Nugent-Hopkins powers Oilers past Stars 5-4
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins scored a pair of goals as the Edmonton Oilers finally found their offensive touch, defeating the Dallas Stars 5-4 on Thursday. Connor McDavid, Patrick Maroon and Matt Benning also scored for the Oilers (3-5-1), who came into the game with the fewest goals scored in the NHL so far this season, with 15 through their first eight games.
Jamie Benn struck twice for the Stars (5-5-0). Alexander Radulov and Esa Lindell also scored for as Dallas dropped back-to-back games.
Edmonton started the scoring midway through the opening period as Ryan Strome came out of the penalty box and sent McDavid on a partial breakaway, scoring his fifth of the season up high on Stars goalie Ben Bishop.
It took just over a minute for Dallas to tie it back up, as Radulov dropped a puck to Benn in front of the net, and he put his sixth past Oilers starter Cam Talbot.
Maroon helped Edmonton regain the lead with 24 seconds left in the first, put his shot off a Dallas skate and into the net.
Radulov beat Talbot with a howitzer of a one-timer as the Stars tied the game back up on the power play three minutes into the second period.
Edmonton made it 3-2 with six minutes left in the middle frame when Nugent-Hopkins picked up a rebound on a wide shot and hooked it in from behind the net.
The Stars evened it up once more a couple of minutes later with another power-play goal as Benn picked up his second of the night by chipping in a rebound from the doorstep.
Lindell waited for Talbot to commit before lifting a shot into the net as Dallas took its first lead midway through the third on yet another powerplay goal.
The Oilers bounced back a couple of minutes later as a Dallas turnover led to Nugent-Hopkins scoring on a shot that deflected off a defender and in.
A Benning point shot hit Radulov and got past Bishop as Edmonton surged back ahead with 2:27 left.
The Stars are right back at it tonight, heading to Calgary for the third game of a five-game trip. The Oilers host the Washington Capitals on Saturday.
Headline: Kessel’s 300th career goal OT winner as Penguins down Jets 2-1
Penguins 2, Jets 1
PITTSBURGH — Phil Kessel’s 300th career goal at 1:07 of overtime lifted the Pittsburgh Penguins to a 2-1 victory over the Winnipeg Jets on Thursday night.
Kessel stripped Patrik Laine of the puck at his own blue line and went the other way on a breakaway. Kessel, with nine points in his last seven games, snapped a wrist shot between the pads of Jets goalie Connor Hellebuyck for the winner.
Conor Sheary scored his fifth for the Penguins, who won for the fifth time in six games. Pittsburgh has won seven of nine since losing the first two games of the season.
Kings 4, Canadiens 0
MONTREAL — Adrian Kempe and Tyler Toffoli scored 11 seconds apart in the first period and Jonathan Quick got a shutout in his 500th career game as the Los Angeles Kings downed the Montreal Canadiens 4-0 on Thursday night.
Anze Kopitar and Kurtis MacDermid also scored for the Western Conference-leading Kings (8-1-1), who beat the Canadiens 5-2 last week in Los Angeles.
The Canadiens (2-7-1) thought their goal-scoring woes were behind them when they beat Florida 5-1 on Tuesday night, but the bad luck and worse shooting were back in force as they outshot Los Angeles 40-27. It was Quick’s 46th career shutout and his second this season.
Hurricanes 6, Maple Leafs 3
TORONTO — Josh Jooris scored twice and Teuvo Teravainen had a three-point night as the Carolina Hurricanes defeated the Toronto Maple Leafs 6-3 on Thursday at Air Canada Centre.
Victor Rask scored midway through the second period to give Carolina the lead and Brock McGinn and Jooris added insurance goals in the third.
Elias Lindholm and Teravainen also scored for the Hurricanes (4-3-1), who ended a two-game losing skid.
Auston Matthews, Zach Hyman and Dominic Moore had the goals for Toronto (7-3-0).
Senators 5, Flyers 4
OTTAWA — Bobby Ryan, Zach Smith and Kyle Turris were out but the Ottawa Senators still found enough offence and just enough defence on Thursday to earn a tough two points.
Jean-Gabriel Pageau had a goal and two assists and Erik Karlsson had two assists as the Senators, without three of their best players, defeated the Philadelphia Flyers 5-4. They will be without the trio again tonight as they play the Devils in New Jersey.
The Flyers appeared to score midway through the third period but after a coach’s challenge the goal was reversed due to goaltender interference. Less than a minute later Tom Pyatt scored at 10:33 to give the Senators a 5-2 lead before Philadelphia’s Ivan Provorov and Sean Couturier cut that lead to 5-4 with goals at 15:18 and 18:14 respectively.