The Edmonton Oilers won a shootout 5-4 on Friday to send the Chicago Blackhawks spiraling to their fifth successive defeat.
Patrick O’Sullivan and Ales Kotalik both scored in the shootout session as the Oilers won for the third straight time and moved into sole possession of seventh place in the Western Conference.
Dwayne Roloson made 39 saves in his franchise-record 27th successive start for Edmonton, who improved to 35-27-9 and are within one point of sixth place with 12 games remaining.
PHOTO: AP
The veteran netminder made two critical saves on shots by Chicago’s Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane in the shootout to preserve the victory.
“He’s a warrior,” Oilers coach Craig MacTavish told reporters. “I thought he was good. He had a great save in the shootout that was one of the keys to the game. There were a lot of keys to this game. It was a battle.”
The Blackhawks (37-22-11) are in the midst of a season-worst tailspin but did earn a point to tie the Vancouver Canucks for fourth in the West.
Chicago battled through a contest that saw them tie the game four times before surrendering.
Martin Havlat’s 22nd goal of the year knotted the game at 4-4 at 7:23 in the third period. Havlat also added an assist.
Dustin Penner recorded a goal and an assist for Edmonton, who got scores out of Andrew Cogliano, Ethan Moreau and Sam Gagner. Gagner put the Oilers on top 4-3 with 1:41 left in the second period.
Nick Khabibulin had 27 saves for the Blackhawks, who used scores from Dave Bolland, Adam Burish and Cam Barker in a hard-fought loss.
“We got their best and we responded really well especially after a back-to-back games,” Moreau said. “It was a good template for what we have to do for the rest of the year.”
BLUES 3, FLAMES 2
At Calgary, Canada, Andy McDonald and Jay McClement scored in a 51-second span midway through the third period as St Louis beat the home team.
T.J. Oshie also scored to help St Louis jump into ninth place in the Western Conference, two points behind Nashville for the final playoff spot.
Mike Cammalleri and Dustin Boyd scored for Calgary.
DEVILS 4, WILD 0
In Newark, New Jersey, Martin Brodeur shined in his first appearance since breaking the NHL goalies victory record, leading New Jersey over Minnesota for his 101st shutout, just two behind Terry Sawchuck’s mark.
Brodeur made 35 saves, Patrik Elias scored twice — giving him 30 for the season — and Brian Gionta and Johnny Oduya added goals to help the Devils extend their team-record home winning streak to 11.
In other games it was:
• Red Wings 6, Thrashers 3
• Penguins 4, Kings 1
• Flyers 6, Sabres 4
• Hurricanes 5, Islanders 4
Bologna on Thursday advanced past Empoli to reach their first Coppa Italia final in more than half a century. Thijs Dallinga’s 87th-minute header earned Bologna a 2-1 win and his side advanced 5-1 on aggregate. Giovanni Fabbian opened the scoring for Bologna with a header seven minutes in. Then Viktor Kovalenko equalized for Empoli in the 30th minute by turning in a rebound to finish off a counterattack. Bologna won the first leg 3-0. In the May 14 final in Rome, Bologna are to face AC Milan, who eliminated city rivals Inter 4-1 on aggregate following a 3-0 win on Wednesday. Bologna last reached the
If the Wild finally break through and win their first playoff series in a decade, Minnesota’s top line likely will be the reason. They were all over the Golden Knights through the first two games of their NHL Western Conference quarter-finals series, which was 1-1 going back to Minnesota for Game 3 today. The Wild tied the series with a 5-2 win on Tuesday. Matt Boldy had three goals and an assist in the first two games, while Kirill Kaprizov produced two goals and three assists. Joel Eriksson Ek, who centers the line, has yet to get on the scoresheet. “I think the biggest
From a commemorative jersey to a stadium in his name, Argentine soccer organizers are planning a slew of tributes to their late “Captain” Pope Francis, eulogized as the ultimate team player. Tributes to the Argentine pontiff, a lifelong lover of the game, who died on Monday at the age of 88, have been peppered with soccer metaphors in his homeland. “Francisco. What a player,” the Argentine Football Federation (AFA) said, describing the first pope from Latin America and the southern hemisphere as a generational talent who “never hogged the ball” and who showed the world “the importance of having an Argentine captain,
Noelvi Marte on Sunday had seven RBIs and hit his first career grand slam with a drive off infielder Jorge Mateo, while Austin Wynn had a career-high six RBIs as the Cincinnati Reds scored their most runs in 26 years in a 24-2 rout of the Baltimore Orioles. Marte finished with five hits, including his eighth-inning homer off Mateo. Wynn hit a three-run homer in the ninth off catcher Gary Sanchez. Cincinnati scored its most runs since a 24-12 win against the Colorado Rockies on May 19, 1999, and finished with 25 hits. Baltimore allowed its most runs since a 30-3 loss to
RSS