Oilers ride 4 goal 3rd to win over Devils

*Photo from the San Diego Union Tribune*

   Folks, the Edmonton Oilers are on one of those heaters. Evander Kane scored two goals, Tyson Barrie added a goal and an assist, and the Oilers defeated the New Jersey Devils with a 6-3 win on Saturday afternoon in Edmonton.

   The Oilers improve to 35-23-4 with the win, and have won 5 straight games to go a perfect 5-0-0 on their 5 game homestand. They've taken over 3rd in the Pacific, and a big reason why has been the play of Kane, who has scored 4 goals in his last 3 games. They picked up this win thanks to 4 unanswered goals in the 3rd period.

   Oilers alternate captain Leon Draisaitl said of the win streak that "It has been a big stretch for us, important games. We had some good teams in here. This was a really good stretch for us, but that being said we are focused on the next game. We have two hard opponents coming up here on a back-to-back, and we have to make sure we are ready for that."

   It was Mikko Koskinen who got the start for the Oilers, and he put together a strong start. Koskinen turned aside 25 of the 28 shots on goal he faced from the Devils, good for a .893 save percentage. With the win, Koskinen's record improves to 23-9-3 on the season.

   Draisaitl got the Oilers going first, scoring his 41st goal of the season just 1:11 into the game, making it a quick 1-0 lead. Jesper Bratt scored 4:50 into the game for the Devils, tying the game 1-1 on his 20th goal of the season. The lone goal of the second period came from Kane, scoring his 11th goal of the season to put Edmonton ahead 2-1.

   Bratt re-tied the game for the Devils just 26 seconds into the 3rd period, on his second goal of the night. Nico Hischier scored goal number 17 at the 3:14 mark of the 3rd, putting the Devils ahead 3-2. Barrie tied the game back up 9:04 into the 3rd, making it 3-3. Kane then scored a power play goal, followed by even strength goals from Zach Hyman and Connor McDavid to seal the win.

   Kane said of the scoring outburst that "We can score goals, we know that, it's just about playing a certain way and having the right attitude and staying with that attitude no matter how bounces go in a game. You look at the third period, we come out, we know what we need to do, but they get a couple of bounces and take the lead, but we stick to our game plan, get pucks to the net and turn up the heat a little bit, stay with it, and we were able to respond."

   Getting the loss in his start for the Devils was Jon Gillies, who got hit quite hard by the Oilers offensive attack. Gillies saved only 34 of the 39 shots Edmonton threw his way, good for a measly .872 save percentage. His record dropped to 3-10-1 in 14 starts on the season.

   Hischier said of the loss that "It's frustrating, but if you look at the whole game, I think we did a couple of things pretty well. I wouldn't say it's a terrible game, but it's just frustrating at the end coming out of here short."

   Up next, the Oilers travel to face the Colorado Avalanche on Monday night, with Mike Smith the likely starter. The Devils host the New York Rangers on Tuesday night, with rookie Nico Daws in line to get the start.