Long Time Coming
Minneapolis,Minn – The Edmonton Oilers haven’t won a road game against the Minnesota Wild in over two years, and Niklas Backstrom has been a big reason why.
The Oilers will try to snap that slide by matching their season-high winning streak Saturday when they visit the sputtering Wild, who hope Backstrom can bounce back from an ugly effort and continue his success versus Edmonton.
Oddsmakers from online sportsbook Sportsbook.com have made the Wild – 155 money line favorites for today’s game against the Oilers. Current NHL Public Betting Information shows that 51% of more than 217 bets for this game have been placed on the Oilers +135.
The Oilers (35-27-9) are 0-7-2 in their last nine games at Minnesota (33-30-8), getting outscored 33-11 since posting a 2-1 win there on Jan. 16, 2007. They took the last meeting 3-2 at Edmonton on Feb. 28.
It’s Backstrom who has dominated Edmonton in 14 career starts, going 11-1-0 with a 1.80 GAA and three shutouts. Those shutouts have come at home, where he’s won all nine meetings with a 1.21 GAA. The goaltender expects to be back in net after allowing three goals on 11 shots before getting pulled in the second period on Friday in a 4-0 loss at New Jersey.
Edmonton hopes its current form will help it end its losing streak in the Twin Cities. The team is on a three-game winning streak for the first time since opening the season with four consecutive wins.
The Oilers maintained that run Friday, beating Chicago 5-4 in a shootout a night after an 8-1 victory at Colorado. Those wins are also part of their impressive 4-0-3 stretch, which has moved them into seventh in the Western Conference playoff race, two points ahead of eighth-place Nashville.
"It was tough," Oilers left wing Patrick O’Sullivan said of the back-to-back stretch. "Every team has to go through it, but points are critical right now. Seventy games in, you’re going to be a little bit tired."
Dwayne Roloson, a member of the Wild from 2001-06, doesn’t appear to be showing any signs of fatigue. The goaltender has started a team-record 27 consecutive games, going 13-8-6 with a 2.77 goals-against average in that stretch.
However, he’s been even better of late, compiling a 1.90 GAA in winning the last three games. Roloson made 39 saves against the Blackhawks with one coming on a third-period penalty shot by Jonathan Toews.
"He’s an absolute warrior," Oilers coach Craig MacTavish said.
Roloson, though, is 0-5-2 with a 3.62 GAA in his last seven games at Minnesota.
The Wild are three points back of the Predators for the final playoff position in the conference after a 3-6-4 stretch. That poor run has been aided by a power-play unit that has gone 5-for-44, while failing to convert on its last 12 chances over three games.
Minnesota went 0-for-7 on the man advantage in Friday’s loss, falling for the fifth time in six games (1-2-3).
"We couldn’t come up nothing," Wild coach Jacques Lemaire said. "We had power plays and a lot of time on it. We didn’t build on it. We got nothing."
The Wild could use some offensive help from Mikko Koivu, their leader with 62 points. The center has been held without a point for three games after netting a goal with three assists in the previous three.
Koivu has been a big part of Minnesota’s home success against the Oilers, getting a goal and 10 assists in the last seven matchups there.
After hosting Edmonton, Minnesota starts a four-game trip at the New York Rangers on Tuesday before playing four of its remaining six regular-season games at home.
Posted: 3/22/09 1:00AM ET
