Stars hang on, defeat Oilers for 3rd straight win

EDMONTON -- Roope Hintz scored twice and had an assist, and Scott Wedgewood made 46 saves for the Dallas Stars in their third straight win, 4-3 against the Edmonton Oilers at Rogers Place on Thursday.

Joe Pavelski had a goal and two assists, and Matt Duchene scored to extend his point streak to five games for the Stars (7-1-1).

“We got some really timely goals tonight at important moments in the game to extend the game to 3-1 and extend it to 4-1, and then obviously down the stretch we were hanging on there,” Dallas coach Peter DeBoer said. “We knew they were going to push, it’s a real good team over there. So, it wasn’t the prettiest game, but for less than 10 games into the season we’ll take a win on the road here anytime.”

Sam Gagner scored twice in the third period in his season debut for the Oilers (2-6-1), who went 0-for-4 on the power play and lost for the fourth time in five games (1-3-1). Evander Kane had a goal and an assist, and Stuart Skinner made 23 saves.

Edmonton outshot Dallas 25-9 in the third.

“We’re disappointed we lost the game,” Oilers coach Jay Woodcroft said. “I thought we had a pretty competitive first period, [then] we made some errors in the second period that led us to falling behind. We made really strong push in the third period, but when you spot a really good team that lead it’s tough to come back.

“Ninety-nine shots attempts, 50 on net, all that kind of stuff. That’s nice, but when you spot a good team a lead like that usually you don’t end up on the right side of it.”

Duchene gave the Stars a 1-0 lead at 8:08 of the first period, scoring five-hole to extend his point streak (two goals, three assists).

Kane tied it 1-1 at 17:00 from the left face-off circle after a feed from Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, who slid near the blue line to create a turnover.

Pavelski put Dallas back in front 2-1 at 3:25 of the second period on a 3-on-1 after Hintz set him up on a cross-ice pass.

Hintz pounced on a rebound at 16:06 off an attempted clear by Darnell Nurse that instead bounced off Skinner’s pad and right to the Stars center on the power play for a 3-1 lead.

Hintz scored again at 2:37 of the third, tapping in a cross-crease pass from Pavelski to make it 4-1.

Gagner, in his third stint with the Oilers, cut it to 4-2 when he jammed in a loose puck at 10:35. He scored again at 13:36, backhanding a feed from Kane for the 4-3 final.

“I thought we were still in that game and you want to make a big play and score a goal to try and help us rally,” Gagner said. “We had a lot of chances. We created a lot and had a lot of looks with the goalie pulled, but [we] just couldn’t find a way to get the equalizer.

“But there was a lot to like, and we have to make sure we are looking at positives, too, and building those into our game.”

Wedgewood made 23 saves in the third. He has a .930 save percentage in three games at Edmonton with Dallas. His performance came after Jake Oettinger made 44 saves in a 4-3 win at the Calgary Flames on Wednesday.

“We know they’ve got a high-powered offense and they’re going to keep coming,” Wedgewood said. “No matter what kind of lead you have, it’s not really safe in this league, let alone [against] these guys. Credit to them, they fought back but credit to us, we kept them off the board late when we needed it on a back to back against two hard teams is a big bonus for us. In this role, you’re going to get these tough situations as a backup. I’m here for a spark and some energy. I’m in it and I’m going to give these guys everything I’ve got every night.

“I love going against the top players in the League. You’ve got those two (Oilers forwards Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl), and even throughout their lineup they’ve got some talent. You put your best against the best in the League, it’s always a fun challenge.”

NOTES: Edmonton forward Connor Brown sustained an apparent lower-body injury in the second period and did not return. There was no update. … Dallas extended its road to five games (4-0-1), tying the second-longest run to start a season in franchise history (1971-72). The Stars started 4-0-3 on the road in 2009-10. … Pavelski has 98 goals since turning 35; among active players, only Washington Capitals forward Alex Ovechkin has more (118).