Wow. Talk about entertaining hockey! With the exception of the penalty-filled 1st period, the game was fantastic. 2 fast-tempo periods, back and forth 4on4 OT and then a shootout. The Oilers with another character comeback and a very important win. The PP sparked the first comeback to get it to 2-2 and then the PP at the beginning of the 3rd got them all kinds of momentum and ultimately got them to OT. All in all, you have to be appreciative of the effort the Oilers put forward after playing and travelling last night...physical, too.
Dwayne Roloson was a huge part of the win. Remember the save at the end of the 2nd period? Sure he'd like to have the 2nd goal back, but Rollie came up huge the rest of the way. No to mention the shootout...
Raffi Torres had a solid game tonight, but he needs to stop taking retaliation penalties...in both situations, the Oilers were trailing in the game and were headed for a powerplay. Normally I'm all for teammates sticking up for each other, but at this point in the season when you're racing for a playoff spot and down in a hockey game, you need the PP's.
The hit on Lupul? Clean timing, but he left his feet. Something for the NHL to look at.
5 points back of a playoff spot...look out, that game against Minnesota means something.
Just a word on officiating to wrap up. Tonight was hands down the most brutally officiated game I've seen all year. There were phantom calls on both sides, especially in the first period. There were missed calls on both sides (Gator gave a guy a nice forearm late in the 3rd and hemmer was hauled down in overtime, as an example). What's the standard? I still don't have a clue.
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