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 "I feel more comfortable already," Vermette said.
It showed.
Vermette scored the tiebreaking goal to lift the Blackhawks to a 2-1
shootout win against the Edmonton Oilers. Teammates cheered from the
bench for the veteran center, who arrived from the Arizona Coyotes
on Feb. 28 in exchange for defenseman prospect Klas Dahlbeck and a
first-round pick in this year's draft.
Defenseman Brent Seabrook scored during regulation for the
Blackhawks (39-21-5), who won for the fourth time in the past five
games. Chicago goaltender Corey Crawford turned aside 46 of 47 shots
in regulation before stopping all three of Edmonton's shootout
attempts.
Vermette's goal boosted the Blackhawks to a 9-3 record in shootouts
this season.
"I think everybody wants to contribute and make an impact on a new
team," Chicago coach Joel Quenneville said. "The sooner, the better.
I think you get more relaxed and you get more comfortable.
"(It was) a very valuable point for us."
Center Derek Roy scored the lone goal for the Oilers, who fell to
1-4-1 in their past six games. Roy, right winger Jordan Eberle and
right winger Teddy Purcell each were stymied in the shootout round
for Edmonton (18-36-11).
Edmonton goaltender Ben Scrivens stopped 38 of 39 shots during
regulation. Scrivens denied Blackhawks center Jonathan Toews and
left winger Patrick Sharp during the shootout round before allowing
Vermette's backhand shot to slip between his legs.
Edmonton coach Todd Nelson said he was proud of his players despite
the ending. The Oilers wrapped up their season series against
Chicago with a 1-1-1 record.
"The guys were good tonight," Nelson said. "All 20 guys played hard,
starting with (Scrivens). He had an outstanding game. But I thought
our whole team played well.
"I thought it was a game where we had opportunities that we could
maybe score some goals. Crawford played outstanding. It was just a
good hockey game to watch."
Edmonton opened the scoring on a wrist shot by Roy with 4:45
remaining in the first period. After right winger Nail Yakupov stole
the puck in the offensive zone, Roy finished the play by stopping,
spinning and firing a shot into an open net as Blackhawks defenseman
Duncan Keith and Crawford were caught out of position to the right
of the crease.
The play marked Roy's first goal since Feb. 14 and his seventh goal
of the season. Two of his seven goals have come against the
Blackhawks, including one Jan. 9 in a 5-2 win.
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Roy's goal proved to be Crawford's only blemish. He stopped all 29
shots he faced in the second period, third period and overtime to
improve to 26-14-4.
"We stuck with our game," Crawford said. "We didn't get frustrated.
Their goalie was making some big saves. Their guys were getting in
front of pucks and making blocks. We kept playing, kept getting
chances, and it was nice to get that one."
The Blackhawks evened the score at 1 on a one-timer by Seabrook with
6:02 remaining in the third period. Toews slipped a pass toward the
blue line for Seabrook, who ripped a slap shot through traffic for
his eighth goal of the season and his first since Dec. 27.
Chicago struggled to generate scoring chances during two power-play
opportunities. The Blackhawks are 0-for-9 on the man advantage in
four games without star right winger Patrick Kane, who broke his
collarbone Feb. 24.
The Oilers featured a young lineup with five players on injured
reserve. They blocked 22 shots, including five blocks by defenseman
Martin Marincin.
"I thought we battled all game long," Roy said. "(We were) missing
some guys out of the lineup, and the young guys came and played
really well for us. I think we had 47 shots on net and we did a good
job generating offense on a good hockey team.
"They're a good club over there. They picked up some guys at the
deadline, and we stuck with them and played hard."
NOTES: Blackhawks C Andrew Desjardins made his team debut four days
after he was acquired from the San Jose Sharks in exchange for RW
Ben Smith. Desjardins, 28, registered five goals and three assists
in 56 games with San Jose. ... Oilers C Anton Lander missed his
sixth straight game because of a shoulder injury. Lander returned to
practice but has yet to participate in contact drills. ...
Blackhawks D Johnny Oduya (upper body) participated in Friday's
morning skate and could return next week, coach Joel Quenneville
said. Oduya missed the past five games. ... Oilers G Ben Scrivens
started his seventh consecutive game. ... Blackhawks C Teuvo
Teravainen was a healthy scratch after playing the past three games.
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