Second place in the Pacific Division will be on the line Thursday night when the Edmonton Oilers visit Las Vegas to take on the Vegas Golden Knights.
Edmonton (35-28-9, 79 points), which trails first-place Anaheim by five points, enters the contest with a one-point lead over Vegas (32-26-14, 78 points). Both teams have 10 games remaining, including two against each other. They also play on April 4 in Edmonton.
It’s the opener of a four-game homestand for the Golden Knights, who have sputtered since the Olympic break. Vegas held a four-point lead atop the Pacific Division but has gone 5-10-0 since and has lost four of its last five games.
Perhaps more troubling is the way the slump has happened. Vegas has fallen behind 3-0 in seven of its last 14 contests, including a 4-1 loss at Winnipeg on Tuesday, and has scored just five total goals in its last five games, getting shut out twice. The team’s goal differential for the season is zero. By comparison, Colorado’s is plus-86.
“They get one, they get two, they get three (goals),” defenseman Rasmus Andersson said. “That’s been kind of our issue. We don’t stop the bleeding soon enough. Feels like almost every time we let the first one in, it’s a 3-0 game that we have to chase the rest of the game.”
“It’s tough being down three goals this time of year, as we know,” added center Colton Sissons. “We’ve been in that position a little bit too often.”
Vegas enters the stretch run with just a four-point lead over the fourth-place Los Angeles Kings, who are three points behind Nashville for the final Western Conference playoff spot and have a game in hand on the Golden Knights.
“We’ve just got to find ways to win hockey games coming down the stretch,” Vegas forward Colton Sissons said. “It might not be the same way every night but we definitely have the class of players and the character to find ways. We’ll be fine.”
“Frustration won’t help you at this point,” Andersson said. “We’ve got to find a way to come together. … This time of year, it’s about wins.”
Edmonton is 5-3-1 in its last nine games and comes in off a milestone 5-2 victory over Utah in Salt Lake City on Tuesday.
Connor McDavid led the way with two goals, including the 400th of his career, and registered his 1,200th career point. McDavid (784 games) became the third-fastest player in league history to reach 1,200 points, behind only Wayne Gretzky (504 games) and Mario Lemieux (593 games). He also became the 115th player in NHL history and 15th active player to hit the 400-goal mark.
Forward Ryan Nugent-Hopkins picked up his 800th career point with an assist on a Jack Roslovic goal. Roslovic also scored two goals and defenseman Evan Bouchard finished with three assists, matching his career high with 82 points (19 goals, 63 assists) this season.
The stat that concerns Edmonton coach Kris Knoblauch most, however, is finishing with more points than the Golden Knights, which would earn them home ice in a playoff matchup.
“There’s a lot on the line here,” Knoblauch said. “Not only for making playoffs, but seeding. Maybe it’s a home-ice advantage situation hitting playoff time.”
This is the third of the teams’ four regular-season meetings. The Oilers have won the first two, 4-3, on Dec. 21 in Edmonton and 4-2 on March 8 in Las Vegas.
