Anaheim, CA (Sports Network) - Teemu Selanne scored two goals, the first being his 1,300th career point, and the Anaheim Ducks held on to beat the Edmonton Oilers, 3-2, at Honda Center. Luca Sbisa also lit the lamp for the Ducks, while Curtis McElhinney made 23 saves. Anaheim has won four of its last five games.
Rookie Magnus Paajarvi and Sam Gagner scored 26 seconds apart late in the second period for Edmonton, which posted a 1-4-0 record on its road trip. Nikolai Khabibulin stopped 25 shots in defeat. "We thought tonight we did a good job of sustaining cycles and keeping the puck in their end. We made it difficult on them," Gagner said of his line.
While on a power play, Selanne positioned himself in the slot and redirected Lubomir Visnovsky's point shot past Khabibulin to give Anaheim a 3-0 lead at 17:32 of the middle stanza. Paajarvi put Edmonton on the board 46 seconds later, and an Anaheim turnover resulted in Gagner beating McElhinney with a one-timer at 18:44. The Oilers applied furious pressure down the stretch, forcing the Ducks to take a pair of penalties late in regulation. Khabibulin was pulled to create a brief 6-on-3 advantage during which the Oilers couldn't convert.
"We couldn't have found any better way to make it more interesting -- six-on- three, then the broken stick, so it was kind of like six-on-two and a half. We found a way to get it done," said Anaheim defenseman Andy Sutton. Sbisa put Anaheim on the board with a screened shot from the point 9:23 into the contest. Selanne buried a rebound to make it 2-0 with three minutes left in the first period.
McElhinney left the game momentarily in the second period to receive stitches for a neck laceration. Jonas Hiller turned away all three shots he faced in 2:53 of action...Anaheim has won seven of the last eight meetings.
For more information on tonight's game, be sure to read Anaheim Calling.