GAME RECAP: Golden Knights 5, Oilers 1

EDMONTON, AB – Things are looking a little tighter in the Pacific Division than before.

Evan Bouchard recorded his 21st goal of the season, but the Edmonton Oilers had their five-game win streak snapped in a 5-1 defeat to the Vegas Golden Knights, who pulled to within a point of first in the Pacific by claiming two points on Saturday at Rogers Place.

"We were going against a team that we're going to probably see later down the line, so showing up like that, we've got to kind of step back and regroup," Jake Walman said. "We're a team, so this standing separation doesn't bother us as much, but getting back to the way that we can play is probably the biggest thing."

Jack Eichel recorded three assists as part of multi-point performances alongside Brett Howden (1G, 1A), Jeremy Lauzon (1G, 1A) and Ivan Barbashev (2A) for the Golden Knights, who've won three straight to make up some ground in the playoff race late in the season.

Carter Hart made 31 saves in the Vegas victory, outduelling Connor Ingram's 28 saves on 33 shots in the opposite crease to end the Edmonton netminder's four-game win streak.

The Oilers will continue their push for a Pacific title when they kick off a four-game road trip on Tuesday with the first of a back-to-back against the Utah Mammoth.

FIRST PERIOD

Give the Golden Knights the slight advantage after 20 minutes.

One rush and a rebound were the difference for the Golden Knights in taking a 1-0 lead through one period in Saturday's pivotal Pacific Division battle as they looked to gain ground and pull within a single point of the Oilers in the standings.

Edmonton & Vegas both stopped the other's first opportunity with the power play before a two-on-one rush for the visitors past the midway mark saw Brett Howden put away the rebound past a diving Connor Ingram to give the Golden Knights the early lead.

"The way we lost it was off the rush and giving up chances, whether it was a bad pinch or forwards not coming back," Head Coach Kris Knoblauch said. "All four of their goals and pretty much most of their chances came off that, and we only generated one goal, but I thought we probably should have maybe had a couple more chances. But I think the story was just the chances we gave up off the rush."

The Oilers were back on the power play soon after, where the Blue & Orange had a flurry of chances that included Evan Bouchard hitting the crossbar on an open look from the slot and Connor McDavid toe-dragging Rasmus Andersson to challenge Carter Hart into stopping a tricky shot from the left circle. 

Edmonton went 0-for-3 on the power play on Saturday without the likes of Draisaitl and Hyman because of injuries, and Head Coach Kris Knoblauch added post-game that Hyman won't be available for the upcoming four-game road trip.

"This is not the same team without them, and there are guys that have been stepping up and we've been doing a great job in their absence," Walman said. "It gives more opportunity, but at the same time, there are spots where you can't replace certain guys.

In addition to their 1-0 lead, Vegas held a one-shot advantage at 11-10 at the end of the first period.

SECOND PERIOD

After two more goals from the Golden Knights in the middle frame, the Oilers were able to salvage a 3-1 deficit through 40 minutes with Evan Bouchard's 21st goal of the season that came with 31 seconds left in the period off a keep-in at the Vegas blueline.

Vegas doubled its lead through Colton Sissons after he finished off Mitch Marner's second try on the back-door pass under six minutes into the period, before it was 3-0 when Jeremy Lauzon sniped one inside the post only 2:47 later while Kasperi Kapanen was tangled up with Kaedan Korczak at the other end of the ice.

The Golden Knights held a 7-1 advantage in shots during the frame when they took their three-goal lead, and it took a fight-back from the Oilers in the second half and a takeaway from Bouchard at the blueline with the help of Jack Roslovic and Matt Savoie in the last minute to get them on the board.

After Savoie battled with Pavel Dorofeyev along the boards to help keep it in and get it to Bouchard, the Norris Trophy hopeful took it himself into the slot and fired past Hart to reduce the lead to 3-1 going into the third period.

Bouchard is more than likely to be a candidate for the NHL's best defenceman – if not the favourite – with a League-best 88 points among blueliners this season, leading Columbus' Zach Werenski (78) in second place by 10 points.

THIRD PERIOD

A Mark Stone tally 4:04 into the final period and a power-play marker from Rasmus Andersson sealed the two points for the Golden Knights on Saturday to tighten things up in the Pacific standings even more in the race to decide the division winner.

"I think we probably got away from the way that we know how to play," Walman said. "I thought we were slow tonight, and that's the result against a team like that."

The Vegas captain deflected a low shot-pass from Ivan Barbashev over the left pad of Ingram and inside the post to restore the lead to three at 4-1 just over four minutes in to further dent any hopes of an Edmonton comeback.

Later on, Andersson would draw the tripping call near the Oilers' bench before blasting home the slap shot on the ensuing man advantage to make it 4-1 for Vegas with 3:47 left in regulation and round out the scoring before time expired on their victory.

Both teams came together near the benches after the final whistle to exchange some harsh words, potentially setting the stage for another meeting in the playoffs this spring.

"Every game we play each other, it's a hard battle," Curtis Lazar said. "Both teams are not going to back down. We talk about doing it as a group in here. There's full belief in our team, and we're not phased with that.  We got a good thing going here, and we'll learn from it, move on and get ready for next week."

Vegas avoided the sweep of the season series by Edmonton with the two points that pulled them to within a point of the Oilers & Ducks for second in the Pacific Division.

The Oilers failed to extend their win streak to six games and complete the clean sweep of their four-game homestand, as they now hit the road for a four-game road trip starting on Tuesday with the first of a back-to-back against the Utah Mammoth.