NEWARK, N. Patrice Bergeron Jersey .J. -- Phoenix captain Shane Doan started laughing when asked if the Coyotes suddenly had a goalie controversy. "Goalie controversies are always good because that means they are both playing well," Doan said after the Coyotes defeated the New Jersey Devils 3-2 in a shootout Thursday night to improve their playoff chances in the Western Conference. The Coyotes, who currently hold the second wild-card spot, got five of six possible points on their three-game road trip and opened a five-point lead over idle Dallas. What made this trip so special was that No. 1 goalie Mike Smith went down with a lower-body injury late in the third period of the opener against the Rangers, but replacement Thomas Greiss posted wins over Pittsburgh and New Jersey. Phoenixs only loss on the road trip was in overtime to the Rangers. "We have a ton of confidence in Greisser," Doan said. "Everybody in here has been shooting on him all year and when he has gone in, he has been amazing. I dont know what his save percentage is, but its .925 or .930. He has been amazing for us." Greiss made 26 saves and stopped shootout attempts by Damien Brunner, Ryane Clowe and Patrik Elias in matching his career high with his ninth win (9-5-2) of the season. The trip did not start out well for Greiss. He gave up the tying goal late and the winner in overtime to the Rangers. But that didnt bother the 28-year-old German, who was backed up by Smith on Thursday. "Thats the goalies job, to have a short memory," Greiss said. "You just have to forget that stuff and move on." Mikkel Boedker scored on Phoenixs first shootout try against Martin Brodeur with a top-shelf backhander. "I went with a move I was comfortable with and its always good when the goaltender bites on your fake," Boedker said. Kyle Chipchura and Chris Summers scored for the Coyotes, who blew a 2-0 lead. Clowe and Adam Henrique scored for the Devils, who fell to 0-9 in shootouts this season and extended their NHL-record streak to 13 straight losses dating to last season. While the Devils picked up a point, they are currently out of the playoff picture with nine games to go. "Its a big part of the reason the playoffs are getting tougher and tougher to reach," said Brodeur, who finished with 25 saves. "So many points weve left on the table through the year. I figured we were due. Its been a while, we havent been in one. I was feeling good about it mentally. I thought we were going to pull through this one and boost our confidence a little bit knowing were able to do it, and again it was the same old thing." New Jersey appeared to be in trouble when Summers scored with 3:03 left in the second period to give the Coyotes a 2-0 lead. The Devils got back in the game with a little luck after Phoenix was called for a delay penalty in the final minute of the period. Brodeur scrambled to the bench and Clowe scored with less than a second left as he lay in the crease. The big left wing was cross-checked by Jeff Halpern, and defenceman Jon Merrills pass through the crease caromed off his chest and slid past Greiss, who had stopped the Devils first 16 shots with their sticks. Henrique tied the game midway through the third period, taking a pass from Elias and beating defenceman Michael Stone with a move behind the net for his team-leading 24th goal. Chipchura, who had a goal and an assist against the Rangers on Monday night in Madison Square Garden, scored his fourth of the season 2:21 into the first period. Lauri Korpikoski sent a pass from behind the net to Chipchura, who put a shot under Brodeurs pad. Summers, called up from the minors this month, made it 2-0 with a slap shot that beat a screened Brodeur. NOTES: Brodeur picked up his third assist of the season and the 45th of his career on Henriques goal. ... Korpikoski missed the previous two games with an upper-body injury. ... Devils captain Bryce Salvador was out with a lower-body injury. ... The Coyotes beat the Devils 3-2 in Phoenix in January. ... Coyotes D Connor Murphy, recalled from Portland (AHL) on Wednesday, was in the lineup. ... Merrill has a goal and two assists in his last two games. The rookie had a goal and six assists in his first 44 this season. ... Coyotes RW David Moss left in the second period with a lower-body injury. Phil Esposito Jersey . Cassano has been at the Policlinico facility since Saturday, when he was taken for tests after suffering what the club described as a brain problem on the team plane following the teams 3-2 victory over Roma. Zdeno Chara Bruins Jersey . Canada had opened Day 2 at the tournament with a 24-0 loss to New Zealand in the Cup quarter-final before beating Samoa 27-0 to cruise into the Plate final. The loss in the Plate final means Canada finished sixth in the rugby sevens tournament. SAN ANTONIO -- Spurs coach Gregg Popovich admitted he is getting antsy for a loss. Hell have to wait. Marco Belinelli scored 18 points and San Antonio never trailed after its opening possession, extending its winning streak to 17 games with a 96-80 victory over the New Orleans Pelicans on Saturday night. The Spurs once again used fluid passing and tireless player movement to overwhelm an opponent. San Antonio finished with 24 assists while going 37 for 78 from the field in snapping New Orleans five-game winning streak. "They move around a lot, and run their sets hard," Pelicans guard Brian Roberts said. "Whatever theyre running, they are moving constantly. It puts pressure on a defence to play 24 seconds worth." Roberts scored 18 points, Austin Rivers added 16 points, Tyreke Evans had 11 points and Al-Farouq Aminu had eight points and 10 rebounds for New Orleans (32-41). Kawhi Leonard and Manu Ginobili scored 15 points each, Patty Mills added 13 and Tim Duncan had 12 points and eight rebounds. San Antonio (57-16) extended its lead to 3 1/2 games over Oklahoma City (53-19) for the leagues best record. In addition to winning its last 17, the Spurs have won 20 of 21 and have not lost since falling 106-85 to the Phoenix Suns on Feb. 21. "It is sweet to be a part of that," Ginobili said. "It is not something that happens very often because it is a long spread of game, a month or two. Here or there you have a bad game or the opponent has a bad one, but a lot of things have combined for us to have this type of streak. We played really well and we are healthy." New Orleans was without Anthony Davis, its leading scorer and rebounder. Davis injured his left ankle 4 minutes into the Pelicans victory over Utah on Friday night. "Its a joint/soft tissue injury right now," New Orleans coach Monty Williams said. "He did it in his normal routine. Hes listed as day to day. Well see how he feels tomorrow." Williams said the Pelicans would have had a tough task even with Davis and the Spurs showed why early. "They jumped oon us," Evans said. Patrice Bergeron Bruins Jersey. "They just moved the ball hit shots and we couldnt make a shot." San Antonio opened the game on a 23-6 run, with Belinelli picked up where he left off Friday night. He was 4 for 5 on 3-pointers against New Orleans after going 6 for 9 on 3-pointers Friday while scoring a game-high 27 points in a 133-102 victory in Denver. "Hes been really steady for us and he plays a great all-around game," Popovich said. Belinelli made his first two 3-pointers against the Pelicans after opening with a 15-foot jumper off an assist from Duncan. Belinellis first 3-pointer with 6 minutes remaining in the first quarter gave San Antonio a 16-4 lead. The Spurs would never lead by less than 10 points the rest of the way. After Alexis Ajinca hit a 17-foot jumper on the games opening possession, New Orleans did not score again until Greg Stiemsmas dunk with 8:21 remaining in the first quarter. The three-minute drought was followed by another three-minute drought. "We couldnt finish in the paint tonight," Williams said. "We were 18 for 48 in the paint. Thats a bad number for us. Were a team that usually is high when it comes to points in the paint." Rivers layup with 30.9 seconds pulled New Orleans within 69-59 with 30.9 seconds left in the third quarter, but Belinelli hit back-to-back 3s to fuel a 12-3 run and San Antonio reasserted its control. San Antonio travels to Indiana to play the Eastern Conference-leading Pacers on Monday. NOTES: Three-time Masters champion Phil Mickelson sat courtside during the game cheering the Spurs. Mickelson withdrew Saturday from the third round of the Valero Texas Open after injuring an oblique muscle. "I pulled a muscle on my downswing trying to hit the ball hard on the second hole (his 11th)," Mickelson said in a statement. "It just killed and it wouldnt subside for 10 or 12 seconds." ... Spurs W Danny Green (right foot inflammation) and Matt Bonner (right calf strain) both sat out the game. ... Roberts played 29 minutes after being listed as day to day with a left knee bone bruise. ' ' '
