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Flames beat Oilers to end 9-game losing streak

Jan 31, 2010 - 7:35 AM CALGARY, Alberta(AP) -- Jarome Iginla and the Calgary Flames took full advantage of a timely game against the free-falling Edmonton Oilers.

Iginla had two goals and two assists to help Calgary beat Edmonton 6-1 on Saturday night to end the Flames' losing streak at nine and extend the Oilers' skid to 13 games - one off the franchise record.

"It was a big game for our team," said Iginla, who had only one goal and six points in his previous 13 games. "There was a lot of talk, we knew neither team had won in a long time. It's three games in a row with a point, so it's something to build on. It's the right direction and it feels good tonight."

Dustin Boyd had two goals and an assist, Rene Bourque and Dion Phaneuf also scored, and Miikka Kiprusoff made 27 saves for the Oilers.

Sam Gagner scored for the Oilers. Edmonton has lost 20 of its last 21 to fall to 16-30-6. The Oilers had a team-record 14-game winless streak early in the 1993-94 season, losing 13 and tying once.

"You get down, you don't like what's going on. You start feeling sorry for yourselves. All of those emotions come to play and that's when it's hard to fight," Edmonton coach Pat Quinn said. "It sounds trite, but it's absolutely true. If you get afraid of the end result then you don't do the things you need to do and when you don't do them, you don't have a chance."

The Flames, eighth in the Western Conference at 27-20-8, completed the first sweep in the 29-year history of the Battle of Alberta, going 6-0 against the Oilers.

"I thought right from the start, we were ready," Iginla said. "It was great to feed off the energy in these games - the Battle of Alberta. Whatever the standings are, they're still important games and the fans are into it."

Calgary scored three straight goals in the second to take a 5-1 lead.

Boyd's second goal came on a botched pass between Sheldon Souray and Gagner that resulted in a loose puck in the slot that Boyd whipped into the top corner behind Devan Dubnyk. Dion Phaneuf fired a slap shot past Dubnyk 44 seconds later, and Iginla then connected on a two-man advantage.

Iginla finished the scoring at 9:40 of the third, soon after he came out of the penalty box after fighting Souray - who broke a hand in the bout.

"Iggy plays with a lot of emotion. It was one heck of a fight," Boyd said.

Edmonton is last overall in the NHL, seven points behind Carolina and Toronto.

"There's only one place to go and that's up," Oilers defenseman Tom Gilbert said. "We just have to keep working through this. There are things we can do to correct our game, to make it better, and it all starts in practice."

NOTES: Dubnyk finished with 24 saves. ... Iginla's assist on Bourque's goal was his 900th career point. ... The last time two teams with winless streaks of nine or more games faced each other was Jan. 16, 1988, when Pittsburgh beat Toronto.