Instant Reaction: Avs edge out Oilers with last-second goal in overtime

The first meeting between the Edmonton Oilers and Colorado Avalanche this season was certainly an exciting one.

The Avs edged out a 3-2 win thanks to a last-second overtime goal from Artturi Lehkonen, extending their winning streak to six games in the process. The loss snapped a mini two-game winning streak for the Oilers but the team has picked up at least a point in nine of their last ten games.

It took until over halfway through the game for Colorado to finally open the scoring. Defenceman Sean Walker jumped up into the play and sniped a shot past Stuart Skinner for his first goal since being acquired from the Philadelphia Flyers last week.

The Avs carried a 1-0 lead into the third period but the Oilers quickly got on the board. Not long after Zach Hyman had a goal called back, Warren Foegele deflected a shot from the point past goaltender Alexandar Georgiev to knot the score at 1-1.

Edmonton grabbed their first lead of the night a few minutes later. Corey Perry had his stick pulled out of his hands but he stayed with the puck and kicked it off to Mattias Janmark, who turned around and fired it toward Colorado’s net. Sam Carrick grabbed the loose puck and buried it past Georgiev for his first goal as a member of the Oilers.

That lead lasted for under one minute as the Avs quickly tied the game at 2-2. The Oilers weren’t able to clear the puck out of their own zone and two of Colorado’s trade deadline acquisitions combined for a nice goal. Casey Mittlestadt carried the puck behind Edmonton’s net and fed it out front for Sean Walker, who came in from the point and wired a one-timer past Skinner.

The Oilers had an excellent chance to end the game early in overtime when Ryan Nugent-Hopkins was sprung alone on a breakaway but Georgiev stood tall and denied the opportunity.

It appeared as though the game was going to head to a shootout to decide the winner but the Avs managed a last-second goal before the clock expired. Nathan MacKinnon won a race to a loose puck deep in Edmonton’s zone and threw a quick pass out front that Artturi Lehkonen tipped past Skinner for the win.

It seems inevitable that the Oilers and Avalanche will go to overtime whenever they play. This marked the fifth consecutive game between Edmonton and Colorado that was decided in overtime, dating all the way back to Game 4 of the Western Conference Final in 2022. All three meetings between the two teams went to overtime last season and the two teams are again very evenly matched this year.

The Avs held both Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl off the scoresheet in this game. McDavid had scored three points in back-to-back wins for the Oilers but Colorado managed to shut him down. The Oilers also shut Nathan MacKinnon down during regulation time but he picked up an assist on the overtime winner. The assist was his league-leading 116th point of the season.

Scoreboard watching… The Oilers managed to gain one point on the Pacific Division-leading Vancouver Canucks, who lost to the Washington Capitals by a score of 2-1 on Saturday. They’re now eight points back of Vancouver with three games in hand. Edmonton is also five points up on the L.A. Kings and seven up on the Vegas Golden Knights.

Up next… The Oilers have two more games left on this four-game homestand before they hit the road. They’ll host a pair of non-playoff teams next week, the Montreal Canadiens on Tuesday and then the Buffalo Sabres on Thursday.