Edmonton Oilers barely avoid defeat, slide past Minnesota Wild 4-3 in shootout -NHL Preseason Update
Over 40 minutes in penalties were given by both teams combined in the Edmonton Oilers vs. Minnesota Wild matchup on Friday, September 30, at the Xcel Energy Center in Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States, but it was the Canadian team to come out of the dust
as winners by sliding by, 4-3, in a shootout decider.
Up until now, Edmonton Oilers have had a great winning streak by winning their fourth straight against Minnesota Wild after some big victories touching teams like Phoenix Coyotes, Calgary Flames and Chicago Blackhawks.
With the Taylor Hall and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins duo, Edmonton seems to be fully prepared for the upcoming 2011-2012 National Hockey League (NHL) regular season.
Minnesota Wild are not behind in any way at all. It might have been their fourth straight loss to end the preseason, but it certainly came after three back-to-back wins including Edmonton in game-one.
Oilers played hard Friday night, and it surely did not come without paying a hefty price. Edmonton Oilers rookie defenseman, Taylor Fedun, suffered a broken leg after taking a hit from Minnesota’s, Eric Nystrom, which had the team rallying for a win.
“Some teammates paid a real tough price (Friday night) to help us get the win”, said Edmonton Oilers head coach, Tom Renney. “This is the Edmonton Oilers who care about each other. Regardless of who’s here when we start the season, a game like (Friday night)
will galvanize the whole group and even the guys in Oklahoma City”.
The scoring started during the second 20 minute period as Pierre-Marc Bouchard put Minnesota ahead with his second of the preseason, 37 seconds into the match.
Anton Lander capitalised on the penalty shot awarded to them after Fedun’s injury to level the match.
Mikko Koivu and Devin Setoguchi scored two straight, giving Minnesota a commanding 3-1 lead in the final period as the opening six-minutes were yet to pass. Edmonton was not far behind as Linus Omark and Ryan Jones, each potted their second of the preseason
with less than six minutes remaining to force overtime.
Without a goal into overtime, both teams were face-to-face in the shootout. Lander scored the only goal on Nicklas Backstrom while Edmonton goalie, Devan Dubnyk, remained steadfast in the next.
Edmonton has one game remaining against Vancouver Canucks on Saturday, October 1.
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