GAME STORY: Oilers 3, Canucks 2

EDMONTON, AB - Zack Kassian scored his fourth goal in as many games, and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins set a new career high in points with the game-winning goal in a 3-2 win for the Oilers over the Vancouver Canucks on Thursday.

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The Oilers host the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday. The game can be seen on Sportsnet and CBC and heard on the Oilers Radio Network, including 630 CHED. Puck drop is 5:08 p.m. MST.
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Nugent-Hopkins' tally during the second period was the Burnaby, B.C. product's 57th point of the campaign, and Alex Chiasson now needs one more goal to record his first 20-goal season after opening the scoring in the first period.
Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl extended their individual point streaks to 12 and 7 games respectively, factoring in tonight with assists. Mikko Koskinen stood tall to make 33 saves and improve to 6-1-2 in nine-straight starts.
"I think he's got a bit of confidence knowing he's the number-one guy," McDavid said of his netminder. "He's kind of taken it and ran with it, and he's been good. He made some big saves tonight."
With victory in their first of a four-game home stand, the Oilers have won four-straight games to match a season high and remain seven points back with a game in hand of the Minnesota Wild for the final Wildcard spot in the Western Conference.
"For us we don't worry about it," Sam Gagner said. "We still feel there's a lot in our control right now. We play teams ahead of us, but at the same time you take each game as its own game and try to get wins.
"We're continuing to build, we're doing some good things, and we've got to get another win next game."
The Oilers were quickest off the opening draw when Oscar Klefbom sent the puck down the ice for a racing Gagner to chase and challenge Vancouver netminder Thatcher Demko with the first shot on goal just seven seconds into the game.
Gagner would provide the initial effort needed to record his 300th point as an Oiler and open the scoring 5:21 into the first period, checking Derrick Pouliot below the goal line and throwing the loose puck in front for Chiasson to bury the opportunity.
"We tried to jump all over them at the beginning there, and I thought we did a good job of that. We controlled the game early" Jujhar Khaira, who played for the first time following 10 games missed due to injury, said.
The Oilers top line linked up brilliantly to double the lead with Kassian's 12th marker of the season, providing the end product in front of goal off following an exchange between Draisaitl and McDavid at the blue line.

"I just went hard to the net and Connor gave me a tap in, basically. I just had to put it in the five hole," Kassian said. "You can't read too much into the goals, but I think as a team for the most part, and as a line, we played well tonight."
Unheralded for the Oilers in the opening 20 minutes was Koskinen shutting the door with 18 saves.
Nugent-Hopkins set a new career high with 57 points as the Oilers made it 3-0 just over a minute into the middle frame. Crossing the offensive zone with space to take, McDavid no-looked a pass to Nugent-Hopkins that was deflected past a beaten Demko for the three-goal advantage.

Vancouver cut into the Oilers lead with 1:30 remaining in the period on a tap in for Jay Beagle after Koskinen couldn't cleanly handle a cross-ice dump in by Brock Boeser.
McDavid nearly had it back, failing to convert on the breakaway before the clock expired with the Oilers up 3-1 through two-thirds of the contest.
Alexander Edler pulled another back for the Canucks with 12:57 on the clock after the power play expired with a wrist shot from the point that snuck through Koskinen's left arm.
Draisaitl, after coming into tonight's game with 17 goals in his last 18 outings, had an open breakaway to restore the two-goal advantage for the Oilers, but his back-hand was thwarted by the left-pad of Demko at the final moment of release.

After pulling their goalie, the Canucks couldn't control the puck as the Oilers played keep-away for the final 30 seconds of the closing frame and ran out the clock.
The Oilers link up with the Toronto Maple Leafs at Rogers Place on Saturday, with puck drop on Hockey Night in Canada at 5:00 p.m. MST.