BOSTON (AP) — Leon Draisaitl scored 2:18 into overtime for his second goal of the game, and the Edmonton Oilers beat the Boston Bruins 2-1 on Tuesday night for their fifth consecutive victory.
Draisaitl also tied it at 1 with 1:20 left in the third after Edmonton pulled Stuart Skinner for an extra skater. Draisaitl ended the game with a one-timer off a crossing pass from Connor McDavid.
“I think it’s just a sign of maturity in our group. Obviously it’s a tough building to play in. I thought we stuck with it and stayed patient,” said Draisaitl, who has 32 goals so far this season.
Edmonton limited Boston to five shots in the third period and none in overtime.
Skinner made 25 saves for the Oilers, and Evan Bouchard had two assists. McDavid also had two assists, extending his point streak to 12 straight games.
“At the end of the day you need one shot, one play to be made,” Draisaitl said. “We’ve got a lot of great players on our group.”
The Bruins left the ice to another round of boos after falling to 19-7-6 at home.
“We just have to find a way to win these games. I think there’s been a lot of them like this season — we’re winning, then in the last five minutes we get scored on," said Pavel Zacha, who scored Boston’s only goal. "That’s something we have to get better at and win those games."
Zacha scored his 15th goal 4:26 into the third period. He converted a one-time slap shot off a crossing pass from Danton Heinen.
Bruins goaltender Linus Ullmark stopped 24 shots.
“It felt like we had it. It slipped out of our hands that final minute,” Ullmark said. “I’ve got to take ownership of it as well.”
Edmonton had a chance to win in the final seconds of regulation, but Ullmark was able to stop Warren Foegele's rebound attempt.
McDavid had a scoring opportunity late in the third on a shot he got on Ullmark despite being hounded by Trent Frederic. McDavid has two goals and 26 assists during his point streak.
Skinner had to stop a dozen shots in the second, including a one-timer by David Pastrnak.
Ullmark came up big for Boston during Edmonton’s first power-play chance, stopping McDavid on a rebound attempt just outside the crease early in the second. McDavid pounced on another loose puck late in the second and snapped off a quick shot that Ullmark swiped out of the air with his glove.
Edmonton defenceman Vincent Desharnais said the atmosphere felt more like the playoffs than a regular-season game in early March.
“It was tight. Not many shots, a lot of blocked shots, lots of hits,” Desharnais said.
Boston forward James Van Riemsdyk played in his 1,000th career game, joining team captain Brad Marchand as the only active members of the Bruins to play in 1,000 games. The Bruins plan to honour Van Riemsdyk with a pre-game ceremony March 16 when Boston hosts the Philadelphia Flyers, who selected Van Riemsdyk second overall in the 2007 draft.
UP NEXT
Oilers: Visit the Columbus Blue Jackets on Thursday.
Bruins: Host the Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday.
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AP NHL: https://www.apnews.com/hub/NHL
Doug Alden, The Associated Press
