Parise scores in OT as Devils extend Oilers’ skid
Posted January 12, 2012 12:02 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
THE CANADIAN PRESS
EDMONTON — Zach Parise scored 1:06 into overtime as the New Jersey Devils won their third game in four outings with a 2-1 victory over the Edmonton Oilers on Wednesday.
Parise took a feed from Patrik Elias while on the power play in the overtime session, snapping a puck into a wide-open net behind Edmonton goalie Nikolai Khabibulin.
Ilya Kovalchuk also scored and added an assist for the Devils (24-17-2) who leapt past Toronto into sixth place in the Eastern Conference.
Ales Hemsky replied for the Oilers (16-22-4) who are falling deeper out of contention with four straight defeats and losses in 11 of their last 13 games.
There were few chances at either end until midway through the first when Edmonton’s Taylor Hall was sprung for a partial breakaway but was stopped on a pad save by Devils starter Johan Hedberg.
The shots favoured the Oilers 9-4 in a fairly sedate scoreless first period.
New Jersey finally started the scoring eight minutes into the second frame when Kovalchuk picked off a Jeff Petry pass for a short-handed breakaway and beat Khabibulin high to the glove side for his 17th of the season.
It was the Devils’ league-leading 11th short-handed goal.
New Jersey came close to taking a two-goal lead with three minutes remaining in the second when Elias tipped a shot through Khabibulin’s legs, but the veteran netminder was able to reach behind in time to smother the puck.
Edmonton tied the game 1-1 over eight minutes into the third when Hemsky blasted a shot from the top of the faceoff circle on the power play to beat Hedberg for just his fourth of the year, eventually sending the game to extra time
The Oilers next play host to the Anaheim Ducks on Friday while the Devils finish off a four-game trip in Winnipeg on Saturday.
Notes: It was just the third time the Devils had played in Edmonton since Dec. 30, 2001 and the only meeting between the two teams this season. … New Jersey forward Adam Henrique is mounting a real challenge to Edmonton’s Ryan Nugent-Hopkins in the rookie scoring race. The Calder candidates were separated by just one point coming into the game as Nugent-Hopkins, who is out with a shoulder injury, had 35 points and Henrique had 34. … Oilers leading scorer Jordan Eberle remained out with a knee injury but felt like he could start skating soon and could return by the all-star break. … The Oilers brought up forward Milan Kytnar on an emergency recall from the ECHL’s Stockton Thunder in the wake of Gilbert Brule being scooped up on re-entry waivers by the Phoenix Coyotes on Tuesday and Ryan O’Marra out with the flu. It was Kyntar’s NHL debut. … The Oilers were also without defencemen Ryan Whitney (ankle), Tom Gilbert (knee) and Cam Barker (ankle). … Absent due to injuries for the Devils were centre Travis Zajac (Achilles) and defencemen Andy Greene (foot).
