Oilers close with 9th straight win, 5-2 over Sharks
By The Associated Press on April 13, 2023.
EDMONTON, Alberta (AP) – Mattias Janmark scored twice, Leon Draisaitl had a goal and two assists and the Edmonton Oilers closed the regular season with a franchise-record ninth straight victory, 5-2 over the San Jose Sharks on Thursday night. Evan Bouchard and Evander Kane also scored and Stuart Skinner made 27 saves. The Oilers were 14-0-1 in their last 15 to finish 50-23-9. They moved into first place in the Western Conference, awaiting the esult of the Vegas-Seattle game. Noah Gregor and Steven Lorentz scored for San Jose. They lost their last six to finish 22-44-16. Janmark opened the scoring 4:16 into the opening period when he cut in on net with a backhander that pinballed past James Reimer. Edmonton’s power play struck 6:56 into the first. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins feathered a pass through the crease to Draisaitl, who slammed home his 52nd goal. Connor McDavid picked up an assist on the play to extend his points streak to 16 games. Gregor put the Sharks on the board midway through the first when he lifted a rebound over Skinner for his 10th of the season. Bouchard restored the Oilers’ two-goal edge 5:02 into the second period. Janmark made it 4-1 with six minutes left in the middle frame. It was Edmonton’s league-leading 18th short-handed goal of the season. San Jose hung around with a power-play goal with just over a minute to play in the second when Lorentz tipped home a Tomas Hertl shot for his 10th. Draisaitl made another pretty pass with 4:05 remaining in the third period to set up Kane’s 16th. UP NEXT Oilers: First round of playoffs. Sharks: End of season. ___ AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports 16-15
