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The decision to use Jussi Markkanen in goal didn’t pay off for the Edmonton Oilers, losing a Stanley Cup final game again tonight against the Carolina Hurricanes 5-0.
The Oilers lost goaltender Dwayne Roloson in game 1 of the series, also a loss to Carolina. It didn't take long for the Hurricanes to take advantage of Edmonton's goaltending woes tonight, scoring on Jussi Markkanen 6:21 of the first period. Carolina was relentless on offense, constantly shooting on Edmonton's noticeably nervous and rusty goaltender. Meanwhile, Edmonton seemed slow and sloppy, giving up numerous odd-man rushes. On top of that, they didn't appear to have much confidence in their goalie. Entering the 3rd period, Edmonton was down 3-0, but before the halfway point they were down 5-0. The penalties weren't helping their cause either. Within the first six minutes of play in the 3rd, Sergei Samsonov, Ethan Moreau and Ryan Smyth had taken penalties and it just continued getting nastier and nastier. Edmonton's George Laraque was thrown from the game with less than 4 minutes left for hitting from behind, leaving Edmonton on the penalty kill for the remainder of the hopeless shutout game. Carolina goaltender Cam Ward started game two of the Stanley Cup Finals right where he left off from game one, outstanding when he needed to be. For the most part, Carolina's offense had center stage. Five different players scored for Carolina tonight. Matt Cullen and Frantisek Kaberle both had 3-point nights. Mark Recchi had a 2-point night. Craig MacTavish had this to say about his still unannounced goaltender before the game. "We are going to play him sharp and I can't be in a situation I was in during the course of the year where you're going back between 1 and 1A and never give them the opportunity to get confident." Markkanen didn't play too badly, considering. I don't think he lost the game for Edmonton. It was a team loss, but it will be interesting if MacTavish stays true to his vow to keep him in goal to the possibly bitter end. Game stats:
The series now stands at 2-0, Hurricanes. Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Finals will be played in Edmonton on Saturday, June 10th at 8 p.m. It will be televised on NBC.
The copyright of the article Carolina Wins NHL Game Two in Ice Hockey is owned by Mike Carr. Permission to republish Carolina Wins NHL Game Two in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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