EDMONTON - Blood, sweat and tears.

That seems to be the ongoing storyline for the Edmonton Oilers over the first nine games of the NHL season.

They have had two shootouts, three other games decided in overtime, a one-goal loss in Calgary, and an empty-net setback at Denver.

There’s been some broken hearts and broken bones, with the Oilers losing their best two faceoff guys — captain Shawn Horcoff for four to six weeks with a busted knuckle and Eric Belanger (two fractured toes) — in the last two games.

Defenceman Mark Fistric (bruised tailbone) also played only six shifts in Monday’s 3-2 overtime loss to the Vancouver Canucks at Rexall Place, leaving five D-men — Justin Schultz, Nick Schultz, Ladislav Smid, Jeff Petry and Corey Potter — to all play 20 minutes plus. The rookie Schultz played almost 28 minutes.

Ryan Smyth, who scored a short-handed goal in the middle period, played some centre after Horcoff was injured blocking a shot late in the second frame.

The Canucks forced overtime when defenceman Kevin Bieksa scored on a 40-footer that whizzed past the shinpad of Taylor Hall and a valiant Devan Dubnyk with 2:17 left in the third period, then fellow defenceman Chris Tanev ripped one past Dubnyk on Vancouver’s 40th shot 19 seconds from a shootout.

Maybe the Oilers didn’t deserve to even get to the 64th minute. They were soundly beaten on the shot clock (40-25 overall, 35-17 over the last two periods and OT) and crushed in the faceoff circle 44-19, with Henrik Sedin going 18-5 and Alex Burrows 7-0. The Oilers’ Sam Gagner struggled mightily on draws, winning just three of 15.

But Ales Hemsky’s swash-buckling first-period goal and Smyth’s short-handed effort — his first goal in 23 games going back to March 10 last year — was almost enough because Dubnyk stood on his head.

He only gave up one soft goal, when Jannik Hansen’s pass from behind the net bounced off his butt.

“Very, very disappointing the way the game ended ... everybody was working so hard to fill holes because we lost Horcoff and Fistric early,” Oilers coach Ralph Krueger said. “Lots of blocked shots (23) and lots of character.”

Nothing has come easy for the Oilers since their first game on Jan. 20. They’ve won two games in OT (against the Los Angeles Kings and Phoenix Coyotes) and lost one against Vancouver, while losing one shootout to the San Jose Sharks.

Edmonton pulled its goalie in the last minute at Calgary and at Denver trying to get to OT.

Hall actually had a penalty shot when Daniel Sedin hooked him, but Vancouver goalie Roberto Luongo, who has won his last four games, made a blocker stop 2:47 into the extra session.

“He just stood there and I missed my shot,” said the dejected Hall, who had six shots in the game.

Dubnyk tried to offer Hall some counsel on what to do, but it never came off. It was too loud in the building.

“I told him I couldn’t yell anything at him in two seconds ... but, hey, he’s a great player. I’m a goalie. I don’t need to tell him how to score on a penalty shot. He made a good shot and Roberto made a good save,” said Dubnyk.

Before Tanev’s goal, Oilers winger Jordan Eberle rolled the dice and lost. He tried to break from the zone as Petry battled on the puck along the boards, but the puck didn’t bounce free. Instead, the Sedins pounced. The puck went from Daniel to his twin Henrik to Tanev in the slot.

Dubnyk, who has given up only nine goals in his last five starts, never saw it as the Canucks avenged their 3-2 shootout loss on Jan. 20 at Vancouver.

“Extra time is a lottery all the way through to the penalty shots (shootout),” said Krueger. “We go quite offensive and Jordan was speculating that Petry was going to get it up the wall and out for a breakaway. But Petry suddenly had two players to deal with and the puck got jammed in there. Happens in overtime. Players get intuitions. You don’t want to take that away from them.”

Smyth was tickled to finally score. His shot glanced off Alex Edler’s stick and cartwheeled past Luongo to make it 2-0.

“You’re forgetting the ones I scored in the Spengler Cup (over Christmas),” Smyth said with a laugh. “I don’t know if I’ve gone 23 (NHL) games without scoring, maybe back to my rookie year. Big relief for sure.”

Dubnyk didn’t like Hansen’s goal from behind the net.

“My error. I was playing the pass and it went inside the post,” he said.

He was blocked out by Hall on the tying goal and was off-kilter when it sailed past him.

“I picked up the puck when it was past Taylor and my left edge (skate blade) went out on me. I was moving to my left and it went the other way,” he said.

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