Draisaitl scores hat trick, Oilers shut out Predators to gain in Pacific

NASHVILLE -- Leon Draisaitl scored a hat trick, and the Edmonton Oilers defeated the Nashville Predators 4-0 at Bridgestone Arena on Thursday.

Mike Smith made 30 saves for his first shutout of the season and 43rd in the NHL. Connor McDavid and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins each had two assists for the Oilers (43-26-6), who are 6-1-1 in their past eight games.
Edmonton is in second place in the Pacific Division, four points ahead of the Los Angeles Kings. The Oilers have played one fewer game than the Kings.
Edmonton was coming off a 5-1 loss at the Minnesota Wild on Tuesday.
"We wanted to bounce back and have a better effort than we did in [Minnesota]," Smith said. "I think [it was] as complete an effort as you can have against a really good hockey team in their building.
"It's always tough to play in here. It's always a good atmosphere and the guys responded really well. Had a good start to the game, got up in the first and then kind of just carried the momentum of that throughout the whole 60, so it was good to see."

Juuse Saros made 28 saves for the Predators (42-27-5), who are 1-2-1 in their past four games and have scored four goals during that stretch.
Nashville and the Dallas Stars are tied for the first wild card into the Stanley Cup Playoffs from the Western Conference.
"I thought we were too flat on our side," Predators defenseman Mattias Ekholm said. "I thought they came out and had a mission out there. We didn't catch up to it in the first. We got out of that one with just a one-goal deficit, thanks to [Juuse Saros].
"It seemed like we had some instances here and there in the second and third where we had some energy. But overall, I thought we need to be better on a night like this, and they rightfully deserved the one."
Draisaitl gave the Oilers a 1-0 lead at 8:56 of the first period, scoring on the power play. He has 54 goals this season, second to Toronto Maple Leafs forward Auston Matthews (58).
Draisaitl made it 2-0 at 12:36 of the second period, one-timing Zach Hyman's pass from behind the goal line. He has scored 19 goals in 20 games against the Predators.
"Obviously, not our best in Minnesota, but good teams, they make sure they respond," Draisaitl said. "We are a good team and I thought we responded really well tonight. Full 60 minutes, every facet of the game was checked off really."

Darnell Nurse extended the lead to 3-0 at 15:29, capping a shorthanded 3-on-2 rush by scoring from the slot.
The Predators appeared to make it 3-1 at 3:45 of the third period, when Colton Sissons tapped in the rebound of Yakov Trenin's shot. But the Oilers challenged for offside, and a video review determined Trenin preceded the puck into the offensive zone prior to the goal.
Draisaitl scored his second power-play goal to make it 4-0 at 11:09. It was the second hat trick of the season for Draisaitl and sixth of his career. He has two hat tricks against Nashville, scoring four goals in the Oilers' 8-3 win against the Predators on March 2, 2020.
"I think sometimes you just have a team that it seems to work a little better against than others," Draisaitl said. "A couple of great plays tonight by some guys, and fortunately I took advantage of them."
The Predators had not been shut out since a 2-0 loss to the Boston Bruins on Dec. 2, 2021. Nashville plays the Chicago Blackhawks on Saturday.
"Mentally, physically and emotionally, we have an opportunity to regroup here, and we have to respond to the performance tonight," Predators coach John Hynes said. "So I'm anxious to get back with our group tomorrow and get some things figured out. I'm really looking forward to seeing our team respond on Saturday."
NOTES: The Oilers have won six straight games against the Predators. … Draisaitl has 23 power-play goals, second in the NHL behind the New York Rangers' Chris Kreider (25). … Forward Cody Glass, recalled by the Predators on Thursday from Milwaukee of the American Hockey League, had two shots and four hits in 11:14 ice time. … Nashville defenseman Mark Borowiecki (upper body) is day to day, and he was replaced in the lineup by Matt Benning. Benning had one shot in 15:42 of ice time.