Chicago Blackhawks' Marian Hossa (R) scores the game winning goal on Edmonton Oilers' Nikolai Khabibulin as Oilers' Sam Gagner (89) looks on during the overtime of their NHL hockey game in Chicago, Illinois, February 25, 2013. (REUTERS/Jim Young)
CHICAGO - The Edmonton Oilers came within one shot of pulling a major upset Monday, but Marian Hossa took it instead, giving the Chicago Blackhawks a 3-2 overtime victory at the United Center.
The Oilers, who won three of four meetings last season, handing the Blackhawks a pair of significant beatings (9-2 and 8-4) in the process, led 1-0 in the first and 2-1 in the third, but couldn’t hold off a determined Chicago team that improved it’s record to 16-0-3, the best start start in NHL history.
There were some fireworks early, with Jeff Petry scoring shorthanded at 4:28 (converting a Lennart Petrell rebound) to make it 1-0 before Patrick Kane scored on the same power play to square things up.
The only goal of the second came when Nail Yakupov, who’s proving dangerous at both ends of the ice, made up for a pair of ghastly giveaways by burying a world-class one-timer on an Edmonton power play at 14:17.
All the Oilers had to do was protect, or even expand on, a 2-1 lead aft
