The Edmonton Oilers were five points back of the Vegas Golden Knights heading into Tuesday’s game, and a regulation win would have pulled them within three of the Pacific Division lead. Unfortunately, the Oilers fell two points further behind after a 1-0 loss to the Golden Knights, thanks to a strong performance by Adin Hill.

It’s impossible to win when you can’t score goals, and last night’s game marked the fourth time in 25 games that’s happened. For a team with as much firepower as the Oilers are supposed to have, it’s frustrating they’ve been shut out in 16 percent of their games. As much as Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl have been fantastic over the last few weeks, it sure would be nice if some players lower on the depth chart could chip in occasionally. I know goals are hard to come by, but we need more than a few guys stepping up here.

Then again, maybe this is what we get for thinking our scoring woes were finally behind us after the Oilers scored 14 goals in their previous three games. I guess the Hockey Gords want to keep us humble. The last thing anyone needs is for this team to gain too much confidence and start steamrolling the rest of the league. Or, more likely, I’m simply coping after what was an irritating loss. The Oilers played well enough to win again, but they couldn’t beat Adin Hill or find a way to earn a point against a divisional rival. At the end of the day, the best word to describe that loss is frustrating.

When you have two teams checking as tightly as the Oilers and Golden Knights were last night, you have to take advantage of any opportunities because it might be a while before another one comes around. That made it all the more frustrating when the Oilers couldn’t convert their chances in the second period to tie the game. The boys were buzzing for several minutes, and it seemed like their best shot to even the score instead of heading into the third down against the best team in the NHL when leading after 40 minutes.

In the third period, the Oilers kept their foot on the gas with plenty of offensive-zone time and opportunities, but the goals just didn’t come. Despite outshooting Vegas 16-2 through the final 20 minutes, the Oilers seemed to have used up all their road magic against the Utah Hockey Club and Colorado Avalanche. They couldn’t get anything to work despite creating plenty of clean looks. At one point, I wondered if the Oilers were back in their own heads because they passed up numerous chances to shoot in favour of east-west passing options that may or may not have been there.

I guess what I’m saying is that the Oilers are at their best when playing simple hockey, but they tried too often to be fancy against Vegas instead of getting back to what’s been working. So, while it’s slightly infuriating that they couldn’t score, it’s no surprise they played their best period of the game when they returned to a simpler, greasier style.

Ever since they joined the NHL, the Vegas Golden Knights have had too much fun. We all remember their run to the Stanley Cup Final in their inaugural season and how they ended up winning it all only five years later. Outside of their lone playoff miss two years ago and a pair of first-round exits sprinkled in between, this franchise has seen nothing but success — and it’s annoying. That fact makes every matchup against them feel all the more important. Of course, you want to win for the points, but also because screw these guys, amirite? Sometimes you have to be petty as a sports fan, and Vegas is a team I’m not shy about cheering against.

1. Ivan Barbashev opened the scoring (1-0) on a lucky break after a turnover by Draisaitl near the far blue line led to a 2-on-1 against. Initially, Barbashev tried to throw the puck across to Eichel, but a sliding Evan Bouchard blocked the attempt, leaving the opportunity to slide the rebound through Skinner’s legs. It was a weird, messy goal that all started with a turnover. Let’s respect the blue lines here, fellas.

2. Troy Stecher took a shot to the ear in the third period, and I could not even begin to imagine how painful that was. If I got hit in the ear with a puck the way Stecher did, I probably wouldn’t stop crying for weeks if not months. Hope the guy is okay because that looked incredibly painful.

3. Stuart Skinner may not have had the start to the game that he would have liked after Ivan Barbashev opened the scoring with a lucky break goal, but he certainly settled in well from there. While it wasn’t the busiest night Stu will ever have, he handled his job well and gave his team the chance to stick around until the very end. Unfortunately, the way that first goal went in will likely tarnish what was otherwise a respectable performance with .938 save percentage on 16 shots. But don’t let it slip on you that this was the fourth time in five starts that Skinner has a save percentage of .930 or better.

4. Did anyone else notice Leon Draisaitl battling the puck early in the game? I’m not even talking about the turnover that led to Barbashev’s goal either, but just how he wasn’t handling the puck quite as smoothly as normal. Anybody? Just me?

5. Adin Hill remains annoying, and it’s been the case for multiple years now. That said, one might also argue that the Oilers didn’t put enough rubber on net until the third period where they outshot Vegas by a 16-2 margin.

6. How is it possible that neither team did anything to merit a single penalty?

7. A piece of me is missing unless I tell you that the Oilers won  56.9% of the faceoffs.