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 Left winger Lauri Korpikoski scored at 1:46 of overtime to give the
Oilers a 2-1 victory over the Vancouver Canucks on Sunday night.
It was the second win in as many nights for the young Oilers, and it
helped restore some confidence to a team that lost its first four
games of the season.
"It's always good to win," said right winger Nail Yakupov, who
scored Edmonton's opening goal on a first-period power play.
"We struggled the first four games. We needed this. It's time to get
those points back. It's much better when you have smiles in the
dressing room and stay loose. (Don't) panic."
Korpikoski scored on a breakaway after taking a pass from defenseman
Andrej Sekera. Canucks goaltender Ryan Miller initially stopped the
shot, but the puck squirted through his pads.
"They had some chances before in that shift," said Korpikoski, who
scored his second goal of the year. "It kind of trickled through his
five-hole. It was fun to get the win."
It was a frustrating loss for the Canucks, who outshot the Oilers
34-24 but had trouble beating Edmonton goaltender Anders Nilsson.
"We probably deserved more," Miller said. "We had some good looks.
We just couldn't find the back of the net."
Miller said he probably should have stopped Korpikoski's shot.
"It hit me high on the thigh and squeezed through," he said. "It was
one of those ones where (you needed to be) a little more square and
its stays out."
The Oilers claimed their first victory of the season with a 5-2
decision over the Calgary Flames on Saturday night.
Center Connor McDavid, whom the Oilers picked first overall in this
year's draft, assisted on Yakupov's goal. He has two goals and two
assists in his past two games.
"It's really nice," McDavid said about Edmonton's winning streak.
"It feels great.
"These are big points, divisional points. These are the ones that
add up later on in the season."
Edmonton coach Todd McLellan likes the resilience his team is
showing.
"We won games different ways," he said. "(Saturday) night, I thought
we were the better team.
"(Sunday), I am not sure we were the better team, but we found a way
to win, which is always a good sign. It allows us to head into a
homestand feeling good about ourselves. We've still got a lot of
work to do, but we have guys believing now in each other and perhaps
in the system."
Defenseman Matt Bartkowski scored for Vancouver. It was his first
goal in 137 regular-season games.
The teams exchanged first-period goals but didn't score again until
the overtime.
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Vancouver left winger Daniel Sedin missed a golden chance to break
the 1-1 tie early in the third period.
Center Henrik Sedin had a breakaway, which a diving Nilsson stopped.
Left winger Daniel Sedin, who was trailing on the play, collected
the rebound but flipped the puck over the top of the open net.
It was that kind of night for the Canucks (3-1-2), who are 0-1-2 in
three home games this season.
"I thought we played really well in the third, gave ourselves a huge
chance to bring the game home," Vancouver left winger Sven Baertschi
said. "Obviously, they finished it."
It took McDavid just 3:23 into the game to put on a show for the
fans in his first regular-season visit to Rogers Arena.
With the Oilers on a power play, McDavid used his speed to blow past
Canucks right winger Jannik Hansen and take the puck deep into the
Vancouver zone. He then sent a cross-ice pass to Yakupov, who fired
a bullet from the slot that beat Miller on the glove side.
"He's always trying to see someone open," Yakupov said. "He's always
going to move the puck.
"With this guy, you just have to be ready all the time."
NOTES: LW Sven Baertschi returned to the Canucks' lineup after being
scratched for two games. ... Vancouver C Jared McCann sat out due to
an undisclosed injury sustained Friday in the Canucks' 4-3 loss to
St. Louis. ... Vancouver D Yannick Weber was a healthy scratch. ...
The last time Vancouver started the season with three rookies was
1999. ... It was the second consecutive game in which the Canucks
faced a team that had played the night before. ... Vancouver's
five-game homestand continues Thursday against Washington. ...
Edmonton LW Matt Hendricks didn't play due to an undisclosed injury.
LW Anton Slepyshev replaced Hendricks on Edmonton's top line with RW
Taylor Hall and C Ryan Nugent-Hopkins. ... Oilers D Andrew Ference
and D Brandon Davidson were healthy scratches. .... Prior to Sunday,
Edmonton's last win in Vancouver was a 4-2 victory on Jan. 27, 2014.
... The Oilers return home to face the Detroit Red Wings on
Wednesday.
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