Was it pretty? No. But the Edmonton Oilers got the job done.
On Saturday afternoon, the Oilers hosted the Vegas Golden Knights, defeating the 2023 Stanley Cup champions by a score of 6-3 to bring their record to 18-10-2 on the season. It was the first time the Oilers have beaten the Pacific Division leaders this season and now Edmonton trails Vegas by only three points in the standings.
Late in the first period, the Oilers capitalized on their first power play opportunity of the game to open the scoring. Connor McDavid got a zone entry and found Ryan Nugent-Hopkins alone in front of the net for the 1-0 lead heading into the second period.
Edmonton’s best period this season might have been the second frame against Vegas, as they scored four consecutive goals. The first of the four came early in the second. The Oilers forced a turnover off the offensive zone faceoff, with Zach Hyman banging in the rebound to give the team a 2-0 lead.
Seven minutes into the middle frame, Leon Draisaitl and Connor Brown were off to a 2-on-1, with the latter passing to the former for his second goal in as many games.
Edmonton’s fourth goal came just over the middle mark of the game. Mattias Janmark looked off Draisaitl, who would’ve had a breakaway, and elected to pass to Darnell Nurse. It didn’t matter in the end, as Nurse passed the puck through the crease to Draisaitl, who tapped it in for his 22nd of the season.
Just over two minutes later, Corey Perry scored his sixth of the season as his shot from the high slot was of the “seeing eye” variety, beating a screened Adin Hill to give the Oilers a 5-0 lead.
Throughout their lengthy history in the National Hockey League, the Oilers have only blown one five-goal lead, the Miracle on Manchester in 1982. The Golden Knights got pretty close, as they scored two late goals in the second period and an early goal in the third period. The last goal, the first shorthanded goal the Oilers allowed this season, was an unforced turnover by Stuart Skinner, his only mistake of the game.
Thankfully, one Skinner picked up the other Skinner, as forward Jeff scored just over a minute later to give the Oilers a 6-3 lead.
Takeaways…
The Oilers had another good game on the special teams, scoring one power-play goal while killing off the only penalty they had called. Jeff Skinner’s goal came just seconds after their second power play ended, as well.
Stuart Skinner had that ugly gaff that allowed the Golden Knights to have some hope, but it was a pretty solid all-around game for Edmonton’s netminder, as he saved 38 of 41 shots for a .927 save percentage. Over his last eight games, Skinner has a .925 save percentage.
Leon Driaisaitl continued his great pace this year, as he scored his league-leading 22nd goal of the season while adding two assists. Connor Brown had another two-point night, scoring a goal and an assist, while Ryan Nugent-Hopkins also had a goal and an assist. The only forwards without a point in this game were Adam Henrique and Kasperi Kapanen.
Mattias Janmark picked up his 12th assist and 13th point on Draisaitl’s goal. Last season, he only had 12 points (four goals, eight assists) in 71 games. He’s quietly been a great depth option for the Oilers this season.
With the win, the Oilers moved to 18-10-2 for 38 points. They are now just three points behind the Golden Knights and one point behind the Los Angeles Kings. As for the Vancouver Canucks, they are trailing by three points, but have two-less games played. The Knights are in action on Sunday against the Minnesota Wild.
Edmonton is back in action on Monday when they take on the 2024 Stanley Cup champions, the Florida Panthers, for the first time since Game 7 in June. The Oilers are now on a season-high five-game winning streak against some pretty tough opponents and, hopefully, they can keep it going.
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