Boston, Massachusetts – Leon Draisaitl scored his second goal of the game 2:18 into overtime, and the Edmonton Oilers defeated the Boston Bruins 2-1 on Tuesday night to win their fifth straight.
Draisaitl also tied the game at one with 1:20 left in the third period, after Edmonton withdrew Stuart Skinner for an extra player. Draisaitl finished the game with a one-timer off Connor McDavid’s crossing pass.
“I believe it’s simply an indication of maturity in our group. Obviously, it is a difficult building to play in. “I thought we stuck with it and were patient,” said Draisaitl, who has 32 goals this season.
Edmonton held Boston to five third-period shots and none in overtime.
Edmonton held Boston to five third-period shots and none in overtime.
Skinner made 25 stops for the Oilers, while Evan Bouchard contributed two assists. McDavid also earned two assists, bringing his point streak to 12 consecutive games.
“At the end of the day, you just need one shot, one play to make,” Draisaitl stated. “We have a lot of great players in our group.”
The Bruins exited the ice to another round of boos after losing 19-7-6 at home.
“We simply need to find a method to win these games.” I believe there have been plenty of them this season – we’re winning, then we get scored on in the final five minutes,” said Pavel Zacha, who scored Boston’s only goal.
Zacha scored his 15th goal at 4:26 of the third period. He converted a one-time slap shot off a cross-pass from Danton Heinen.
Linus Ullmark, the Bruins’ goaltender, stopped 24 shots.
“It seemed like we had it. It slipped out of our grasp in the last minute,” Ullmark added. “I have to take ownership of it as well.”
Edmonton had a chance to win in the final seconds of regulation, but Ullmark blocked Warren Foegele’s rebound effort.
McDavid had a scoring chance late in the third on a shot on Ullmark while being pursued by Trent Frederic. McDavid has two goals and 26 assists during his point streak.
Skinner had to stop a dozen shots in the second, including a one-timer from David Pastrnak.
Ullmark came up big for Boston on Edmonton’s first power play opportunity, blocking McDavid on a rebound effort right beyond the net early in the second period. McDavid capitalized on another lost puck late in the second period, snapping off a fast shot that Ullmark snatched out of the air with his glove.
Edmonton defenceman Vincent Desharnais described the mood as more like the playoffs than a regular-season game in early March.
“It was tight.” “Not many shots, a lot of blocked shots, and a lot of hits,” Desharnais explained.
Boston forward James Van Riemsdyk played his 1,000th career game, joining team captain Brad Marchand as the only active Bruins with 1,000 games. The Bruins intend to honor Van Riemsdyk with a pre-game ceremony on March 16, when Boston faces the Philadelphia Flyers, who drafted Van Riemsdyk second overall in the 2007 draft.
