McDavid scores twice, reaches 1,200 points in Oilers win against Mammoth

SALT LAKE CITY -- Connor McDavid reached 1,200 points by scoring twice, including his 400th NHL goal, and the Edmonton Oilers defeated the Utah Mammoth 5-2 at Delta Center on Tuesday.

McDavid became the third-fastest player in NHL history to 1,200 points (784 games), behind only Wayne Gretzky (504 games) and Mario Lemieux (593 games). He also became the 115th player in NHL history, and 15th active, to score at least 400. 

McDavid is the fifth player in Oilers history to reach 400 goals.

“I'm fortunate to have played with some really great players, I think that's the main thing,” McDavid said. “Obviously these milestones are just a nice time to reflect and just very grateful to have played with so many great players.”

Edmonton coach Kris Knoblauch said: “He's got a great release. But I just think he’s so difficult to check, and he's determined to get to the net. So many players have the ability to score goals, but they just don't pay a price. And Connor obviously is not afraid to drive to the net.”

Jack Roslovic also scored twice, and Evan Bouchard had three assists for the Oilers (35-28-9), who have won three of their past five games. Tristan Jarry made 16 saves.

Edmonton is second in the Pacific Division, five points behind the Anaheim Ducks and one point ahead of the Vegas Golden Knights for third.

“The past two games, five-on-five, we've played the way we needed to,” Knoblauch said. “Going forward, especially without [Leon Draisaitl], we definitely need to be playing like that. And even when Leon comes back, we need to still play like that. It's a playoff-hockey type game that we just played.”

Alex Kerfoot and Lawson Crouse scored for the Mammoth (37-29-6), who are 3-4-2 in their past nine.

Karel Vejmelka allowed four goals on 15 shots before he was replaced by Vitek Vanecek to begin the third period. Vanecek made 10 saves in relief.

"We did a lot of good stuff defensively, but I think we didn't have our usual aggression and our pace,” Mammoth coach Andre Tourigny said. “We didn't have the puck enough, so we let them maneuver too much with the puck. I would have loved to be more aggressive.”

Utah holds the first wild card into the Stanley Cup Playoffs from the Western Conference, three points ahead of the Nashville Predators.

Kerfoot gave the Mammoth a 1-0 lead at 11:12 of the first period. Sean Durzi skated into the offensive zone and dropped the puck back to Kerfoot, who sent a snap shot from above the right face-off circle that deflected off Oilers defensemen Darnell Nurse and Connor Murphy before fluttering over Jarry into the net.

Roslovic tied it 1-1 at 14:27 with a wrist shot from the left circle that beat Vejmelka to the blocker side. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins had the secondary assist for his 800th NHL point.

“We need to start stacking games together,” Roslovic said. “Any win for us right now is a possibility to build.”

The teams exchanged three goals in a 43-second span in the second period.

Matt Savoie put Edmonton up 2-1 with a short-handed goal at 11:24. Savoie collected his own rebound behind the net and fed a cross-ice pass to Bouchard. Bouchard faked a shot and sent the puck back to Savoie in the slot, where his wrist shot snuck through Vejmelka's pads as he slid across the crease.

Crouse tied it 2-2 just 35 seconds later at 11:59 while on the power play. Michael Carcone played the puck off the end boards from the blue line and it bounced in front to Crouse, where he dropped to one knee and buried a snap shot to the glove side from the low slot.

McDavid put the Oilers in front 3-2 at 12:07, splitting the defense and chasing a bouncing puck before chipping it over Vejmelka's glove from the edge of the right circle.

Roslovic scored his second of the game at 15:04. After Zach Hyman sent a shot off the crossbar, Roslovic settled the rebound in the left circle and put a snap shot through the five-hole.

“It was a great answer from our team, always good to regain leads,” Roslovic said. “Great short-handed goal and then a great goal by (McDavid). So yeah, as much as we can keep the lead the better.” 

Kerfoot said: “We obviously just didn't have enough of a pushback, in the third especially. We’re down two goals in a game, fighting for a playoff spot against a team who's also fighting, and we didn't even make them work for it, didn't make them earn it. Disappointing. It’s on us.”

McDavid scored his second goal and 40th of the season into an empty net 19:52 of the third period to secure the 5-2 final.

“Goal-scoring is something that has not come easy to me or naturally to me,” McDavid said. “Something that I work at, something that I focus on and set it at the beginning of the year, trying to shoot more pucks and take pucks [to the net]. There's good nights and bad nights in that area but fortunate to have scored a couple goals in this League.”

NOTES: McDavid is one assist away from his 800th in the NHL. ... McDavid recorded his fifth career 40-goal season and surpassed Glenn Anderson (four) for the fourth-most in Oilers history. ... Mammoth forward Barrett Hayton left the game nine seconds into the first period with an upper-body injury after colliding with teammate Jack McBain. There was no update postgame. "He will have more exams tomorrow, and we'll figure out the nature of it,” Tourigny said.