eased the pressure that has been threatening to boil over in recent days.

The Ducks have still won only three games in December, so the crisis isn’t over. But after giving up at least six goals in each of their last four games, it was progress.

Garry Valk scored the go-ahead goal at 14:04 of the third period when Paul Kariya fed him in the slot and Valk threw it toward the net. Valk added an empty-net goal with 19.5 seconds left for the final margin.

The Ducks had trailed, 2-1, in the third until Bob Corkum and Todd Ewen got out on a two-on-one and Corkum whipped a shot over a sliding defender and past goalie Chris Terreri to tie the score, 2-2, at 8:46.

Duck goalie Guy Hebert, shaky of late, made 25 saves in his best recent performance.

After the game, for a change, the Ducks weren’t looking for excuses--a habit that wasn’t earning Coach Ron Wilson any points with his bosses.

“Our whole organization has used too many excuses,” Duck President Tony Tavares said. “It’s the ice, it’s the refs. All those things are uncontrollable situations.

“Everyone has got to start holding themselves accountable for their own actions. To the extent that guys are blaming each other, blaming the coaches, they need to look in the mirror first. People need to start feeling personally responsible.

“The main issue is, we’re all in this together. It’s not about placing blame.”

Even so, Wilson is probably feeling the most heat he has in his three seasons. General Manager Jack Ferreira isn’t as quick to his defense as he was earlier this season.

“We’re not kidding ourselves. There’s problems,” Ferreira said before the game, though he wouldn’t elaborate, saying it’s not his policy to criticize publicly. “I talked to the coaches. They know what my position is. . . . There’s problems, things I don’t like.”

Management is clearly analyzing the situation, but for now is sticking to its organizational mantra: patience.

“If you could tell me what’s happening out there is totally the result of coaching, I’d make a coaching change,” Tavares said. “But I’m not convinced it is.”

Earlier this season, Ferreira praised Wilson in time of crisis and offered him a one-year extension. Though it’s still unsigned, “We’re not pulling any offers off the table,” Ferreira said. “They have a deal.”

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Mighty Duck Notes

Right wing Steven King, 26, played his first NHL game in nearly two years after recovering from reconstructive surgery on both shoulders. However, he was ejected in the second period when he received a slashing major for cutting San Jose defenseman Marcus Ragnarsson on the face. King hadn’t appeared in an NHL game since Feb. 2, 1994, but was called up Friday from minor league affiliate Baltimore, where he had 15 goals and 23 points in 32 games. King took the place of left wing Denny Lambert, who was demoted to Baltimore even though he has a one-way contract, meaning the Ducks will pay his full $250,000 salary in the minors.