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Oilers’ Connor McDavid calls game with wicked OT goal vs. Capitals
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- Oilers’ Connor McDavid calls game with wicked OT goal vs. Capitals
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On Saturday night at Rogers Place, the Edmonton Oilers rallied in the final minute to force overtime and defeat the Washington Capitals 6-5, with center Connor McDavid netting the game-winner just 46 seconds into extra time.
Evan Bouchard was the standout performer for Edmonton, recording his first career NHL hat trick and adding three assists in his 400th regular-season game. The Oakville, Ont., defenceman factored in on all six Oilers goals, becoming the fourth NHL blueliner in history to tally at least three goals and three assists in a single contest, joining Bobby Orr, Tom Bladon, and Doug Crossman. He also became the fourth Edmonton defenceman to record six points in a game, following Paul Coffey (twice) and Kevin Lowe.
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Bouchard opened the scoring late in the first period with his 12th goal of the season, snapping a wrist shot through traffic past Washington goaltender Charlie Lindgren . The Oilers initially kept the Capitals off the scoreboard through nearly the entire opening frame, with the visitors not recording their first shot until the final minute. However, it never took long for Washington to respond as Aliaksei Protas converted a rebound 22 seconds after Bouchard's goal, and Justin Sourdif tied it again following Bouchard's second-period goal.
Leon Draisaitl contributed three assists, including one on Bouchard's second goal, the 600th regular-season helper of his career. Draisaitl became the fourth player in franchise history to reach 600 assists, joining Wayne Gretzky (1,086), Connor McDavid (778), and Mark Messier (642). Zach Hyman also contributed a goal and an assist, with his late third-period strike, assisted by Bouchard, tying the game at 5-5 with 31.7 seconds remaining.
Edmonton netminder Connor Ingram allowed three goals on 12 shots before being replaced midway through the second period by Tristan Jarry , who stopped 13 of 15 shots to secure the win. The Capitals' offense was led by Connor McMichael , who had a goal and an assist, while Dylan Strome , Anthony Beauvillier , and Aliaksei Protas also scored. Tom Wilson added two assists, with Lindgren finishing with 34 saves on 40 shots.
In overtime, Bouchard drew a penalty before springing McDavid on a breakaway, allowing Edmonton's captain to backhand the puck past Lindgren for his team-leading 32nd goal of the season. McDavid also added three assists in regulation, reclaiming the NHL scoring lead from Nathan MacKinnon with 90 points (32G, 58A) in 53 games.
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The Oilers improved to 26-19-8 with the win and will next host the Anaheim Ducks on Monday.
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