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Cogliano scores twice as Oilers keep winning

Mar 25, 2008 - 5:50 AM By Guy Flaming PA SportsTicker Contributing Writer

EDMONTON, Alberta (Ticker) - The Edmonton Oilers are playing their best hockey of the season. With the playoffs on the horizon, they just hope it is not all for naught.

Rookie Andrew Cogliano scored twice for the Oilers en route to a 5-3 victory over the Minnesota Wild on Monday.

Edmonton (39-33-5) is 12-3-0 over its last 15 games, helping it overtake idle Nashville (37-31-8) for sole possession of ninth place in the Western Conference standings. The Oilers stayed within three points of Colorado (40-31-6), which downed Calgary, 2-0, on Monday.

"You keep pecking away because the bottom line is that (any team) could fall," Edmonton coach Craig MacTavish said. "If somebody goes on a stretch in their last five games where they only win one game, then even the top teams are semi-vulnerable."

Curtis Glencross scored the first of three Edmonton goals in the opening 5:02 of the game. The goal came on a scramble around the net that was started by Kyle Brodziak and finished by Glencross, who pounced on a loose puck and lifted it over netminder Niklas Backstrom just 1:59 into the contest.

"It's a bonus for the team when the fourth line can put some numbers up," said Glencross of his linemates Brodziak and Zack Stortini. "Anytime you can get a goal that quickly in a game, it is a real bonus. I think it got the guys going."

Edmonton scored again after a nifty passing play started by defenseman Tom Gilbert at 4:44 of the first. Gilbert found Robert Nilsson, who slid a pass to Cogliano that the rookie used to execute a textbook 2-on-1 play to beat Backstrom.

The Oilers struck again just 18 seconds later when Dustin Penner took Ales Hemsky's pass at center, broke down the left wall before driving the net and sidestepped Backstrom, tucking the puck inside the far post.

The goal also signaled the end of Backstrom's night, who was replaced by Josh Harding after allowing three goals on 10 shots.

"You look at the first three goals there and, my (gosh)..." Minnesota coach Jacques Lemaire said. "Our video guy asked me if I wanted to see the first three goals after the first period and I said, 'No, once was enough.'"

Minnesota chipped into the three-goal deficit 39 seconds later when defenseman Nick Schultz's blast from the point bounced off an Oilers player and past netminder Dwayne Roloson.

Edmonton continued adding the pressure early in the second against Harding, who coughed up the puck when his clearing shot hit Brodziak.

Brodziak gloved the puck, moved from one side of the ice to the other and patiently waited for Harding to flinch before putting it into the net for a 4-1 lead.

"When I saw him coming out, I knew I had to try and outwait him," Brodziak said.

After defenseman Sean Hill scored his first goal with the Wild to trim the deficit to 4-2, Cogliano struck again at 8:59 of the second, taking a perfect pass from Sam Gagner and sliding the puck under Harding's extended leg to make it 5-2.

"Sam made an exceptional pass; that was a world-class pass to me on the back door," Cogliano said.

Todd Fedoruk scored his fourth goal of the season in the third period to account for the final margin.

"We were not ready to play, period," Lemaire said. "We played a little bit in the third because some of the guys were upset and they had to do something. Everyone has to take care of their own preparation before every game and, if they take it lightly, this is what you get."

Roloson recorded 31 saves to notch his fifth win in his last six starts.