Roloson carries Oilers

ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) -- Ales Hemsky scored the go-ahead goal in the second period, Dwayne Roloson had 31 saves and an assist, and the Edmonton Oilers beat the Anaheim Mighty Ducks 3-1 Friday night in the opener of the Western Conference finals.
Edmonton, which had just one day off between the end of its series against San Jose and the beginning of the best-of-seven conference finals versus Anaheim, still matched the Ducks in energy, speed and checking. All that added up to the Oilers' fifth straight victory after they fell behind the Sharks 0-2 in the previous round.
Anaheim hadn't played since completing a sweep of Colorado on May 11 and vowed that rust wouldn't be a factor once the puck dropped for the opener against Edmonton.
Game 2 Sunday
Game 2 is Sunday night in Anaheim before the series shifts to Edmonton -- where the Ducks haven't won since 1999. The Western Conference champion will play for the Stanley Cup against Buffalo or Carolina.
Michael Peca opened the scoring for Edmonton late in the first period, and the Ducks' Andy McDonald quickly evened it before the frame ended.
Todd Harvey sealed the Oilers' win by scoring an empty-net goal with 42 seconds remaining.
Ducks rookie goalie Ilya Bryzgalov made 24 saves, but had little chance of stopping Edmonton's two shots that got by him.
The 36-year-old Roloson, who has resurrected his career since Edmonton acquired him from Minnesota in March, was with the Wild when they lost to Anaheim in the 2003 playoffs.
In the opener this time, Roloson was especially effective at smothering the puck when the Ducks had traffic in front of the net.
Hemsky gave the Oilers a 2-1 lead at 11:36 of the second period with his fourth goal of the postseason.
Ryan Smyth's slap shot bounced off Bryzgalov and into the air. Hemsky, slicing across the crease from the right side, batted the puck past the goalie's right shoulder, too quickly for Bryzgalov to react.
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