The Edmonton Oilers relied on a 27-save performance from goaltender Stuart Skinner to defeat the Colorado Avalanche 4-1 at Ball Arena on Saturday night.
Colorado struck first when Nikolai Kovalenko scored on a snap shot during a power play at 7:02 of the opening period, assisted by Artturi Lehkonen and Samuel Girard. Edmonton tied the score just over four minutes later. Kasperi Kapanen beat Avalanche goaltender Alexandar Georgiev on a snap shot at 11:48, with assists from Connor McDavid and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins.
Vasily Podkolzin broke the tie late in the second period, deflecting in a tip-in goal at 13:48 after setup work from Troy Stecher and Connor Brown. Edmonton expanded its lead early in the third period when Brett Kulak snapped a shot into the net at 3:56 off passes from Ty Emberson and Jeff Skinner. Nugent-Hopkins sealed the victory at 18:28 by scoring a wrist shot into an empty net, assisted by Adam Henrique and Evan Bouchard.
Skinner stopped 27 of 28 shots to earn the victory for Edmonton, while Georgiev made 28 saves on 31 shots in the loss. Colorado capitalized on one of its five power-play chances, while the Oilers finished 0-for-2 on the man advantage but controlled the faceoff circle by winning 37 of 53 draws.
With the win, Edmonton improved to 13-9-2 on the season and extended its winning streak to three games. The Avalanche dropped to 13-12-0 and have lost two straight games.
