Cam Talbot returned from an injury and made 29 saves to lead the Edmonton Oilers to a 3-2 win over the Minnesota Wild on Saturday afternoon.
Talbot missed the last seven games with an upper body injury.
He said his team let him settle in early.
“Coming off an extended period like that, sometimes you want early work,” Talbot said. “But they kept the first few to the outside and let me get comfortable. We just battled out from there and tried to control the game. I’d like to clear up a few things: rebound control, maybe some reads. But all in all, I felt pretty good coming back after two-and-a-half weeks.”
READ MORE: Cam Talbot activated by Edmonton Oilers
After a scoreless first period, the Oilers opened the scoring 9:15 into the second.
Zack Kassian set up Ryan Nugent-Hopkins on a shorthanded two-on-one. It was Nugent-Hopkins’ team-leading 13th goal of the season.
Minnesota tied it four minutes later, when Matt Dumba ripped a shot right inside the post. Milan Lucic found a loose puck in the slot and snapped a low shot past Alex Stalock to put the Oilers up 2-1 with 3:23 left in the frame. Connor McDavid drew an assist for his 40th point of the season.
Jesse Puljujarvi slid in his own rebound to make it 3-1 wtih 11:32 left in the third.
Head coach Todd McLellan said he likes what he sees from his young winger.
“He’s scored a couple of goals like that now,” McLellan said. “I quickly told him, ‘Your game has changed. Before, you’d be looping and skating away from the net and skating away from the net. Now, you’re staying in those areas and you’re getting rewarded.’ He had a big smile on his face. He understood. If he keeps doing those things, he’s going to keep scoring.”
Dumba replied with five minutes left, blasting a shot over Talbot’s glove.
The Wild’s push to tie it late was halted by a penalty to Jason Zucker. They mounted a charge in the final 40 seconds but couldn’t beat Talbot.
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The Oilers now have six shorthanded goals on the season, all scored in the last 16 games.
Lucic had a goal and an assist.
The Oilers, 14-17-2 on the year, start a three-game home stand Monday against San Jose.
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