After a stretch where he had mixed results, he feels ready to contribute during Anaheim's drive to the playoffs.

By Eric Stephens

Hockey goalies feed off being confident in the net. For the Ducks' Ilya Bryzgalov this season, confidence has come and gone like the Santa Ana winds that blow around the Honda Center.

Lately, however, he is feeling a surge of it and his solid play behind Jean-Sebastien Giguere could pay off in the long run.

"I feel like I've got my confidence back," said Bryzgalov, who has won three of his last four starts. "I'm in great shape physically. No doubts."

The Ducks have plenty to accomplish in their last nine games of the regular season, from securing a playoff spot to possibly capturing the President's Trophy for best record in the league and having home-ice advantage throughout the Stanley Cup playoffs.

In Bryzgalov's case, he will look for opportunities to solidify himself as a viable option in the postseason in case Giguere stumbles or the veteran's health becomes a question. The Ducks have three sets of games on consecutive nights remaining.

And then there is beyond. The Ducks face a major decision on whether to re-sign Giguere, who'll be an unrestricted free agent on July 1, but they know they have Bryzgalov in tow after locking him up with a two-year, $2.36-million contract extension last September.

Early this season, Bryzgalov said he thought Coach Randy Carlyle lost faith in him after being pulled three times in his first six starts. That faith has been restored, he said.

"When coach shows you that he trusts you and has confidence in you, it helps a lot," said Bryzgalov, who's 8-7-4 this season with a 2.65 goals-against average. "You feel much better when Coach doesn't give up on you. If you make a mistake, he doesn't take you out [immediately]."

Carlyle said he wanted both goalies at the top of their game when the playoffs arrive.

"The reality of it is we've got the goaltending that's put us in the position that we're at," Carlyle said. "As far as Bryzgalov, he hasn't played as much as Giguere. But we know that we'll need two goaltenders down the stretch here."