GAME RECAP: Oilers 4, Ducks 2

EDMONTON, AB – Two huge points delivered.

Matt Savoie scored for a third straight game, registering the game-winner on Saturday afternoon as the Edmonton Oilers held on to earn their third straight win to pick up all two points in the race for first in the Pacific Division with a 4-2 victory over the Anaheim Ducks at Rogers Place.

"We've been chipping away at it," Nurse said. "It hasn't been perfect. We still have a lot of work to do. The race is still tight. There's nothing guaranteed, so for us, it's not just about putting a few games together – we got to continue this through the final nine games."

After Connor McDavid opened the scoring 7:36 into the middle frame, the Oilers would score twice in 1:11 early in the third period through Jack Roslovic's 20th and Matt Savoie's 14th of the campaign before the Ducks responded with two quick goals of their own to make it 3-2 off tallies from Beckett Sennecke and Cutter Gauthier.

But the Oilers showed their defensive resolve in the final half of the final frame, with netminder Connor Ingram finishing with 29 saves and Zach Hyman adding an empty-netter to pull the Oilers within three points of the Ducks for first place in the Pacific.

"I feel like we're pretty comfortable in the defensive zone right now spending time there, allowing them to stay on the outside," Savoie said. "I thought that's kind of how it was at the end of the game. Credit to our group for shutting them down."

The Oilers will continue their push for a Pacific title on Tuesday when they host another divisional opponent in the Seattle Kraken at Rogers Place.

FIRST PERIOD

Time to go duck hunting.

Despite a scoreless first frame between the Oilers & Ducks, both sides combined for 27 shots in the opening 20 minutes, with Edmonton holding a 15-12 advantage while knowing that a win on Saturday would pull them to within three points of Anaheim for first place in the Pacific Division.

With Saturday's matinée marking a traditional 'four-pointer' in the standings, the Oilers had the afternoon's first power play when Jeffrey Viel chopped down Evan Bouchard in the neutral zone, but the Ducks were able to limit them to only two shots and minimal scoring chances on their first man advantage.

Carrying over their successful kill in overtime against the Golden Knights on Thursday, the Oilers looked solid on their first shorthanded scenario – even getting the best chance to open the scoring on Jason Dickinson's second chance on a two-on-one.

SECOND PERIOD

You could feel the importance of Saturday's contest in how the Oilers came out and dominated the Ducks in the second period, continuing to play the right way by putting themselves on track to pick up two valuable points with a 1-0 lead through 40 minutes.

"The last few games, I think we've done a pretty good job of that," Head Coach Kris Knoblauch said. "Usually, if you're winning, you need to check.  You need to play good defensive hockey.  But even backing up to the Tampa game, I know we gave up five with a couple of special teams goals and an empty net there, but over the last four games, five on five, we've played the right brand of hockey."

After an even first period, the middle frame was much more one-sided in favour of the Oilers, who held the Ducks to only three shots in the stanza and found their deserved go-ahead goal when McDavid was the first to get his stick to the puck in front off a weird bounce off the meshing for his 42nd goal of the season.

Following another unconverted power play, Edmonton's penalty kill was dangerous again a few minutes later with Connor Murphy in the box for tripping, with Lukas Dostal making a massive save on Zach Hyman's partial shorthanded breakaway before he reloaded with McDavid at even strength on an odd-man rush before the shift was over.

Edmonton is 6-for-6 over its last two games on the penalty kill.

"I think we're trending in the right direction," Nurse said of the penalty kill. "Were just playing free out there; not thinking. I think as a kill, it's easy to get tight and think and overanalyze. But when you're just playing and going out there and skating while playing off instinct. That's when kills are the best, and that's the way we've been playing lately."

Near the seven-minute mark, the Oilers opened the scoring off a partial change and regroup in the neutral zone, where McDavid kicked it right to Max Jones coming off the bench before his shot took a funny bounce off the meshing behind Anaheim's goal, resulting in both him and McDavid getting their sticks to the second effort in front.

Ultimately, it was McDavid who got his stick to it first to elevate it over the shoulder of Dostal, getting credit for his 42nd goal after reaching 400 career goals in Thursday's 4-3 victory over the Golden Knights.

After Bouchard set a new career high in goals against Vegas with his 20th of the year, the NHL's leading scorer among defencemen this season picked up his first assist of the afternoon for a new career high in helpers at 65, giving him 85 points in 74 games.

THIRD PERIOD

A great start to the final frame by the Oilers with two goals in 1:11 from Jack Roslovic and Matt Savoie got dicey quickly when the Ducks responded with two of their own in less than three minutes, but the Blue & Orange were able to find the requisite resolve to hold on and add an empty-netter from Hyman to pick up two massive points in the Pacific.

Defensively, they're going to have their pushes. They're going to capitalize on opportunities," Nurse said. "They're a good team too, so when we had to lock it down, we locked it down.  I think [Ingram] made some big saves. We played well defensively.  Our structure was good, but that's hockey. Sometimes they're going to score goals."

After all the milestones from Thursday's win over Vegas, Jack Roslovic's reached 20 goals in a season for the third time in his career when he put the Oilers ahead 2-0 by outwaiting Dostal and sliding his benchmark goal five-hole 15:01 left in regulation.

Hyman recorded the primary helper, while Bouchard's secondary assist was his second of the game to grow his defence-leading total to 86 points (20 goals) in 74 games.

Just over one minute later, McDavid chipped it past Jackson LaCombe at the Anaheim bench to create a two-on-one for Podkolzin and Savoie, where the Russian forward stayed patient to avoid the sliding Jacob Trouba and find Savoie at the back post to make it 3-0 for the Oilers.

After entering tonight with goals in back-to-back games and 12 points (4G, 8A) over his last 15 games, Savoie continued his strong stretch with his 14th goal of the season.

"Confidence is definitely high right now," Savoie said. "It helps seeing the puck go in and getting lots of opportunities right now with some pretty good players.  Obviously, it was a really good play by Davo to get that to Podz, and then he makes an unbelievable play to kind of give me an open net. I'm just trying to capitalize and put myself in good spots."

But the Ducks weren't about to go quietly, scoring twice in 2:52 through Beckett Sennecke and Cutter Gauthier, pulling it to a one-goal game with half the final period still to play for them to complete the comeback.

Forward Jason Dickinson was on for both of those goals, claiming some responsibility, but was proud of how his team responded to the Ducks mounting a late push.

"Definitely got a little tighter than I needed to," he said. "We were playing such a good game up until those two goals, and I wear those on my shoulder. Those are going to bug me.  But the fact that we were able to stick with it and just get back to defending hard and advancing pucks to keep them from sustained o-zone was good."

A tripping call on Olen Zellweger against Zach Hyman when he looked to get through on a breakaway with 7:40 remaining took some of the wind out from under the Ducks' wings, but the Pacific leaders pressured the Oilers in the final minutes with their net empty.

After holding it down in their own end, the Oilers escaped their zone thanks to a chip by McDavid that created the breakaway for Hyman to finish the Ducks off with an empty-netter with only 17 seconds left.

"I think we're playing an intense style right now, closing quick in the D zone, not giving them easy looks inside," Savoie said. "I think it's just the intensity that we're playing with right now, and it's playoff style."