The worst team in the NHL gave the Ducks a run for their money in a sloppy game at Honda Center, before Anaheim pulled out its team-record 11th straight win on home ice.
Bobby Ryan scored twice, and Todd Marchant scored the game-winning goal on a deflection of James Wisniewski’s point shot at 8:21 of the third period. Jonas Hiller made 37 saves but was beaten twice on short-handed rushes in the second period.
“It didn’t matter how we did it,” Hiller said. “We did it and it’s a great feeling.”
The Ducks (29-24-7) leaped past idle Dallas and out of the Pacific Division cellar, and matched the Detroit Red Wings at 65 points in the conference standings. That’s two points behind the current eighth-place team (Calgary), though Detroit has one game in hand.
“It’s all about getting points and it doesn’t matter how you get them,” Ducks head coach Randy Carlyle said. “Every game isn’t a picture of beauty and tonight wasn’t one of those beautiful games this year.”
Edmonton (18-35-6) lost its team-record 11th straight game on the
road. They did so despite plenty of chances – including 12 Ducks
giveaways and a 5-on-3 power play early in the second period that
lasted a full 1:31. Less than four minutes after it expired, the Oilers
scored the hard way when captain Ethan Moreau chased down a puck behind
Hiller and found Ryan Potulny during a 5-on-4 Ducks power play.
At the 14:13 mark, Moreau did it again, stepping in front of a James
Wisniewski pass at the blue line and taking it to the other end of the
rink for another short-handed tally.
Ryan got the goal back less than a minute later on a hard wrist shot
past Jeff Deslauriers (27 saves) for his team-leading 27th goal of the
season. Corey Perry made a fantastic pass through the legs of former
Duck Ladislav Smid to set up Ryan’s first-period goal.
After Marchant’s goal made it 3-2, the Ducks still had to kill a tripping penalty with 2:50 left in the game, then survive a 6-on-5 situation over the final 50 seconds.
“The
penalty killing came up big tonight, especially late in the game there,” Marchant said. “We know we have to be better. We’ll take the win.”
