Out of Town Scoreboard: Golden Knights remain on top with big win over Kraken

It’s all going to come down to the last day. Both the Edmonton Oilers and Vegas Golden Knights won on Tuesday, so their games on Thursday will determine who finishes in first place in both the Pacific Division and Western Conference.

The Oilers completed a perfect four-game road trip in Colorado on Tuesday, beating the Avalanche by a score of 2-1 in overtime. The two teams exchanged goals in the first period and Evan Bouchard won the game for the Oilers with a beautiful shot in overtime.

It was Edmonton’s eighth consecutive win, which puts them just one win shy of matching the longest winning streak in franchise history from the 2000-01 season.

After Edmonton’s win in Colorado, the pressure was on the Golden Knights to keep pace as they hosted the Seattle Kraken. The two teams exchanged goals in the first period and then Vegas ran away with three unanswered goals in the second and third frames.

It also appears that Mark Stone will be ready to join the Golden Knights in the playoffs. Stone has been on the Long-Term Injured Reserve since January with a back injury.

There’s quite a bit still left to be decided in the Western Conference standings over the final few days of the regular season.

The Golden Knights can clinch the top spot in the Pacific and the West simply by picking up a point in their game in Seattle against the Kraken on Thursday. In order for the Oilers to jump the Golden Knights, they need Seattle to beat Vegas in regulation and they need to win their game on Thursday with the San Jose Sharks. That would put both teams at 109 points but Edmonton has the tiebreaker in regulation wins.

Also worth noting, the Kraken can still jump the L.A. Kings in the standings. If Seattle beats Vegas and Los Angeles loses to Anaheim in regulation, the Kraken would finish third in the Pacific Division.