Paul Cotter scored the game-winning goal 1:59 into overtime as the Vancouver Canucks defeated the Edmonton Oilers 6-5 on Tuesday night.
The Story
The Vancouver Canucks opened strong and finished with a 6-5 overtime win over the Edmonton Oilers, with Paul Cotter capping a two-goal night by scoring 1:59 into extra time.
Cotter, Marco Rossi, Jonathan Lekkerimaki, Max Sasson and Elias Pettersson scored for Vancouver (1-0-0). Kevin Lankinen made 32 saves to earn the win.
In Edmonton’s net, Tristan Jarry stopped 17 shots. Evan Bouchard had three goals and two assists, and Vasily Podkolzin scored twice for the Oilers (0-0-1).
Vancouver took a commanding lead in the third after entering the period tied 2-2. Pettersson capped a three-goal run by making it 5-2 at 5:15.
Podkolzin scored at 8:56, and Bouchard added his third of the night 24 seconds later. Podkolzin then scored his second with 43 seconds remaining in regulation to send the game to overtime.
Cotter joined the Canucks as a free agent after spending the previous two seasons in New Jersey, and he became the first player in Canucks history to score a short-handed goal in his debut with the team.
The night also included a milestone for Edmonton: Bouchard became the first defenceman in Oilers history to record a multi-goal game in a season opener, and he was the first Oilers blueliner to score a hat trick in a seasonal lid-lifter.
For Vancouver, head coach Manny Malhotra became the fourth person to represent the Canucks as both a player and head coach, following Marc Crawford, Pat Quinn and Orland Kurtenbach.
The two teams are scheduled to rematch in Vancouver on Thursday.
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