• Recap
• Bleachers

Doan's OT goal halts Coyotes' losing streak

Feb 23, 2007 - 7:58 AM GLENDALE, Arizona (Ticker) -- Shane Doan showed why he is captain of the Phoenix Coyotes.

Doan scored 54 seconds into overtime and Mikael Tellqvist made 29 saves as the Coyotes halted their six-game skid with a 3-2 victory over the Calgary Flames.

Winless since Curtis Joseph posted a shutout over Columbus on February 6, Phoenix trailed on two occasions in this one before former Flame Steven Reinprecht tallied with 4:50 remaining in the third period to forge a 2-2 tie.

"We have struggled the last half-dozen games, but tonight, from the drop of the puck, we played a solid game and showed a lot of character coming back," Reinprecht said.

In the extra session, defenseman Keith Ballard picked up a loose puck in the neutral zone and passed to Doan, who unleashed a wrist shot from the left faceoff circle that went between the pads of goaltender Miikka Kiprusoff for his 20th goal of the season.

"Bally makes a great play to step up and keep the puck in," Doan said. "I think (Kiprusoff) thought I was thinking of passing, but I kept the puck on the ice and went for the high corner."

Oleg Saprykin also scored for the Coyotes, who won for just the third time in their last nine home games.

"As a team, we really worked hard tonight, and I think that was exciting for the fans to see the work effort our players had," Phoenix coach Wayne Gretzky said. "It was a fun game to watch and be a part of. ... We kept fighting. I loved the way the guys competed."

Alex Tanguay and Stephane Yelle tallied for Calgary, which has lost seven straight road contests and seven of nine overall.

"Right now, we're not looking for excuses," said Flames center Matthew Lombardi, who had an assist. "We have to figure this out on the road. ... If you look at the record, obviously it's not a good record. We're battling, but we're just not getting the wins. We know we have to dig deep on the road to get those wins. If we want to be a good team, we have to win on the road."

The Flames grabbed a 1-0 lead on a power-play goal by Tanguay with 5:04 to go in the first period. But Saprykin drew the Coyotes even late in the second with his 14th tally.

From below the end line, Saprykin flipped the puck toward the net. After hitting a defenseman, the puck bounced off Kiprusoff's shoulder and got lodged inside the corner of the net. Play was whistled and after a video review, the tying goal was awarded.

"The puck started below the goal line and hit the defenseman in the leg," Flames coach Jim Playfair said. "Then it went up on the goaltender's shoulder and into the top corner of the net. At the end of the day, it's a goal, but we have to find a way to come back."

Yelle put Calgary back in front at 8:14 of the third, redirecting defenseman Robyn Regehr's slap shot from the left point past Tellqvist from the left hash marks. But Reinprecht scored with less than five minutes remaining in the session, deflecting defenseman Nick Boynton's shot from the blue line by Kiprusoff for his fifth of the season and a 2-2 tie.

"Reino has been incredible the last couple of nights," Doan said. "He has been our best player the last couple of games by creating so much for everyone else."

"He is a really good man that works hard every day and never complains," Gretzky added. "The last three or four games, he has gotten better, and the last two games, he has been really good."

Tellqvist also was really good, especially in the third period, when he allowed just one goal while his team was being outshot, 15-6.

"They had a couple of breakaways, but I was able to stay with them," Tellqvist said. "They have a few guys who can really put the puck in the net, so I needed to be as patient as I can and make them make the first move. I had some success doing that tonight."

"The one constant we have had in the last eight or nine games has been the goaltending," Gretzky said. "(Curtis) Joseph and Tellqvist have been a real positive for the team and a boost to the other players."