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Laperriere nets two as Avalanche win in shootout

Nov 8, 2007 - 6:51 AM By Dave Reed PA SportsTicker Contributing Writer

DENVER (Ticker) -- Ian Laperriere was the star in regulation and Marek Svatos shined in the shootout.

Laperriere netted his first two goals of the season, including the game-tying tally in the third period, and Svatos scored in the fourth round of the shootout to give the Colorado Avalanche a 4-3 triumph over the Edmonton Oilers on Wednesday.

Tyler Arnason had a goal and an assist and Andrew Brunette set up a pair of tallies for the Avalanche, who improved to 8-1-0 at home this season in winning for the sixth time in seven overall games.

Wojtek Wolski - who was appearing in his 100th career game - gave Colorado an early edge in the shootout, faking to his backhand before slipping the puck around goaltender Dwayne Roloson in the first round. The tally stood until Raffi Torres fired a shot between the pads of netminder Peter Budaj on Edmonton's third attempt, extending the bonus format.

"Raffi Torres kind of surprised me with his shot," Budaj said. "It was a good shot."

On Colorado's next opportunity, Svatos skated in and ripped a shot that beat Roloson high to the glove side.

"I was going to go backhand," Svatos said. "Then I changed my mind at the last second because I saw (Roloson) was waiting to see what I was going to do. It was a good decision."

"I was just trying to stay with him," Roloson said. "He puts one up and it rolls and does whatever else it does and goes in. It was unfortunate."

It proved to be the decisive tally as Marty Reasoner rang a shot off the left goalpost, ending the contest.

"I think we deserved better," Reasoner said. "We played better, but we lost. It's a little frustrating. The positive is, we played well, better than we have in a while."

Laperriere gave Colorado an early lead when he tipped defenseman Jeff Finger's slap shot from the right point between the pads of Roloson just 3:46 into the game.

"I just go to the net and they'll find me," Laperriere said. "Tonight, I was at the right place at the right time. I'm not a goal-scorer, but I know I can help my team in that regard."

The Oilers capitalized on a turnover to tie the game 4:11 later.

Reasoner grabbed a failed clearing attempt along the left wing boards and dished to Andrew Cogliano, who was at the inner edge of the right faceoff circle. After waiting, Cogliano passed across the slot to Kyle Brodziak, who beat Budaj for his third goal of the season.

The assist was Reasoner's 100th point as an Oiler.

Arnason put Colorado back in front when he punched the rebound of Brunette's stuff attempt at the right goalpost by Roloson with 8:05 remaining in the first.

But the lead lasted just 34 seconds as defenseman Dick Tarnstrom recorded his first tally of the campaign. Fellow defenseman Tom Gilbert unleashed a shot from the top of the right circle that deflected off Tarnstrom and past Budaj at 12:29, knotting the game at 2-2.

"We'd take the lead and, all of a sudden, they would come back," Laperriere said. "You have to give those kids credit. They have a young team, but they have character to come in our building, even after being down one goal twice, they came right back. They've got a great future."

Ales Hemsky scored a power-play goal 69 seconds later to put Edmonton in front. After taking a long outlet pass from Jarret Stoll in the neutral zone, Hemsky went around defenseman Kurt Sauer and beat Budaj with a wrist shot from the right circle.

Hemsky has recorded a point in six of his last seven games.

"He played hard all night," Edmonton coach Craig MacTavish said of Hemsky. "He was outstanding, as a lot of our guys were. I thought our effort was outstanding tonight. Guys worked their tails off tonight and played a real good game."

Budaj made three big saves late in the second to keep the deficit at one. The Slovakian made a sprawling save on Shawn Horcoff at the top of the crease with 2:25 remaining, denied Hemsky with 1:52 to go and stopped Raffi Torres from below the left circle with 17 seconds left in the period.

"They had some good chances, but I was able to make some saves," Budaj said.

Laperriere scored his second goal of the game just 2:20 into the third period to tie it at 3-3.

Brunette knocked the puck off the left wing boards to Arnason, who threw a backhander toward the net that went off Laperriere as he was crashing the net from the right side.

"I just crashed the net and Arnason put it on net," Laperriere said. "It hit my shaft and went in. I put my stick on the ice and I was hoping for the best."

"They like to work it down low and crash the net," Roloson said. "That's the way they generate a lot of their offense. They did a good job."

Playing in his 100th game with the club, Roloson finished with 35 saves for the Oilers, who have lost four straight and seven of nine.

"(The Avalanche) are a good hockey team," Stoll said. "We have to take a lot out of this game and take a lot of positives, way more positives than negatives."