|
 The Canucks remain perfect on the young season at 3-0 while the
Oilers extended their losing streak to a franchise record five
straight games from the start of a season.
Ryan Miller got his first shutout as a Canuck, stopping all 28
Oilers shots.
"It means a lot," he said. "You like to get the first one (shutout)
out of the way. It was an important game for us as well, to keep
things moving along. We had a long break.
You just try to make a difference where you can. It was one of those
nights that I felt fortunate to keep it at zeros and then watch the
guys get the lead. At the end of the night we got rewarded. It was
good."
And the Oilers start has been bad.
"We played better in a lot of areas, I thought all of our lines
played pretty well," said Oilers goalie Ben Scrivens. "They had one
quality chance and they buried it and we couldn't find a way to do
the same with ours.
"Despite playing better we still have to push through and find a
way. It's not a lot of condolence to play well and (lose). We still
have work to do."
The Oilers came into the game under intense pressure from their fans
-- having given up 22 goals in their first four losses -- and they
did manage to shore up their goaltending and defence.
But the offence dried up
"We had one collapse and they scored on it but other than that we
cleaned it up and Scrivens played well," said Oilers winger Jordan
Eberle. "They're the right steps, but we have to find a way to win.
It's that simple. Close isn't going to get you anything in this
league.
"We have a long home stand, six more games, and we have to string
together some wins. It's that simple."
The Oilers responded to the pre-game pressure very well, attacking
Vancouver all period, breaking out of their own end with relative
east and creating several quality scoring chances.
But they couldn't solve Miller and had to settle for a scoreless tie
after 20 minutes.
"Tonight I look at the power play (0-4)," said Eberle. "We had some
chances to score out there and create some momentum. When you get a
chance there you have to put one in."
The Oilers applied more pressure in the second, but the Canucks, who
had five days between games, began mounting a strong resistance that
finally paid off when right winger Radim Vrbata found a soft spot at
the back door of Oilers goaltender Ben Scriven's crease to give
Vancouver a 1-0 lead they would take into the second intermission.
[to top of second column]
|
"It is about timing and being at the right place at the right time,"
said Vrbata. "If I do that, I know that they (one of the Sedin
twins) will find me. It was a nice pass."
Canucks winger Daniel Sedin sealed the victory into an empty net in
the final minute for Vancouver.
"I think we were fresh and it helped that we have such a deep lineup
and we can roll four lines," said Sedin. "We spent a lot of time in
their end and were able to tire them out."
Meanwhile, the dark cloud around the Oilers just got a little
darker.
"As bad as it seems for our fans right now, they can get behind us
pretty fast," said winger Taylor Hall. "Were staying positive
because there's no other route, really."
NOTES: The Oilers sent D Darnell Nurse back to Junior, two games
into his nine-game NHL audition, and recalled D Martin Marincin from
Oklahoma City. ... They also sent LW Steve Pinizzotto back to the
AHL. ... Oilers G Ben Scrivens brought a 5.22 GAA and .800 save
percentage into Friday's game. ... Canucks GM Jim Benning says they
will give injured draft pick C Bo Horvat a nine-game chance to prove
himself before deciding whether or not to send him back to Junior.
He missed the first two games of the season with a shoulder injury.
... The Canucks were playing just their third game of the season
after sitting idle since last Saturday's game against Edmonton. ...
Oilers C Ryan Nugent-Hopkins returned to the lineup after missing
two games with a back injury. ... Vancouver G Ryan Miller improved
his record against the Oilers to 9-0 lifetime against the Oilers,
eight of those wins coming with Buffalo.
[© 2014 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
Copyright 2014 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
 |
