GAME RECAP: Oilers 6, Kraken 4

SEATTLE, WA -Evander Kane scored his sixth-career regular season hat-trick to lead the Oilers to an important divisional win over the Kraken on Saturday afternoon in Seattle.
Heading into the matinee matchup at Climate Pledge Arena, the Kraken sat just one point back of Edmonton for third place in the Pacific, but the 6-4 triumph allowed the Oilers to extend their lead to three as they reached the 70-game mark of the campaign.

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FIRST BLOOD

It took just 98 seconds for the Oilers to get the start they were looking for in Seattle as Evander Kane snapped home a wrist shot for his 11th goal in the 29th game of his injury-shortened season. Darnell Nurse made a breakout pass from deep in the Oilers zone to find Zach Hyman at the Kraken blueline, and Hyman found Kane with a cross-zone feed, allowing the winger to sneak a long-range shot through Philipp Grubauer's legs and spot Edmonton an early 1-0 advantage.

PLAY OF THE GAME

With the game tied 1-1 late in the opening period, the Oilers re-established their lead on a pristine passing sequence finished off by Washington native Kailer Yamamoto for his ninth of the season. Leon Draisaitl fought off a check from 6-foot-7 defenceman Jamie Oleksiak and found Ryan Nugent-Hopkins open near the left faceoff dot. The longest tenured Oiler fed Yamamoto parked in front of Grubauer for a one-timer through the five-hole and a 2-1 Edmonton lead with 3:24 to go in the frame.
"It was a good forecheck," said the Spokane native, whose parents Russ and LeAnn were in attendance on Saturday. "Leo gave it to Nuge. I actually thought Nuge was going to shoot it, but it was a great pass and I was able to slide it five-hole."

SEATTLE STU

Stuart Skinner stopped 33 of the 37 shots he faced on a busy afternoon to earn his seventh win in his last eight starts. The Edmonton native was particularly busy in the opening two frames as the Kraken sent 29 shots his way, but Skinner persevered en route to improving his record to 22-14-4 on the season.
"He was excellent today," Woodcroft said of the goaltender. "I thought there were moments when they hemmed us in. That's part of the way they play, you've got to give them credit. They do a lot of good things, and they're an offensive team, so you're not going to be perfect defensively all the time. That's why you need a goaltender, and he made some big saves when called upon."

TURNING POINT

The Oilers held a slim 4-3 lead heading into the final frame until Kane sniped his hat-trick goal with 9:40 on the clock for the eventual game-winner. Draisaitl unleashed a patented tape-to-tape backhand pass from inside the Oilers zone to Kane cutting through the neutral zone, creating a two-on-one rush with Mattias Janmark on the opposite wing. Kane gave a momentary glance over to Janmark and froze goaltender Martin Jones before placing a perfect wrist shot into the top corner for his 13th on the year.

TOP PERFORMER

Kane recorded his second three-goal performance of the season and fifth hat-trick in his last 49 regular season and playoff appearances as he looks to catch fire with the playoffs fast approaching.
"It's nice to help contribute to an important win," he said. "Big points with the division so tight. I've been in and out of the lineup with injuries all year, so just trying to get into some rhythm heading into the playoffs, and tonight definitely helps that."
"Happy for him," Woodcroft said of Kane's first-star performance. "He's a warrior. He plays through injuries. He's just getting up and running again just because of his injuries and whatnot. It's kind of been a start-and-stop season for him, but he's been all around the puck in any game that he's played and for three to go in for him tonight, I was happy for him."

PARTING WORDS

Yamamoto on winning against a Pacific Division foe:
"It's really big. Every game down the stretch right now is huge for us. We need to keep chipping away and keep finding ways to get these W's."
Kane on the tight Western Conference standings:
"This is probably the tightest I've seen it with respect to the entire conference, both divisions, where you can literally be in first place in the Western Conference, or you could be in a wildcard spot within a matter of a week. It's still tight. There are still very important games down the stretch left to be played, and I think it's a great opportunity for our group to enjoy that type of challenge and get you ready for the post-season."

Kane on continuing to regain his scoring touch:
"I think just getting opportunities to put myself in positions to get pucks, shooting the puck more. I only had three shots. I'm a volume shooter, so I think getting more shots gives you a better opportunity to put more pucks in the net. I think just continuing to have that mindset of shooting the puck."
Woodcroft on jockeying for position in the standings:
"What we do in Edmonton is we try and focus on our daily process. We don't standings-watch, we don't tie ourselves in knots with who won last night and who didn't win and what does that mean for us. We just want to be the best we can be on that day and take care of that day's business. I think by having that type of mindset, you don't spend a lot of energy worrying about things beyond your control. You worry about what is in your control. Tonight, our job or task was to get two points in a tough building and we were able to do that."
Woodcroft on getting Hyman back in the lineup:
"He had some lingering stuff that was bugging him, and he's had good numbers versus Seattle on the year. I just thought when he came up to me yesterday and said, I'm in, I was quite pleased. Sometimes, when you play as hard as he does ... you accrue some bumps and bruises during a long grind of an 82-game schedule. In the end, he played today and was a big factor in our win."