Torres leads Oilers in shootout win
Canadian Press
10/9/2005 1:12:48 AM
EDMONTON (CP) - Raffi Torres said it was his best game as a pro; the fact it coincided with his birthday made it even sweeter.
The left-winger from Toronto scored a pair of power-play goals on his 24th birthday and had one of two goals in the shootout as the Edmonton Oilers remained undefeated after beating the Vancouver Canucks 4-3 on Saturday.
''It was definitely intense,'' said Torres, who sent the sellout crowd of 16,839 at Rexall Place into hysterics after scoring with 22 seconds left in the third period off a feed from Mike Peca. ''Look at the passes I got from my linemates.''
The NHL's crackdown on obstruction was evident as the teams combined for 20 minor penalties. Canucks defenceman Mattias Ohlund had the costliest minor, drawing a delay of game penalty at 19:20 of the third after unsuccessfully trying to clear the puck.
Shawn Horcoff also scored for Edmonton (2-0-0), which outshot Vancouver 34-31 after jumping out a 21-10 advantage in the second period.
Ales Hemsky was the other shootout goal scorer for the Oilers, who finished 2-for-7 with the man advantage.
''It was an amazing win,'' said Oilers coach Craig MacTavish. ''We didn't get out-skilled tonight.''
The Oilers lost star forward Ryan Smyth to a sprained medial collateral ligament in his left knee after a knee-on-knee collision with Vancouver defenceman Bryan Allen in the first period.
Fans booed lustily each time Todd Bertuzzi touched puck in his first NHL road game since his 17-month suspension for a hit on Colorado's Steve Moore.
''It was a good game out there today,'' Bertuzzi said when asked about his cool reception.
Sami Salo had a goal to cap a three-point night and captain Marcus Naslund scored a pair of power-play goals with an assist for Vancouver (1-0-1), which had four two-man advantages in the game including a pair in the third period.
The Canucks finished 3-for-12 on the power-play.
''We've got to put teams away when we have chances,'' said Naslund. ''Anytime you have a five-on-three, you've got to think you're going to score.''
Jussi Markkanen made 28 saves for Edmonton the game the day after being activated from a broken collarbone that caused him to miss the entire pre-season.
''I was shaky before the game,'' said Markkanen, who stopped both Naslund and Bertuzzi in the shootout. ''I just tried to read what they were going to do.''
Horcoff scored on Edmonton's first shot of the game, sweeping the puck between Dan Cloutier's legs at 1:42 for his third goal in two games.
With Horcoff off for tripping, Naslund, who set up Salo's winner to also finish with three points, hesitated before wristing a shot over the shoulder of Markkanen at 17:17.
Torres restored the lead at 2:43 of the second, and Edmonton had the chance to widen their one-goal lead early in the third but a goal by Cory Cross was called off on a roughing penalty to Georges Laraque.
Naslund scored again on a hard wrist shot in the third to tie the game 2-2 after the Oilers were down two men for the fourth time, and Salo gave the Canucks their first lead at 12:08.
Peca earned his first point as an Edmonton Oiler on Torres' game-tying goal.
Notes: Peca's father Claudio attended the game. ...The Oilers recruited forward Ethan Moreau's brother Chad, a fitness trainer based in California, to set up programs for each player this week. ... Edmonton had a doctor in on Friday to explain the do's and don'ts of the new drug testing policy. ... Players will be randomly tested starting Jan. 15.
Cheers,
Aquaman