Mikko Koskinen made 40 saves for his first NHL shutout as the Edmonton Oilers dumped the Chicago Blackhawks 4-0 Thursday night at Rogers Place.
“Their goalie was getting confidence as the game progressed,” Blackhawks head coach Joel Quenneville said after the game.
“Honestly, I only care if we win or lose — so it feels good because we won,” Koskinen said. “That’s all that matters. We need points and we got two, so we’re happy.”
LISTEN BELOW: Mikko Koskinen
Koskinen made 15 saves in the first period while the Oilers came up empty in eight shots on Blackhawks goaltender Cam Ward.
Oilers forward Drake Caggiula opened the scoring 18 seconds into the second frame. He tapped the puck across the top of the crease and slid in his third of the season.
Koskinen bailed the Oilers out on a power play later in the frame. He made a leg save on Jonathan Toews on a shorthanded breakaway.
Less than a minute later, with the Oilers still on the power play, Koskinen turned the Hawks away on a two-on-one.
The Oilers had another man advantage late in the period. Jason Garrison bombed home his first as an Oiler to make it 2-0.
Caggiula deked Ward after taking a pass in front from Jujhar Khaira for a shorthanded goal 6:49 into the third. Less than four minutes later, Oilers forward Toby Rieder set up Alex Chiasson on a two-on-nothing for Chiasson’s fifth of the season.
LISTEN BELOW: Todd McLellan
The Oilers (7-4-1) will visit Detroit on Saturday.
–With files from 630 CHED’s Brenden Escott