POST-GAME: Big game for Bouchard in building where he was drafted

DALLAS, TX – American Airlines Center in Dallas was where Evan Bouchard heard his name called 10th overall by the Oilers at the 2018 NHL Draft.

The arena on Victory Avenue just north of downtown also provided the setting for a big game from the defenceman on Saturday afternoon as he set a new career high in goals with 14, scoring twice including the overtime winner as Edmonton edged the Stars 4-3.

"He's been playing really well," Head Coach Kris Knoblauch said of the team's top offensive blueliner, who also hit 50 points on the season with his sudden-death snipe from the point past Jake Oettinger. "Tonight was probably his best game I've seen him play for the last couple of weeks."

After Dallas scored on the power play to take a 1-0 lead early in the second period, Bouchard buried his first goal of the game on a blistering wrist shot from the left circle that got a piece of Oettinger's shoulder but had so much velocity that it was still able to find the twine.

Despite having such a lethal slap shot his arsenal, his OT winner was also a wrister coming 30 seconds into extra time and just seven seconds into an Oilers PP that gave the visitors a four-on-three advantage. Leon Draisaitl won the draw back to Bouchard and he navigated across to the right point before snapping a shot over Oettinger's blocker.

"He's very dangerous when he has the puck," Knoblauch said. "Obviously we talk about his ability to fire the puck and getting the big bomb and those big heavy shots, but a lot of his goals are just little sifters, the little wristers from the point. And that last one, he makes a little move walking the line, freezes the forward and then rips a nice little wrist shot inside the post."

Corey Perry had a big game for the Oilers on Saturday as well, scoring a goal and an assist in his seventh appearance with his new team. The veteran of 1,280 career games – who's played with outstanding offensive defencemen like Scott Niedermayer, Chris Pronger and Victor Hedman in the past – likes what he's seen so far from Edmonton's trigger man from the back end.

"He's just confident back there and there's no panic in his game," Perry said. "When he gets a puck at the blue line, he's always making the right play and he knows when to shoot. We saw that on the overtime goal. He saw something in front and let it fly and that's what we needed."

Bouchard's heroics helped the Oilers secure a thrilling win over the Central Division-leading Stars after they opened their road trip on Thursday with a disappointing 6-3 loss to the St. Louis Blues.

"That was huge," Bouchard said of the bounce-back effort. "We knew they were a good team. We had to play a really good game, and we did that. That's what makes us so special. We can compete with any team, and we know what we have in here."

Edmonton will look to take two of three games on their Central swing when they visit the Arizona Coyotes for another matinee matchup on Monday afternoon at Mullett Arena.