Oilers drop 7-3 decision to Ducks

Dustin Penner screens a shot in front of Duck's netminder Jonas Hiller. (Photo by Andy Devlin/EOHC)

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PRE-GAME

Preview Game Notes Head-to-Head Stats Comparison Video interviews Audio Interviews

PHOTOS

Click here for the photo gallery

VIDEO

Post-game video highlights. Oilers post-game video interviews with Moreau, Staios and Comrie. Pat Quinn post-game comments The Other Side: Post-game from Koivu and Carlyle Ryan Getzlaf on playing for Canada

AUDIO

Pat Quinn Mike Comrie Steve Staios Ethan Moreau

THREE STARS

Ryan Getzlaf (2G, 2A) Teemu Selanne (2A) Ethan Moreau (1G)

UPDATE

The Oilers drop to a 19-36-6 (44 pts) record and are sitting in 15th place in the Western Conference.

WHAT'S NEXT

Edmonton now embarks on their Olympic break. The team resumes practices at Rexall Place on February 24 but don't play again until March 2 against the Nashville Predators.

Nine different Oilers tallied penalty minutes tonight and they managed to collect 44 minutes as a team. The penalties started early and came frequently all evening. Saku Koivu struck first for the Ducks just three minutes into the game but Ryan Potulny answered back on the power play for the Oilers just a few minutes later. Corey Perry regained the lead for the Ducks going into the second period.

In the second, Niedermayer picked up a power play goal for the Ducks and Ethan Moreau net a nice short-handed goal to set the tone for the Oilers.

The third was when the shooting spree began for the Ducks. Team Canada player Ryan Getzlaf capitalized on the Oilers undiciplined as he picked up a pair of power play goals in the third period. George Parros and Bobby Ryan each added one to the busy score board. Lubomir Visnovsky scored for the Oilers which would not be enough to catch the flying ducks. Oilers drop this one 7-3 and move into their Olympic break.

FIRST PERIOD

Just 51 seconds into the opening period, the Oilers were caught for too many men on the ice. Robert Nilsson took the two minutes and the Oilers got to work on their first penalty kill of the night. Minutes after killing off their first penalty, Ducks tough guy Mike Brown dropped the gloves with Ladislav Smid in front of Deslauriers.

Just over three minutes in, Saku Koivu made it one nothing on a nice rebound from a Teemu Selanne shot. The Finnish duo got the Ducks on the board early.

Ryan Getzlaf took a slashing penalty followed with Todd Marchant getting called for tripping just seconds later. Oilers found themselves on a five-on-three power play and a great chance to tie the game at one. It was Ryan Potulny who was in the slot at the right time to squeeze one through traffic into the back of the net. Potulny's goal was assisted by Sean Horcoff and Gilbert Brule. Potulny gets his 14th goal and 22nd point of the season.

Seconds past the halfway mark, Ryan Getzlaf fed a nice pass up the boards onto the the stick of fellow Team Canada linemate Corey Perry who wired a slap shot from the top of the circle beating Jeff Deslauriers five hole. Ducks found themselves up on the Oilers for the second time.

The Oilers continued their strong penalty kill as Staios went to the box twice in the closing minutes. Deslauriers had to be huge to fend off the stacked Olympian line of the Anaheim Ducks. JD made three big saves with Staios in the sin bin for roughing and another three on the second kill with less than a minute to play. Onto the second period they went down by a goal.

SECOND PERIOD

Four minutes into the period, Gilbert Brule and Kyle Chipchura exchanged words which resulted in a fight. Most would hand this one to Chipchura. Brule and Chipchura played against each other during their WHL junior careers.

Half a minute later, Ducks Captain Scott Niedermayer slid in a power play goal assisted by Ryan Getzlaf. Ducks on top 3-1 five minutes in. Oilers took another unfortunate penalty for delay of game for shooting the puck over the glass just seconds after Niedermayers goal. 

After spending what seemed like half of the period down a man, Ethan Moreau wired a hard wrist shot on net fooling Ducks keeper Jonas Hiller. Moreau's short-handed goal with 56 seconds to play, assisted by Horcoff and Grebeshkov put the Oilers back within one as we head to the third.

THIRD PERIOD

31-16 were the shots in favour of the Ducks at the start of the third and despite the 24 minutes that the Oilers had tallied through 40 minutes, they were still in it, down by only one goal.

Just past the five minute mark, Penner took an interference penalty putting the Oilers down a man for yet another two minutes. JD made a nice save on Teemu Selanne's shot but Ryan Getzlaf was there for the rebound and made no mistake but to lift it over Deslauriers. Ducks get another one on the power play to widen the gap to two.

The Ducks found the back of the net just 39 seconds after the Getzlaf goal. This one was reviewed as it appeared the puck was kicked in. After review, it was kicked in by Lubomir Visnovsky so the Ducks get the break and go up 5-2. George Parros gets credit for the goal unassisted.

43 seconds after Parro's goal, Lubomir Visnovsky returns the favour for the Oilers snapping one past Hiller. Mike Comrie and Sean Horcoff pick up the assists on the Oilers third goal of the night as they continue to claw their way back into the game.

With under five to play in the game, a scrum broke out centre ice. Mike Comrie and James Wisniewski went to the box for roughing. Visnovsky added to the men down situation and sat for slashing. Down two men, Ryan Getzlaf pops in another goal for the Ducks assisted by Olympians Scott Neidermayer and Bobby Ryan. Oilers down 6-3 with under three minutes to play.

This wasn't enough for the Ducks as they kept coming at the Oilers.  Mike Comrie found his way back to the box after being called for elbowing. This time it was Bobby Ryan who found the back of the net for the Ducks with 1:57 left to go. That was all the damage the Ducks could do on the Oilers as this one finished 7-3.