NHL Roundup: Connor McDavid Extends Point Streak to 16 in Oilers’ Win

NHL Roundup: Connor McDavid Extends Point Streak to 16 in Oilers’ Win
Edmonton Oilers center Connor McDavid (97) celebrates his goal against the Calgary Flames during the third period at Scotiabank Saddledome in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, on Dec 27, 2022. Sergei Belski/USA TODAY Sports via Field Level Media
Field Level Media
Updated:

Connor McDavid scored the winning goal in the third period to run his point-scoring streak to 16 games and lead the visiting Edmonton Oilers to an entertaining 2–1 victory over the Calgary Flames on Tuesday.

Tyson Barrie also scored for the Oilers, who received a sparkling 46-save performance from goaltender Stuart Skinner. Twenty-four of those saves came in the third period. Mikael Backlund tallied for the Flames. Jacob Markstrom stopped 20 shots in a top-rate goaltending battle.

McDavid’s power-play goal at the 7:28 mark of the third proved to be the difference. McDavid worked with the puck to the high slot and ripped a shot off the post and into the net for his league-best 31st goal of the season.

The Edmonton captain has collected 15 goals and 32 points in his point-scoring spree, which is one short of the longest streak of his career. He became the first player to notch 16-game point streaks in consecutive seasons since Dany Heatley did so for the Ottawa Senators in 2005–06 and 2006–07.

Maple Leafs 5, Blues 4

William Nylander scored the overtime winner to lift visiting Toronto over St. Louis.

Calle Jarnkrok had a goal and two assists for the Maple Leafs, who are 12–2–1 in their last 15 games. Justin Holl, John Tavares, and Alexander Kerfoot also scored for Toronto, and Ilya Samsonsov made 30 saves.

Calle Rosen, Ryan O'Reilly, Justin Faulk, and Jordan Kyrou scored for the Blues, and Jordan Binnington stopped 32 shots.

Islanders 5, Penguins 1

Anders Lee and Mathew Barzal scored twice apiece as New York rolled over Pittsburgh in Elmont, N.Y.

The two-goal game was the second of the season for both Lee and Barzal. Josh Bailey had a goal and an assist and Brock Nelson added two assists for the Islanders, who earned their most lopsided win over the Penguins since a 9–3 rout on Feb. 11, 2011. Ilya Sorokin made 20 saves as the Islanders won their second straight—their first winning streak since a four-game run Nov. 21–26.

Pierre-Olivier Joseph scored for the Penguins, who have lost three of four (1–2–1). Tristan Jarry recorded 37 saves.

Senators 3, Bruins 2

Cam Talbot made a season-high 49 saves and Alex DeBrincat scored the only goal in the shootout to help Ottawa end a three-game losing streak with a win over visiting Boston.

DeBrincat and Tim Stutzle scored in regulation for Ottawa, which raised its home record to 9–8–1. Drake Batherson assisted on each goal, both of which came in the second period.

Jake DeBrusk and Pavel Zacha provided the goals for Boston. Zacha’s goal tied the game 2–2 with 3:33 remaining in regulation.

Kings 4, Knights 2

Alex Iafallo scored what proved to be the game-winner midway through the third period as Los Angeles defeated visiting Vegas.

Los Angeles goalie Pheonix Copley made 23 saves to extend his personal win streak to five games. Phillip Danault and Viktor Arvidsson each had a goal and two assists, Iafallo contributed two points and Gabe Vilardi scored his team-leading 15th goal of the season for the Kings.

Michael Amadio and Brayden McNabb scored goals for Vegas, which took just its third regulation road loss of the season (14–3–1). Logan Thompson stopped 21 of 24 shots.

Wild 4, Jets 1

Mats Zuccarello, Frederick Gaudreau, and Jared Spurgeon each had a goal and an assist and Minnesota defeated host Winnipeg.

Samuel Walker also scored for the Wild, who endured an odd travel day, having to fly to Winnipeg on the day of the game because of the NHL’s three-day holiday break.

Pierre-Luc Dubois scored for Winnipeg, while Connor Hellebuyck made 24 saves in the loss.

Capitals 4, Rangers 0

Darcy Kuemper made 32 saves and surging Washington scored twice in the final 2:59 of the second period to pull away for a victory over host New York.

The Capitals matched a season high with their fifth straight win and won for the 10th time in 11 games thanks to Kuemper, who posted his third shutout of the season and the 28th of his career. Marcus Johansson, Erik Gustafsson, and Lars Eller scored for the Capitals.

New York lost for the second time in three games following a seven-game winning streak. The Rangers missed the net 23 times and also had 16 shots blocked while being blanked for the second time this season and getting booed off the ice after the final buzzer.

Stars 3, Predators 2

Roope Hintz’s second goal of the night came with 52.3 seconds left in regulation, breaking a tie and lifting visiting Dallas to a victory over Nashville.

Jamie Benn assisted on the winning play and opened the scoring with career goal 343 to sit alone in second place on the franchise list for the Stars, who are amid a 7–2–1 overall stretch. Jake Oettinger made 26 saves for the win.

Filip Forsberg and Yakov Trenin each had a goal and Juuse Saros made 30 saves for the Predators, who are mired in a 1–3–1 home stretch.

Hurricanes 3, Blackhawks 0

Antti Raanta registered his first shutout of the season, and Carolina used a strong opening period to set the tone to stretch its franchise-record point streak to 15 games by defeating Chicago in Raleigh, N.C.

Martin Necas, Jesper Fast, and Jordan Martinook scored goals for Carolina, which won its ninth game in a row. Raanta’s 24 saves got the job done, seeing seven shots in each the first and third periods.

Chicago fell for the ninth time in its last 10 outings. It has been a shutout victim three times during that stretch. The Blackhawks were trying to win back-to-back games for the first time since late October. Blackhawks goalie Petr Mrazek, a former Hurricanes goalie, made 46 saves.

Coyotes 6, Avalanche 3

Lawson Crouse had a goal and two assists and Jakob Chychrun added three assists as Arizona recorded a win over Colorado in Tempe, Ariz.

Nick Schmaltz and Clayton Keller each had a goal and an assist for the Coyotes, who have won back-to-back games. Shayne Gostisbehere, J.J. Moser, and Michael Carcone scored Arizona’s other goals, and Connor Ingram stopped 28 shots.

Cale Makar had a goal and an assist for Colorado, and J.T. Compher had two assists. Evan Rodrigues and Mikko Rantanen also scored while Alexandar Georgiev made 27 saves for the Avalanche, whose four-game winning streak ended.