The Edmonton Oilers extended their season-long win streak to five games with a 3-1 victory over the Chicago Blackhawks at Rogers Place on Thursday (April 2).
Adam Henrique, Vasily Podkolzin and Matt Savoie scored for the Oilers, while Nick Lardis potted Chicago’s lone goal.
Tristan Jarry made 17 saves in a winning effort between the pipes for Edmonton, while Blackhawks starter Spencer Knight stopped 31 of the 32 shots he faced. Knight briefly left the game to deal with an equipment issue and was replaced by Arvid Soderblom, who allowed the winning goal on five shots.
Related: Breaking Down How the Oilers Can Overtake the Ducks for First in the Pacific
With the victory, Edmonton moves into a tie with the Anaheim Ducks for first place in the Pacific Division at 87 points apiece. The Oilers have six games remaining, while Anaheim will play seven more times before the 2025-26 NHL regular season concludes on April 16.
Confidence Booster for Jarry
After a stretch of games that quite literally rank among the worst by a goalie in NHL history, Jarry seems to be getting back on track.
The 30-year-old was solid in his last outing, making 16 saves as Edmonton defeated the Utah Mammoth 5-2 on March 24, and even better against Chicago, making some very tough saves.
Edmonton’s defence has certainly been doing its part to help the beleaguered netminder rediscover his form, limiting the opposition to just 18 shots in both of Jarry’s last two starts. Back-to-back wins while allowing just three goals total should be a confidence boost for Jarry, and that couldn’t come at a better time with the postseason right around the corner.
Henrique Gets Off the Schneid
Henrique opened the scoring early in the second period when he got behind the Chicago defence and backhanded home the rebound after Knight had stopped the Edmonton forward’s initial shot. It was the first goal in 51 games for Henrique, who hadn’t lit the lamp since Oct. 23, exactly 23 weeks earlier.
“It’s not something that I’d been putting extra pressure on to do, but it’s certainly nice to go out and get one and finally get back on the board, Henrique said while speaking to media following the game.
Henrique has now scored just three times in 59 games this season. The 36-year-old is almost certain to finish with a new career low in goals, well below the current total of 11 that he scored in the shortened 2012-13 season.
Depth Propels Oilers
Henrique is just one of the latest players to step up offensively during Edmonton’s current winning streak. With superstar scorer Leon Draisaitl sidelined by injury, the Oilers have been getting contributions from up and down their lineup.
In just the last two games alone, an incredible 14 different players have recorded at least one point for the Oilers. That stat is even more remarkable considering that Edmonton has scored just six times over those two contests.
Meanwhile, nine different players have scored for the Oilers over their last four games. Edmonton coach Kris Knoblauch, who has a reputation for leaning heavily on his top lines, has been distributing minutes much more evenly: On Thursday, 16 of Edmonton’s 18 skaters played at least 12:28.
Sloppier Performance from Oilers
Attention to detail and a commitment to defence have also factored largely during this current winning streak for the Oilers, who have been playing their most fundamentally sound hockey of the season. While they were a bit sloppy at times on Thursday, the Oilers were able to get away with it against the substandard Blackhawks, who sit 31st in the overall NHL standings.
Edmonton has also been starting stronger and playing more consistently over the duration of 60 minutes lately, which has been a crucial development for a team that often found itself chasing the game earlier this season. Thursday was the fourth straight game that the Oilers scored first, and Edmonton took a 2-0 lead for its third consecutive contest when Savoie scored on the power play at 12:13 of the second period.
Chicago deserves credit for putting up a fight, as Lardis scored at 5:06 of the third period to cut Edmonton’s lead in half. Podkolzin’s empty net goal with 61 seconds remaining sealed victory for the home team.
The Oilers will need a better all-around performance on Saturday (April 4), when they host the Vegas Golden Knights. Vegas currently sits third in the Pacific Division, just three points back of the Oilers and Ducks, and are riding a bit of momentum, with consecutive wins since firing head coach Bruce Cassidy and replacing him with John Tortorella.
A regulation win for the Oilers on Saturday would open up a five-point lead over Vegas with just five games left for both teams. On the other hand, should the Golden Knights win in regulation, they would move within just one point of Edmonton.
