Wings Skid Hits Three With OT Loss to Oilers

The Wings completed their road trip winless as they fell to the Edmonton Oilers in overtime, 6-5. With help from four third period goals, the Oilers came back from being down two goals at the beginning of the third period to create a two goal lead for themselves. The Wings answered with two third period goals of their own to send the game to overtime.

Jarret Stoll scored the game winner only 33 seconds into overtime. The Oilers were on the power play due to a Kirk Maltby goaltender interference penalty called at 19:47 of the third period. Stoll took a pass at the top of the left circle, moved right along the blue line and sent a wrist shot just over Osgood’s glove.

The Oilers opened the scoring at 14:28 of the first with a 5-on-3 power play goal. Chris Pronger was high between the circles and fed Ales Hemsky the puck below the circle on the left. Hemsky put the puck on net while Chris Osgood dove to get in front of it. The puck ricocheted off the paddle of Osgood’s stick then up to his cage, from there it bounced into the net for the goal. There was a short delay to fix Osgood’s throat protector after which had come off due to the contact with the puck.

The Wings tied the game up two minutes later as Mikael Samuelsson stepped in front of a Chris Pronger pass just inside the Oilers’ blue line. Samuelsson then skated to the top of the right circle and put it past Jussi Markkanen.

In the second period, the Wings scored twice early, giving them a 3-1 lead. The first goal came on the power play at 3:37 from Pavel Datsyuk who took a pass at the center ice circle and motored into the Oilers’ zone heading to the left circle. There he sent a shot to the top far corner over Markkanen’s glove. Then at 4:50 Johan Franzen took a pass from Robert Lang just inside the blue line and sent a slap shot from the top right circle that hit the inside of the far post on Markkanen’s stick side.

Down two goals starting the third period, the Oilers turned things around scoring four goals in seven minutes. The first of the four goals came at 5:30 from Marc-Andre Bergeron who got the puck at the left circle from a bad clearing attempt by Chris Chelios. Bergeron went far side over Osgood’s glove, banging it off the post for the goal.

Only one minute and 29 seconds later Ryan Smyth scored on a wrap around on the right post after picking up the puck from Hemsky who had it pinned along the boards behind the net.

The Oilers took the lead at 8:12 on a shorthanded goal from Ethan Moreau. Shawn Horcoff broke in and sent the Wings’ backcheckers with him to the right, then passed behind his back to Moreau who was alone and breaking for the slot. Moreau then had Osgood going left and had an empty net to shoot at.

Ryan Smyth then added his second goal of the night to give the Oilers a 5-3 lead at 12:25 of the period while on the power play. Smyth picked the puck up in the right corner, turned and sent his shot top shelf from the right circle.

The Wings cut the lead to one with a power play goal from Brendan Shanahan at 16:40. Nicklas Lidstrom brought the puck deep into the Oilers’ zone at the bottom of the left circle and sent a pass to the crease where Shanahan tapped it past Markkanen. The Wings tied the game at 5-5 only a minute and two seconds later when a bouncing puck in front of Markkanen was eventually put in by Steve Yzerman after Kris Draper’s and Maltby’s attempts.

Both the Oilers and the Wings had 28 shots a piece, with the Oilers taking the only shot recorded in overtime. The Wings took half of their shots in the third period alone. The Wings managed two power play goals during their six chances, while the Oilers converted three of their eight power play opportunities.

The Wings will head home to play the St. Louis Blues next on Saturday night.