The Oilers gave their fans a glimmer of hope with a huge win over the Lightning but gave it all back with three losses on their California road trip. Elsewhere, the Flames could be without starting goalie Mike Smith after he suffered an injury on Sunday.

The Golden Knights had an up-and-down week last week. They were on the latter-part of a six-game road trip and beat San Jose but lost to Pittsburgh. They returned to Vegas on Sunday and lost to the Flyers but will play eight of their next nine games at home. As an interesting side note, the Golden Knights are apparently considering a James Neal trade leading up to the trade deadline. Neal has 24 goals and is a UFA at the end of the season. Despite the fact Vegas is doing better than anyone could have imagined, they still need to consider the future, and dealing Neal for futures and adding another player to fill his role could satisfy both short- and long-term goals.

The Sharks started the week by dropping back-to-back games to Colorado and Vegas but finished strong by beating the Oilers and Ducks. They now sit alone in second place in the Pacific Division, but the clump of three teams behind them — Calgary, Los Angeles, and Anaheim — are all within three points.

The Flames kicked off a six-game road trip last week with wins over Chicago, the Islanders, and New Jersey, but they got dropped by the Rangers. They’ll play Boston and Nashville this week before heading home. Since dropping six games in a row, the Flames have won four of their last five games. That said, Mike Smith left Sunday’s game with a lower body injury. Apparently it isn’t serious, but losing Smith for any extended period of time would seriously put a wrench in Calgary’s playoff push.

The Kings beat the Oilers at home last week and then kicked off an Eastern road trip with a win against Florida and a loss to Tampa Bay. They’ll play five more on the road before returning home for an extended stretch.

The Ducks finished off an Eastern road trip with an odd 7-4 loss to the Maple Leafs and a 4-3 overtime win against Buffalo. They returned home and beat the Oilers but then lost to the Sharks in a shootout. They’ll jump back on the road this week for a trip through the Central Division.

The Oilers had an ugly week last week. It started off nicely, as the team pounded the Lightning 6-2. But after that, it all went to hell. The Oilers went on a three-game California trip with a nice chance to make a move up the standings, but they got dropped in all three games. It would be shocking if they didn’t sell at the deadline.

The Canucks lost three games last week, contributing to a four-gam losing streak overall, but they snapped out of it on Sunday with a 6-0 spanking of the Dallas Stars. The more games they lose the better, though.

The Coyotes lost to the Jets, beat the Wild in overtime, and then lost to the Flyers in the shootout. They’re now six points clear of the Sabres for 31st place.