Anaheim Ducks 0, Edmonton Oilers 1 FINAL

EDMONTON, Alberta (AP) -- Tommy Salo got all the offense he needed in the first period.

Salo made 28 saves, Ales Hemsky scored and the Edmonton Oilers extended Anaheim's winless streak to eight games Thursday night with a 1-0 victory over the Mighty Ducks.

"No question, your best player has to be your goalie," Oilers forward Ryan Smyth said. "Your goalie has to make key saves for you to be successful and that's what Tommy did for us tonight."

Hemsky scored in the first period and Salo got his second shutout in four games for the Oilers, who have won three of their last four and are 5-2-0-1 in their last eight.

Salo, who shut out the Flyers 3-0 in Philadelphia on Jan. 10, has two shutouts this season and 36 in his career.

"Tommy played great, especially in the second period when they had a couple of power plays," Edmonton coach Craig MacTavish said. "They could've easily tied the game if it wasn't for Tommy."

Anaheim, which hasn't won since a 3-1 victory at Carolina on New Year's Eve, is 0-5-3-0 in its last eight games.

The Mighty Ducks have also lost nine straight games in Edmonton since beating the Oilers 2-1 on Feb. 24, 1999, at Skyreach Centre.

"He made some good saves, no question about it," Anaheim coach Mike Babcock said of Salo. "But whenever their goalie is the game's first star, it's got something to do with him and something to do with you.

"Night after night we're having chances but we're just not putting it away."

Hemsky scored at 14:03 of the first period, his 10th of the season.

Ethan Moreau sent a lead pass up ice for Hemsky, who was rushing down the right wing and caught up to the puck after it deflected off the stick of an Anaheim defender at the blue line.

Hemsky moved in alone on Martin Gerber and beat him high to the glove side.

"It was nice to score and bring some of my confidence back," Hemsky said. "The puck was bouncing and I just snapped it."

Gerber stopped Radek Dvorak on a breakaway in the opening minute of the second period, and Petr Sykora hit the post behind Salo a minute later.

The Ducks kept pressing on a pair of power plays in the period.

Rookie center Joffrey Lupul, an Edmonton native playing his first NHL game in his hometown, hit the post on a power play. But Salo was sharp, stopping 13 shots in the second to hold the 1-0 lead.

"We hit a couple of posts. That's just the way things are going for us," Babcock said. "We have to respond and find a way to win -- that's the challenge for us."

Although he only faced two shots in the second period, Gerber was strong when tested in the third, stopping Smyth's redirection on a two-on-one break five minutes into the period. He finished with 15 saves.