Oilers end six-game skid with win against Blue Jackets

The Edmonton Oilers ended a six-game losing streak with a 5-2 win against the Columbus Blue Jackets at Rogers Place in Edmonton on Thursday.

Jesse Puljujarvi had two goals and an assist, and Stuart Skinner made 36 saves for the Oilers (17-11-0), who won for the first time since Dec. 1 (0-6-0).
"I hope this gives me more confidence and helps me play better every evening," Puljujarvi said. "Let's see what happens."
Edmonton was without coach Dave Tippett, and forwards Ryan McLeod and Devin Shore, who are in NHL COVID-19 protocol.
Elvis Merzlikins gave up four goals on 29 shots for Columbus (14-13-1), before being replaced at the start of the third period by Joonas Korpisalo, who made 15 saves. The Blue Jackets have lost seven of their past eight games on the road.
"I thought we played a lot of good minutes but lately, we've got to find ourselves here," Blue Jackets forward Gustav Nyquist said. "We've had a lot of road games, but we've got to find our game here … and string together some wins again."

The Oilers had a two-minute, two-man advantage after Jakub Voracek and Merzlikins were assessed separate penalties at 6:19 of the first period. Voracek was given a minor for playing without a helmet, and Merzlikins for tripping Kailer Yamamoto.
"We started fine, had some looks, and then it was a little bit of a brain cramp from 'Jake,' you can't play the puck when your helmet is off," Blue Jackets coach Brad Larsen said. "That put them on a 5-on-3. We were killing it fine too. They had no shots on goal and then miss it wide and pop it in, and that puts you behind the eight ball."
Puljujarvi scored at 7:24 to give the Oilers their first lead since Dec. 1 against the Pittsburgh Penguins. He scored off a shot that went wide by defenseman Tyson Barrie and caromed in front.
He made it 2-0 at 8:10, tapping in a centering pass from Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, for his second multigoal game of the season. Puljujarvi had a career-high eight shots on goal.
"I liked Jesse's game," Oilers assistant coach Glen Gulutzan said. "You guys are going to see the eight shots, and the two goals and assist tonight, but I thought early there were a couple things in his game that we wanted him to be direct and he just straightened himself right out and had a big game. I think he got better and better as the game went on."
Derek Ryan scored at 11:07 for a 3-0 lead, jamming in the puck after Merzlikins stopped a shot from Brendan Perlini in the slot. His last goal was Oct. 16 against his former team, the Calgary Flames.
"It is a huge confidence builder, not only for the bottom six [forwards], but for the top six as well," Ryan said. "I think my line, in particular, has [continued to build] a couple games here. Even though we haven't gotten wins in the previous games, I felt like we've started to come across some confidence."

Perlini, his linemate, scored his first goal with Edmonton at 16:41 of the second period to make it 4-0, converting on a rebound off a shot from Zack Kassian.
"I thought that line was really good," Gulutzan said. "Derek Ryan, if you look at his stat line, he was 64 percent on draws and 13-some minutes of ice time (13:48) and a good, gritty goal, going to the net. We talked about that, getting into the blue paint and the tough areas."
Nyquist scored on a rebound at 6:28 of the third period to make it 4-1 and Justin Danforth scored at 16:36 to make it 4-2.
Warren Foegele scored his first goal in 21 games with Korpisalo on the bench for an extra attacker, at 17:06 for the 5-2 final.
"I think we played well 5-on-5, in the first period especially, to try and beat them," Blue Jackets defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov said. "But special teams means a lot right now, and it's always tough when they score and you miss a couple of your chances."
NOTES: Oilers forwards Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid each had an assist after being held without a point for the past two games. … Perlini's goal was his first point with Edmonton in 13 games. He signed a one-year contract Aug. 7. … Skinner's win was his first since Nov. 20 against the Chicago Blackhawks (0-3-0). … Yamamoto did not have a shot on goal for the seventh game in a row.