Despite losing a forward, defenceman, and goaltender, the Oilers gutted out a 4-3 win against the Stars’ rival Colorado. So, the Stars returned the favour and defeated the Vegas Golden Knights 2-1.

For the Oilers, it put them back as the second seed in the Pacific Division. For the Stars, they sit five points back of the Avalanche, meaning it’s not a foregone conclusion that Colorado is winning the Presidents’ Trophy.

Edmonton was punished for its troubles, and no updates have been provided yet on Connor Ingram, who absorbed a hellacious collision from Nathan MacKinnon that forced him into concussion protocol at the end of the second period.

Earlier, the Oilers had lost Colton Dach after just 1:35 of ice-time in the first period, and blueliner Ty Emberson after 5:35 of TOI.

The depth to the team has become ravaged in recent days with Adam Henrique and Curtis Lazar on the shelf. Despite that, the Oilers have strung together their two best wins of the season, given the context. Having lost six of eight games, the Oilers have no played sound defensively twice in a row, and looked like equal competitors against two of the better teams in the Western Conference.

The question is, can they do it again, against a team that has points in 13 straight games?

Dallas heat

The last time the Dallas Stars suffered a regulation loss was January 22 against the Columbus Blue Jackets, a 1-0 shutout defeat. Since then, they’ve gone 12-0-1, only beaten by the Avs in the shootout last Friday.

Jamie Benn and Oskar Back scored the goals in the second period against the Golden Knights. It wasn’t a Picasso, but Dallas avoided surrendering a 6-on-5 goalie-pulled goal against for the third straight game. Jake Oettinger and company held firm, with his 26 saves en route to the win.

“I like how we stuck with it. It wasn’t pretty but we got two points. Just two good hockey clubs going at it. Pretty similar styles for the most part. They’ve got a lot of talent over there, but we believe in what we’re doing over here,” said Jamie Benn.

They continue to win, despite being without Mikko Rantanen. He started skating this week for the first time since sustaining a lower body injury at the Olympics, which also forced him out of the bronze medal for Finland. His returns is estimated to still be at least two weeks away, if not longer. It was his seventh game out of the lineup vs Vegas.

There were fears that Roope Hintz could be seriously banged up last week, but surgery will not be required after a lower-body injury. He’d played just once since the Olympic break, dealing with illness upon his return. The team is hopeful he’ll be able to suit up in time for the playoffs.

With Radek Faksa also on the shelf, Mavrik Bourque, Sam Steel, Adam Erne, and Justin Hryckowian all play roles in the team’s top-9.

Bunting for a single

The team is getting reinforcements.

We’ll wait to see if Jim Nill’s deadline moves garner him his fourth annual General Manager of the Year award, but the splash was exchanged for depth this year. Michael Bunting and Tyler Myers now play in Texas, as the Stars spent a second-rounder in 2027, a fourth-round pick in 2029 and a third-round pick in 2026.

Coach Glen Gulutzan was quoted saying how the additions provide more options as he builds out his night-by-night roster.

Bunting slotted into the third-line left wing role vs VGK. On the season, he’s collected 13 goals and 31 points. Meanwhile, Myers is mired in a career-worst minus-25 after exiting the dearth of the NHL in Vancouver, and is ready to play third-pair minutes.

Although the Avalanche are having a historic season, the Stars wicked long point streak has kept them in striking distance for first in the division. It’s also kept them three points ahead of the Wild, for critical home ice advantage in a brutal first-round playoff series, if it were to come to fruition.

Dallas plays Minnesota twice and Colorado once more before the season is out.

Road trippin’

Winning the first two games of the roadtrip gives the Oilers some leeway heading into tonight’s game, the start of a back-to-back as they head to St. Louis to play Friday.

But winning this game as well is a huge cherry on top of a productive pair of games. It’s not Bam scoring 83 points, but it would be a heat-check.

Tristan Jarry earned the victory in relief, and after the consternation last week, and rumblings of verbal barbs at practice, he made 11 saves.

Keep an eye on Oilersnation throughout the day for updates on the lineup. With the team travelling on Wednesday, there was no word yet on whether any of the three exiting players are available. Adam Henrique is still day-to-day and might be an option.

Connor McDavid will carry a 19-game road point streak into Dallas, matching Patrick Kane’s streak in 2018-19. In the last 40 years of the NHL, only Wayne Gretzky (twice), Pat Lafontaine, and Mario Lemieux have had longer road point streaks.

Leon Draisaitl also continues to cook. He has 14 points while on a six-game streak.

Last time…

Just like professional pride was on the line against the Avs, the last time the Oilers saw the Stars, Edmonton got embarrassed. Call in the second-worst loss of the season, the Oilers were blasted 8-3 back on November 25.

This could be a full-on revenge tour.

On November 4, the Oilers blew multiple two-goal leads and fell 4-3 in the shootout, as Wyatt Johnston had three assists and the shootout winner.

And as we all know, it’s a Western Conference Final rematch times two.

Notes:

Wyatt Johnston’s steady progression into a burgeoning superstar continues. With 34 goals and 68 points, he’s three points back of last year’s career high. His 23rd birthday isn’t until May. He has seven points in two games against the Oilers this season.
The league’s two best power plays go head-to-head. Edmonton cracked the Colorado PK twice, despite not scoring on the Nathan MacKinnon major penalty. The Oilers are at 33.1 per cent, versus the Stars mark of 29.7 per cent.
The Stars’ PP is also hot. It’s scored in 10 straight games.
Team leading scorer Jason Robertson sits at 74 points on the year, but without a contract beyond this season. The infamously snubbed for Team USA forward is pointless in two games, after getting multiple points in four straight. In the regular season vs EDM, he has points in six straight.
The Stars’ 13-game point streak is tied for the second-longest in franchise history. Their longest is 15 games (12-0-3) in 1998-99, the year they won the Stanley Cup.
Leon Draisaitl is now in sole possession of the fourth most regular-season games played in Oilers’ franchise history, surpassing Mark Messier. He also had more points than Messier in that span.
Dallas allows the second fewest goals per game in the league at 2.66 against the Oilers 3.35, which is 27th.
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins’ two-goal game puts his at 50 points for the season, which is one more than he produced in 78 games a year ago. It’s the ninth time in his career he’s had 50 on more points.
He also scored 5-on-5 for the eighth time, which has come less often for him the last three seasons. Last season, he had 11 goals 5v5, and 14 the year before that.
Nuge after the COL win: “These are games that you can look back on next month and really rally behind and understand that when we play like that, we can beat anybody.”

Michael Menzies is an Oilersnation columnist and has been the play-by-play voice of the Bonnyville Pontiacs in the AJHL since 2019. With seven years news experience as the Editor-at-Large of Lakeland Connect in Bonnyville, he also collects vinyl, books, and stomach issues.

PRESENTED BY SOUTHVIEW ACURA

At Southview Acura, luxury isn’t just what you drive, it’s how you’re treated. Family owned and operated, we’re proud to offer an exceptional selection of new and certified pre-owned Acuras, backed by a service experience built on trust and precision. Whether it’s your first visit or your next, our team is committed to excellence every step of the way. Visit Southview Acura today or online at www.SouthviewAcura.com, where luxury meets reality.