Stupendous Stuart Skinner Commands Oilers To Huge Win

Stuart Skinner should be getting a free dinner on the Oilers' upcoming road trip.

He was their best player on Monday night, stopping all 31 shots he faced en route to a huge 1-0 win over the division-rival Los Angeles Kings that gives them a four-point cushion in the standings.

Skinner's night started early, as he made one of his best saves of the season just five minutes into the first, robbing Adrian Kempe on a two-on-one.

"It was kind of an out-of-the-box save," Skinner said after the game "got enough of it for it to go above the net, thank goodness."

The Oilers needed Skinner to be at his best in the first period, getting blitzed to the tune of a 14-6 shot differential after 20 minutes.

But they rebounded in the second period, thanks to a late 4-on-4 created by the Kings' Alex Laferriere and Kasperi Kapanen. Kings coach Jim Hiller said after the game that Laferriere's holding penalty on Connor McDavid was "really bad", and the worst moment of the game.

The Oilers took advantage, courtesy of none other than Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid. Draisaitl started it, absolutely torching poor Trevor Moore at the end of a 90-second shift to set up Darnell Nurse in front. Darcy Kuemper stymied Nurse, but let the rebound get to McDavid, who found the back of the net for his 17th goal of the season on his 28th birthday.

The Oilers managed to hold on from there, with more help from Skinner as the Kings made a late push with the empty net. The Oilers came away with a gritty 1-0 win, and now sit four points ahead of L.A. for second in the Pacific Division with 57 points.

For Stuart Skinner, that's now two goal-less games in his last three (he didn't allow a goal in Boston but didn't get the shutout thanks to a brief injury absence). He now owns a 9-3-1 record and a .921 save percentage since December 1st.

As always between these two teams, it was a playoff atmosphere, and there was no shortage of shoving after the whistle. But the Oilers kept their heads and rode standout performances from their three most important players to a huge win before heading out on a tough road trip through Minnesota, Colorado, and Vancouver.

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