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BOX SCORE
VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) – Doug Weight wanted to make
sure his Oilers ended the regular season on a high note.
The Edmonton captain scored one goal and set up three others to
lead the Oilers to a 4-2 win over the Vancouver Canucks and sixth
spot in the Western Conference playoffs.
|  | | Tommy Salo, left, got extra duty after Dominic Roussel got knocked out in the second period by Todd Bertuzzi. |
"It was a big game for us, and I'm glad I had some bounces go
my way," Weight said. "Playoffs are crucial, and going in with a
win was important."
Weight scored into an empty net with one second left to play and
set up Sven Butenschon, Mike Grier and Eric Brewer as the Oilers
won for the first time in five games.
"We lost a couple of games here and people say we're on a
little bit of a slide, but sometimes you're going to lose some
tight games and tie some tight games," Weight said.
Edmonton will open against Dallas in the first round of the
playoffs for the third straight season and fourth time in the last
five years.
"This was a big road win before going into the playoffs,"
added Weight. "We've got great confidence from the past two months
and we're going to try and build on that going into Dallas."
Drake Berehowsky and Matt Cooke scored for the Canucks, who
finish the season in eighth place after winning only two of their
final 17 games.
Vancouver faces the first-place Colorado Avalanche when the
playoffs get underway next week.
"Not that we had a letdown, but it was tough for us to maintain
that emotional level we've been carrying for the last few weeks,"
said Vancouver goaltender Bob Essensa after stopping just 12 of 15
shots. "To get out of the Western Conference, you have to get
through Colorado, Detroit or Dallas, so it doesn't really matter
who we face."
Edmonton tried to rest No. 1 goaltender Tommy Salo, who leads
all NHL goaltenders with 4,334 minutes played. But he was forced
into action midway through the second period after Vancouver
forward Todd Bertuzzi collided with Dominic Roussel. Bertuzzi
caught the Oilers goaltender with an elbow as he was cutting
through the crease with the puck, forcing Roussel to leave with a
whiplash injury. He did not return.
"It was a real cheap shot by Bertuzzi, but that was probably
the thing that sealed their fate," Edmonton coach Craig MacTavish
said. "Tommy came in and he played brilliantly as he has all year
long."
Berehowsky opened the scoring on the power play 6:09 into the
game when his point shot found its way through a crowd in front of
the net and beat Roussel on the stick side.
Butenschon tied it when Weight found him all alone at the top of
the crease with a soft pass out of the corner. Butenschon, who came
to the Oilers in a trade with Pittsburgh on March 13, beat Bob
Essensa low on the stick side for his first NHL goal.
Brewer made it 2-1 when he one-timed Weight's power play pass
from the half-boards past Essensa 7:17 into the second period.
Grier gave the Oilers a two-goal lead 3:08 later after Weight
split a pair of Vancouver defenders and got a good shot away from
the top of the crease. Essensa made the first save, but Grier was
at the side of the net to slam-dunk the rebound into an empty net.
Matt Cooke converted a rebound to pull the Canucks within a goal
9:09 into the third period. The Canucks outshot Edmonton 13-5 in
the final period, but failed to put the tying goal past Salo, who
finished with 22 saves to improve to 36-25-12 this year.
"As a team, we were playing for pride," Ed Jovanovski said.
"You want to win every night and I thought we all battled tonight.
We made a push at the end there and had our chances on the power
play, but we couldn't finish."
Game notes
Edmonton defenseman Jason Smith received a game misconduct
for being the instigator in a fight with Vancouver forward Jarrko
Ruutu 1:55 into the first period. ... The Oilers played the third
period with four defensemen after blue-liner Tom Poti left in the
second with a strained neck and did not return. ... Berehowsky's
goal was his first since coming to Vancouver in a March 9 trade
with Nashville.
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ALSO SEE
NHL Scoreboard
Edmonton Clubhouse
Vancouver Clubhouse
RECAPS
Detroit 4
Colorado 3
Florida 3
NY Rangers 0
Philadelphia 4
Pittsburgh 3
Dallas 5
San Jose 4
Boston 4
NY Islanders 2
New Jersey 2
Montreal 0
Ottawa 5
Toronto 3
St. Louis 1
Nashville 0
Los Angeles 3
Calgary 2
Edmonton 4
Vancouver 2
AUDIO/VIDEO
 Ed Jovanovski's slap shot hits the post in the first period.
avi: 695 k
RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1
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