Phoenix Coyotes stay strong with 3-2 win over Edmonton Oilers-NHL Update
Phoenix is one of those teams that are currently stuck in the Western Conference loop for the final spots in this year’s playoff race and managed to keep their position as number seven as Coyotes edged Edmonton Oilers, 3-2, in a shootout on Sunday night,
March 18, 2012, at the sold-out Rexall Place in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
Coyotes are now tied at the final playoff spot position with 83 points with Colorado Avalanche and a number of teams are looking to move in being a couple of points behind, making every game even more crucial.
"Every game matters so much for us right now," Coyotes defenseman, Keith Yandle, said. "If we had played loose and the way the Oilers wanted to play, then we would have lost by a lot of goals. We fumbled it around a bit in the first period, but I think we
played our game more as the game wore on. We were able to work them down low and find a way to win."
After a scoreless opening period involving a fight between Lennart Petrell and Keith Yandle, Jordan Eberle and Ales Hemsky scored two straight for Edmonton in the following period to give the home team a comfortable 2-0 lead entering the final 20 minutes.
Edmonton kept their penalties given to a minimum by not giving any at all during the final period but Phoenix still managed to level the game as Ray Whitney broke away with the puck nearly midway through and Raffi Torres grabbed the equaliser with less than
three minutes to go.
Scoring on both of their first two attempts as Mikkel Boedker and Ray Whitney got the two deciding shots, Edmonton failing on two of three gave Phoenix the lucky win.
"You look at the way the game went and we weren't playing the way we needed to be," Coyotes captain, Shane Doan, said. "They played really, well but we were just able to find a way. We're feeling a bit fortunate right now."
Edmonton has the next on the road against Nashville Predators on Tuesday while Phoenix Coyotes are set to meet Dallas Stars on the same day.
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