The NHL returns from All-Star Weekend with the Edmonton Oilers looking to make history Tuesday night. Edmonton can tie the NHL record for most wins in a row with a victory over the Vegas Golden Knights in Las Vegas. The game will be exclusively on ESPN+ and Hulu at 10 p.m. ET.
The Knights are currently second in the Pacific Division (64 points), with the Oilers (59 points) in third just five points behind despite having played five less games. Edmonton hasn’t lost a game since Dec. 19 and has improved its record from 13-15-1 to 29-15-1 over that span.
Can the Oilers extend their streak and put themselves in the NHL record books? Here are some key things to watch with intel courtesy of ESPN Stats & Information:
Early coaching change: The Oilers began the season by losing 8-1 in their opener against the Canucks in Vancouver. They would go on to start 3-9-1 before firing coach Jay Woodcroft on Nov. 12. Kris Knoblauch was named Woodcroft’s replacement and has guided Edmonton to an NHL-best 26-6-0 record since his first game on Nov. 13.
The Oilers have averaged more than a goal more per game under Knoblauch (3.91 vs. 2.69) and are giving up more than 1.6 goals less (2.28 vs. 3.92).
Elite goaltending and defense: Since the 16-game win streak began Dec. 21, Edmonton’s goaltender duo of Stuart Skinner and Calvin Pickard have allowed a combined 1.50 goals per games. Skinner has a 1.41 GAA and a .950 save percentage in 12 games and Pickard has 1.74 GAA and a .931 save percentage in his four wins. Skinner’s 12 consecutive wins are the most by an Oilers goaltender in a season in franchise history, surpassing the previous record of 10 straight by Grant Fuhr in 1985-86.
The line of Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Connor McDavid and Zach Hyman has been thriving since Knoblauch’s hire, scoring 26 goals together during their time on the ice during that span. That’s the most of any forward grouping in the NHL during Knoblauch’s tenure.
McDavid has been especially stellar since Knoblauch took over, posting 57 points over that span, including 26 during the current win streak. McDavid recorded his 20th goal Saturday to giving him his eighth consecutive 20-goal season, joining Leon Draisaitl, David Pastrnak, Brad Marchand, and Auston Matthews as the only players who’ve had eight straight since 2016-17.
Hyman leads the Oilers with 30 goals this season. On Saturday, he became the third Oilers skater in the past 30 seasons with 30-plus goals in team’s first 45 games of a season, joining his teammates McDavid and Draisaitl. Hyman is on pace for 55 goals this season, which would shatter his career high of 36 last season. If he gets to 50, Hyman would become the seventh player in Oilers history to hit the mark, joining Wayne Gretzky (8 times), Jari Kurri (4), Draisaitl (3), Glenn Anderson (2), Mark Messier (1) and McDavid (1).
According to NHL Edge, Evan Bouchard has 71 shot attempts of at least 90 mph this season, 24 more than the next-closest player (Victor Hedman). Of Bouchard’s 11 goals this season, eight have come from long-range shots, the most in the NHL. His 10.4% shooting percentage on long-range shots is second among defensemen (Drew Doughty, 12.7%) and eighth among all skaters. He has already matched his career high with 43 points this season, averaging 0.96 points per game. The last Oilers defenseman to average a point per game for a season was Paul Coffey (1.14 in 1986-87).
The Oilers’ recent run has them as the betting favorites to win the Stanley Cup, according to odds by ESPN BET. The Oilers are +750, followed by the Bruins and Avalanche at +800. According to Stathletes, the Oilers have a 14.1% chance to win the Stanley Cup, ahead of the Panthers at 13.7%. No Canadian franchise has won the Stanley Cup since the Canadiens in 1993.
Vegas has 18 wins at T-Mobile Arena, tied with the Canucks for the second-most home wins behind the Avalanche with 20. The Golden Knights have a .760 points percentage at home this season, fourth in the league. Since the Golden Knights joined the NHL in 2017-18, they have the fourth-most home wins (161) and the seventh-highest points percentage (.673). The only Western Conference team better than Vegas in both categories is the Avalanche (163, .704).
Vegas has scored first in 28 games this season, tied for third in the NHL behind the Canucks (33) and Bruins (30). The Knights have scored first in 56% of their games, the eighth-highest rate in the league.
Jonathan Marchessault is on pace for 37 goals, which would be a career high and the second most in a season in Golden Knights history behind William Karlsson‘s 43 in 2017-18 (no Vegas player besides Karlsson has scored more than 33 goals in a season). Marchessault has scored 10 goals off the rush this season, tied for fourth most in the NHL. The only players in front of Marchessault are Travis Konecny (12), Joel Farabee (11) and William Nylander (11).
Mark Stone has a team-leading 49 points this season (15 G, 34 A), playing all 50 games. His next point will mark his eighth 50-point season, but his first since 2020-21, when he had 61.
Alex Pietrangelo leads the Golden Knights in time on ice per game at 24:00. This season, he’s one of three players to average at least 18 minutes at even strength, 2 minutes of power play time and 3 minutes of shorthanded time, alongside Cam Fowler and Devon Toews.
Adin Hill leads the NHL in GAA (1.94) and save percentage (.936).
Stuart Skinner made 33 saves in the Edmonton net to improve to 4-4 in the postseason this year, his first victory in the playoffs that wasn’t a shutout.
“We had a bit of a dip, they had a bit of push,” Nugent-Hopkins said of the Stars’ play in the second period, lauding Skinner for keeping the team in it. “He stepped up big time for us, and made some big saves. You need your goalies to do that.”
The Oilers have won two straight since their third-period collapse in Game 1 in Dallas, and improved to 10-3 in the postseason since dropping the first two games of their first-round series vs. the Los Angeles Kings.
Jason Robertson scored for the Stars, who are hoping to avoid being knocked out in the third round by the Oilers for a second consecutive season.
“They were definitely the better team in the second period,” Skinner said of the Stars. “And we kind of knew that going into the third. So, we just had to reset.”
Jake Oettinger stopped 18 shots in Dallas’ net, falling to 5-10 in his career in West final contests.
STOCKHOLM — Buffalo Sabres star forward Tage Thompson scored the winner 2:02 into overtime, and Team USA outlasted Switzerland 1-0 in the final of the ice hockey world championship at Avicii Arena on Sunday.
It is the first on-ice trophy for USA Hockey in this tournament in 92 years, after the Americans brought it home back in 1933. And it was an emotional one. As Team USA posed for its championship photo at center ice, players held up a No. 13 jersey of Johnny Gaudreau, the former NHL and USA Hockey star forward who died tragically last August when he and his brother, Matthew, were hit by an allegedly drunken and enraged driver as they cycled at night in New Jersey.
Thompson, who had 44 goals and 72 points with the Sabres this season, is hoping to polish off his resume for a spot on the U.S. roster for the 2026 Olympics, and he’s off to a great start. A Team USA reserve for the 4 Nations Face-Off in February who did not suit up, Thompson made the most of his time playing with a host of young NHL forwards who either did not make, or have been eliminated from, the Stanley Cup playoffs.
Thompson’s shot, off passes from Utah Hockey Club forward Logan Cooley and Nashville Predators defenseman Brady Skjei, flew past the blocker of Swiss goaltender Leonardo Genoni, ending a dramatic but tight title game. Team USA outshot Switzerland 40-25.
Boston Bruins goaltender Jeremy Swayman capped off the shutout in the final, finishing with 25 saves a year after his NHL teammate, David Pastrnak led the Czech Republic to this same title.
“We did it, the wait is over,” Swayman said in a post to USA Hockey fans on the organization’s social media platforms. “Thanks for sticking along with us. It’s going to be a great summer.”
The Americans were also formally awarded the title in 1960 when they won the Olympic tournament and the worlds did not take place. But they hadn’t won it on the ice in more than nine decades.
The Swiss played without injured star center Nico Hischier, the captain of the New Jersey Devils. After the loss, Genoni was named the tournament’s MVP.
Earlier Sunday, Sweden defeated Denmark 6-2 in the bronze medal game. Calgary Flames center Mikael Backlund and Minnesota Wild forward Marcus Johansson scored two goals each for the hosts, marking the second-straight third-place finish for Sweden. The fourth-place result was the best-ever finish for Denmark.
While fans in Edmonton and Dallas are always singing about how they have friends in low places, only one of them has the high ground in the Western Conference finals. And that’s the Oilers after their 6-1 win Sunday in Game 3 to take a 2-1 series lead.
With the series tied heading into Sunday, the objective for Game 3 was to gain a firm grasp of the conference finals, and the Oilers did just that by having five players with multipoint performances. As for the Stars, losing Game 3 left them trailing a series for the second time this postseason, with the only other such occurrence coming after Game 1 against the Colorado Avalanche in the first round.
Now that the Oilers are in control of the series, what does it mean for them going forward? What must the Stars do differently ahead of Game 4 for them to return home tied rather than a game away from elimination? Ryan S. Clark and Greg Wyshynski examine those questions while delving into what lies ahead for two teams that not only faced each other in the conference finals last season but between them have been involved in every conference final since 2020.
Edmonton Oilers Grade: A
Much could change between now and whenever the playoffs end. But for now, the argument could be made that this was the most important playoff game the Oilers have had this postseason.
The Oilers have had numerous strong performances, such as Game 3 against the Los Angeles Kings in the first round or their final two games against the Vegas Golden Knights in the conference semifinals. But what made the Oilers’ performance in Game 3 against Dallas arguably their most important was that they found a balance between being difficult in the defensive zone while not relying on a shutout to accomplish that objective.
The Stars finished with 37 shots, 13 high-danger chances in 5-on-5 play and scored only once. Connor McDavid has repeatedly stressed that the Oilers can play defense, and that has been made clear over their past five games. But Sunday proved they didn’t need Stuart Skinner or their defensive structure to blank an opponent to win. — Ryan S. Clark
Dallas Stars Grade: C+
The final score doesn’t reflect the majority of this game, which Dallas coach Pete DeBoer can mine for positives among the many (many) negatives and some mitigating circumstances. Having Roope Hintz warm up but not be able to go because of the foot injury he suffered from a Darnell Nurse slash in Game 2? That’s deflating. Having the on-ice officials miss a delay of game call on Brett Kulak in the first period only to have Evan Bouchard open the scoring 10 seconds later? Also deflating.
So it’s to the Stars’ credit that they got to their game at 5-on-5 in Game 3 better than they have in any game of the series, at least before Edmonton ran up the score in the third. The results weren’t there and a loss is a loss — and a loss by this margin is difficult to stomach — but their second period and the performances from some of their slumbering depth players give the Stars at least a glimmer.
However, there’s no question Edmonton has this thing in well in-hand and the Stars have to find a way to solve Skinner, which is not something I thought I’d be writing at this stage of the postseason. — Greg Wyshynski
Three Stars of Game 3
Two goals and an assist for his seventh career multigoal playoff game. Hyman’s second goal was the Oilers’ fourth off the rush, the most in one game by any team this postseason. Hyman also was plus-5 Sunday.
Bouchard scored his sixth goal of the postseason and these two were on the ice for the first two Edmonton goals. At 5-on-5 this postseason, the Oilers are outscoring their opponents 7-1, and 5-0 in this series, when Bouchard and Kulak are on the ice.
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Connor McDavid restores Oilers’ 2-goal lead
Connor McDavid finds the back of the net to restore the Oilers’ two-goal lead vs. the Stars.
3. Connor McDavid C, Oilers
For all the talk about the lack of goals from the best hockey player in the world (which was odd because he had 20 points in 13 games and was a plus-7 entering Game 3 despite having only three goals), McDavid punched out a pair of tucks for his sixth career multigoal playoff game. Also, seeing McDavid with the puck barreling toward the net on a 3-on-1 is nightmare fuel for opponents. — Arda Ćcal
Players to watch in Game 4
Zach Hyman LW, Oilers
To go from 16 goals last postseason to just three goals entering Game 3 of the conference finals is one way to assess Hyman. Another is to realize that he’s been the most physical player on a team that is among the tallest and heaviest in the NHL.
Hyman came into Game 3 leading the NHL with 99 hits. He remained physical Sunday by leading the way with six hits in a game that saw the Oilers continue their punishing style with 47. But to then see Hyman score two goals and finish with three points in addition to that physicality? It once again adds to the narrative that the Oilers might not only have more dimensions than last year’s team, they could be better than the team that finished Stanley Cup runner-up in 2024. — Clark
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Zach Hyman’s 2nd goal puts Oilers up 4
Zach Hyman taps home his second goal of the game to put the Oilers up 5-1 vs. the Stars.
This is the first two-game losing streak for the Dallas goaltender in the playoffs. A lot of what happened in Game 3 wasn’t necessarily on him — a Connor McDavid beauty and a Zach Hyman breakaway were among the Edmonton tallies — but outside of the third period of Game 1, he’s not been a difference-maker in this series. Oettinger came into the game leading the playoffs with 5.58 goals saved above expected, according to Stathletes. The Stars have been able to depend on him as a slump-breaker. But this is his third game with a save percentage south of .900 in the series. As the Stars try to build on some positives from this game, they need Otter to provide the foundation for it — and in the process, silence those “U.S. backup!” chants from the Oilers fans. — Wyshynski
Big questions for Game 4
Are the Oilers about to do to the Stars what they did to the Golden Knights?
Simply put, the Oilers are where hope goes to die. Teams in a championship window that have yet to win a title are always being judged on their evolution. What the Oilers did to the Stars a year ago in the conference finals by winning the last three games showed that they could close out a series after trailing. This postseason Edmonton has shown a calculated and methodical coldness when it comes to putting away opponents.
The Golden Knights won Game 3 on a last-second goal to create the belief they may have found an opening. They didn’t score again for the rest of the playoffs after being in the top five of goals per game throughout the regular season. Breaking out for six goals to open the series seemed to be a sign the Stars may have found an opening. Since then? They’ve scored only once in the last six periods while facing questions about what’s happened to another team that went from being in the top five in goals per game in the regular season. — Clark
Can Dallas make Edmonton uncomfortable at all?
Our colleague Mark Messier made this point between periods of Game 3: The Stars have yet to do anything to get McDavid or Leon Draisaitl off their games. That extends to the rest of the Oilers. Outside of an anomalous run of three power-play goals in the third period of Game 1, there have been precious few instances of the Stars carrying play for long stretches or putting a scare into Edmonton at 5-on-5.
They had that for a bit in Game 3 with a dominant second period: plus-14 in shot attempts, plus-11 in scoring chances and a 10-1 advantage in high-danger shot attempts. But they were digging out of a 2-0 hole, only managed to get one goal of their own on the board and then McDavid stuck a dagger in them with 19 seconds left in the second.
The Stars need a lead. They need zone time. They need to get their rush game going: Skinner had a .897 save percentage on shots off the rush entering the game. Edmonton is playing with a champion’s confidence. Dallas has to find a way to inject a little doubt into its opponent or this series is going to end quickly. — Wyshynski