NHL Roundup : Goal With 49 Seconds Left Salvages 2-2 Tie for Oilers

The Edmonton Oilers have been struggling lately, so they would welcome anything that might get them back on track, even a lucky bounce.

They appeared to get just that as Craig MacTavish scored on a rebound with 49 seconds remaining in the third period to give the Oilers a 2-2 tie Monday night against the Blackhawks at Chicago.

Edmonton Coach Glen Sather said: “We finally got a break off the face-off when the puck bounced off the glass back to Jimmy Carson.”

Said Carson: “I was surprised when the puck bounced back to me after (Troy) Murray won the faceoff, but I knew I had to unload right away.”

He did, and Chicago goalie Ed Belfour made the stop, but he couldn’t hold on to the puck, and MacTavish put it in for his 11th goal.

“I saw Carson’s shot take a crazy kind of a bounce, but when I saw the puck was out in front of the net, I just whacked at it and we got it,” MacTavish said.

The Blackhawks took a 2-0 lead on goals by Dave Mackey and Murray. The Oilers made it 2-1 at 14:10 of the second period on Miroslav Frycer’s power-play goal.

In the overtime period, Chicago’s Steve Larmer put the puck into the net with 1:25 left, but the play was ruled off sides.

The Oilers, who are 0-3-1 in their last 4 games and were shut by New Jersey on Sunday, will wind up a 5-game trip Wednesday at Winnipeg.

Toronto 5, Hartford 3--Rick Lanz scored his first goal of the season midway through the second period to help the Maple Leafs beat the Whalers at Toronto.

Trailing, 3-0, Hartford rallied to make it 3-2 in the second period on a pair of power-play goals 34 seconds apart by Kevin Dineen. But Lanz scored the game-winner at 9:19 on a slap shot from the top of the left face-off circle.