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Roloson, Oilers begin playoff push

Feb 11, 2007 - 2:56 PM Atlanta (30-19-9) at Edmonton (27-24-4) 8:30 pm EST

EDMONTON, Alberta (Ticker) -- The Edmonton Oilers are in ninth place in the Western Conference, and must get better goaltending from Dwayne Roloson if they want to qualify for the postseason.

The Oilers, eight points out of the final playoff spot, host the Atlanta Thrashers on Sunday.

Roloson was sharp in making 32 saves in a 2-1 victory over the Chicago Blackhawks on Friday. The netminder, who backboned Edmonton's surprising run to the Stanley Cup Finals last spring, is still just 2-4-0 in his last six starts with 16 goals allowed.

Shawn Horcoff led the Oilers with a goal and an assist and Raffi Torres scored the other Edmonton goal.

The Thrashers come off a 3-2 loss to the Vancouver Canucks on Saturday. Jon Sim and Ilya Kovalchuk scored for Atlanta, which is 1-3-1 in its last five games.

Kari Lehtonen, who recorded a season-high 45 saves in a 6-3 win over the Colorado Avalanche on Thursday, made 30 saves. Lehtonen is 1-3-1 in his last five starts and has allowed 17 goals in that span.

Atlanta star right wing Marian Hossa was held to one shot in 22:40 of icetime. Hossa has 33 goals and is tied with Washington's Alex Ovechkin for the second-highest total in the NHL.