Tag: edmonton oilers

NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs podcast Mary Lisa: Lightning close win 1-0 ties series 3-3 with Canadiens; Knights put away Mammoth 4-2; plus more NHL news

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Tampa Bay Lightning Gage Concalves (93) scores on Montreal Canadiens goaltender Jakub Dobes (bottom) during overtime in game 6 of the NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at the Belle Centre in Montreal Fri May 1, 2026 (Canadian Press via AP News)

NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs podcast Mary Lisa:

#1 How did Andrei Vasilevskiy perform in Tampa Bay’s Game 7 push against Montreal, and what made his shutout performance significant?

#2 What impact did Mitch Marner have in helping Vegas eliminate Utah, and how many points did he record in the decisive game?

#3 Which players—such as Alex Tuch and Josh Norris—contributed to Buffalo’s series-clinching win over Boston, and why is this victory historically important for the franchise?

#4 In the upcoming second-round matchup, how will stars like Nathan MacKinnon and Kirill Kaprizov influence the Colorado vs. Minnesota series?

#5 What questions are being raised about Connor McDavid after Edmonton’s early playoff exit, and how might this affect his future with the team?

Join Mary Lisa for the NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs podcast Saturdays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

NHL Stanley Cup Playoff podcast Mary Lisa: Canadiens go up 2-1 edge Lightning 3-2 at the Belle Centre; Mammoth taking care of business in 4-2 win over Knights; plus more NHL news

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Montreal Canadiens Kirby Dach (77) is thrilled after scoring a goal against the Tampa Bay Lightning goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy (88) during overtime in game three of the NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at the Belle Centre in Montreal (Canadian Press via AP)

NHL Stanley Cup Playoff podcast Mary Lisa:

#1 Montreal Canadiens Lane Hutson scored in overtime on a slap shot to help the Canadiens defeat the Tampa Bay Lightning 3-2 Friday night at the Belle Centre in Montreal to improve to a 2-1 series lead in the first round of the series.

#2 Hutson took his shot from the top right circle that went through a group of players and got in the left corner of the net behind goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy. It was a crucial goal as the Canadiens won by just one goal.

#3 Utah Mammoth Lawson Crouse scored two goals in just a 5:42 span in the second period as the Mammoth took a 2-1 series lead beating the Vegas Golden Knights 4-2 Friday night at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City.

#4 The Mammoth won Tuesday night 3-2 to tie the series after the Knights won game one in Vegas on Sunday. The series has been tight and the Mammoth have made an impressive come back since losing game one.

#5 The Anaheim Ducks took care of business crushing the Edmonton Oilers in three 7-4 on Friday night at the Honda Center in Anaheim. Beckett Sennecke and Leo Carlsson scored goals within 42 second of the third period. Mikael Granlund scored a goal and picked up two assists. The win was Anaheim’s first post season win in eight years.

Join Mary Lisa for the NHL Playoff podcasts each Saturday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

NHL podcast Len Shapiro: Oilers McDavid’s 5 point hat trick; How did loosing Luke Hughes impact New Jersey; plus more news

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Edmonton Oilers center Connor McDavid (97) celebrates with teammates after scoring a goal against the San Jose Sharks at SAP Center Wed Apr 8, 2026 (AP News photo)

NHL podcast Len Shapiro:

#1 How did Connor McDavid’s five-point hat trick impact the Edmonton Oilers’ push for the Pacific Division lead?

#2 What does Luke Hughes being shut down for the season mean for the New Jersey Devils’ future plans?

#3 Why is Ilya Protas’ NHL debut with the Washington Capitals being called “unbelievable,” and what does it signal for their young core?

#4 What are the key playoff implications across the NHL as teams battle for clinching scenarios on April 9?

#5 The Oilers with a victory over the San Jose Sharks on Wednesday night that puts the Oilers in the number seed in the Pacific. Vegas Golden Knights would play the Ducks if the season were to end today. Utah won and their in the playoffs and their wild card one beating the Nashville Predators. That pushed Nashville outside the playoffs. The LA Kings are still in wild card two.

Join Len Shapiro for the NHL podcasts each Thursday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Sharks’ Playoff Hopes Stumble as McDavid Powers Oilers to 5-2 Win

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Macklin Celebrini #71 of the San Jose Sharks between plays in the first period against the Edmonton Oilers at SAP Center on April 8, 2026 in San Jose, California. (Mandatory Photo Credit: Kavin Mistry/NHLI via Getty Images)

By Jeremiah Salmonson

SAN JOSE — On Wednesday night, the San Jose Sharks faithful filed into the stands in anticipation of the team’s matchup against the Edmonton Oilers. There was an air of optimistic anxiety in the building as the Sharks entered the game three points back of the second wild-card spot in the Western Conference with just six games to go in the season.

The Sharks, after all, are ahead of schedule. Regardless of whether San Jose makes or misses out on the playoffs, the season has to be seen as a success by the fans, ownership, and management. Yet, Sharks fans are desperate for another shot in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. The Sharks have not seen the playoffs since the 2018-19 season, when they lost to the St. Louis Blues in the Western Conference Final, which led to the full rebuild of the club.

The anxiety in the Tank quickly turned to angst as the Oilers defeated the Sharks 5-2 behind a Connor McDavid two-assist, three-goal game to lead Edmonton.

In the first period, the Sharks got off to a quick start as Macklin Celebrini found the back of the net on a wrister from Dmitry Orlov and Will Smith. It was Celebrini’s 42nd goal of the season. The goal came on a power play after the Oilers were hit with too many men on the ice. After the Sharks took the early lead, Edmonton answered right back with a goal of their own, scored by Connor McDavid and assisted by Evan Bouchard and Vasily Podkolzin. It was an effective answer from the Oilers as they gained the momentum right back after the Sharks seized it. However, Edmonton wasn’t done yet in the first period. The Oilers scored a second goal, by Vasily Podkolzin, from Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Connor McDavid.

Trailing 2-1 heading into the second period, the Sharks failed to reclaim the momentum. However, the Oilers came out in the second period and scored a quick goal at the 16:27 mark of the period. Jack Roslovic found the back of the net on a nice backhand shot from Connor McDavid to give the Oilers a 3-1 advantage. It was Roslovic’s 21st goal of the season and Connor McDavid’s third point of the game at that point. The Sharks answered right back as Kiefer Sherwood tipped in an Alex Wennberg shot for the goal. It was Sherwood’s 23rd goal of the season and sixth goal for the Sharks as Wennberg and William Eklund were credited with the assists.

From that point on, it was all bad news for the Sharks.

Connor McDavid took over the game for the rest of the second period, scoring two more goals to pull the Oilers ahead by three heading into the second intermission. McDavid’s third goal of the game came on a wrister at the 16:07 mark of the period that was assisted by Evan Bouchard and Mattias Ekholm. McDavid’s final goal of the game came at the 6:47 mark of the second period on another wrist shot. It was good for a McDavid hat trick and his 47th goal of the season. McDavid’s goal was assisted by Jack Roslovic, which was his second point of the game.

In the third period, nothing happened for either team. The Sharks looked dejected and gassed, and the Oilers seemed to keep the Sharks out of their zone well in the final frame. The Sharks had only four shots on goal the entire third period and ultimately fell to the Oilers 5-2 at home.

The Sharks were led in defeat by Macklin Celebrini and Kiefer Sherwood, who each scored goals in the game.

For Edmonton, it was a legacy-type performance from their best player, Connor McDavid. McDavid finished the game with five points on three goals and two assists. Other notable performances came from Vasily Podkolzin and Jack Roslovic, who each finished the game with two points of their own, while Ryan Nugent-Hopkins added a point.

When it was all said and done, the Sharks trailed the Oilers in shots on goal 14-26 as Edmonton nearly doubled the Sharks’ chances on net.

With the loss, the Sharks fell to 37-33-7 and sit with 81 points, which is three points behind the Nashville Predators (84) for the second wild-card spot.

The Sharks will travel to Anaheim on Wednesday evening to take on the Ducks at 7 p.m. PST on Thursday at Honda Center.

Utah Mammoth game wrap: Utah Strikes Oil In Franchise First 6-5 Win Over Edmonton

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Utah Mammoth center Clayton Keller (9) shoots the winning goal 33 second into the overtime stanza to help defeat the visiting Edmonton Oilers at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Tue Apr 7, 2026 (AP News photo)

Utah Mammoth Game Wrap: The Mammoth have scored 25 goals over the past four games in their playoff push.

By Tom Walker

SALT LAKE CITY–The Utah Mammoth (40-30-6) returned to Delta Center Tuesday night following a successful three-game sweep of games against Pacific Division teams in Los Angeles, Seattle, and Vancouver, scoring a minimum of six goals in each of the victories. The Mammoth came away with a 6-5 win over the Pacific Division’s best the Edmonton Oilers Tuesday night.

In their win against the Canucks, Utah became the third team in NHL history to win 40 games in their second NHL season, joining the Vegas Golden Knights and Seattle Kraken.The offensive surge couldn’t have come at a more opportune moment heading into the home stretch of the regular season. 

Though the Mammoth have been holding down the top Wild Card slot in the Western Conference for some time, a number of conference rivals remain in the hunt for the postseason, and Utah is not yet mathematically guaranteed to punch their card to make a Mammoth playoff debut. Utah went 1-3-0 on the previous homestand, and will now play five of their remaining six regular season games at home.

Squaring off against the Mammoth on Tuesday night were the Edmonton Oilers (39-29-9) who currently share the Pacific Division lead with the Anaheim Ducks, and who entered the contest a perfect 5-0-0 against Utah since the former Arizona Coyotes were rechristened as a new franchise in Salt Lake City.

Mammoth forward JJ Peterka got things going for Utah less than two minutes into the contest with his 24th goal of the season, a slap shot, assisted by Ian Cole and Michael Carcone. Before the goal announcement could even be completed, the Oilers tied things up 11 seconds later on a backhand by Edmonton forward Curtis Lazar, his fourth of the year, assisted by Adam Henrique and Matthias Ekholm.

It would only get worse for the Mammoth from there. With Clayton Keller in the penalty box for high-sticking against Curtis Lazar, Connor McDavid showed why he remains one of the game’s elite forwards, blowing effortlessly through the Utah defense and putting the puck past Karel Vejmelka for his 44th goal of the season, assisted by Evan Bouchard and netminder Tristan Jarry. 

At 14:43 the Oilers made it 3-1 on the 19th of the year by Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, assisted by Kasperi Kapanen, which is where things concluded as the two squads headed to their respective locker rooms. Jarry turned away 10 of 11 Utah shots while Vejmelka surrendered three goals on seven shots by the Oilers.

Utah settled down a bit in the second period, keeping Edmonton at bay for the first half of the frame, and then at 10:28 forward Nick Schmaltz got the Mammoth to within one with his 29th goal of the season, assisted by Clayton Keller and Lawson Crouse.

With a little more than four minutes remaining, Logan Cooley brought Utah back the rest of the way, scoring his 23rd goal of the season on a slap shot, assisted by Dylan Guenther and Sean Durzi. Unfortunately for Utah, for the second time in the game, the goal announcement could not be completed before the Oilers immediately went ahead 4-3 on Vasily Podkolzin’s 18th goal of the season, assisted by Darnell Nurse and McDavid.

Making matters worse, with less than two minutes left in the period, MacKenzie Weegar went to the sin bin for hooking against McDavid.  But rather than surrendering another goal on the power play, Schmaltz came through shorthanded for his second goal of the night and 30th on the season to even the score at 4-4, with John Marino and Alexander Kerfoot picking up the assists. 30 goals and 40 assists for 70 points are a new career high for Schmaltz, who signed an 8-year $64 million contract extension in March. The Mammoth flipped the script from the opening frame, this time outscoring Edmonton 3-1, with Vejmelka stopping 11 of 12 Oilers shots and Jarry turning away 7 of 10 by Utah.

Edmonton regained the lead 5-4 at 2:09 of the third period when Colton Dach registered his fifth goal of the season, assisted by Trent Frederic and Jason Dickinson, but Utah wasn’t done yet.  At 12:56, the Mammoth came back to tie the score for the third time in the game when Alexander Kerfoot, who was camped out in front of the Oilers net, tipped in a shot from Sean Durzi for his sixth goal of the season, with the additional helper to Michael Carcone, to make the score 5-5 and send the game to overtime.

Just 25 seconds into bonus hockey, Matt Savoie was whistled for tripping against Logan Cooley to give Utah a 4-on-3 power play.  The Mammoth wasted no time taking advantage of the opportunity, with captain Clayton Keller netting the game winner eight seconds later to give Utah its first franchise victory over Edmonton, a possible first round playoff opponent. Keller’s 26th goal of the season was assisted by Mikhail Sergachev and Dylan Guenther.

In the locker room, Schmaltz commented on the intensity level of the game, “It was pretty high. We kind of know where we stand and where they stand. These points are so valuable. We want to get that X by our name, as fast as we can. So we’re doing everything we can, and we’re battling every night, and two points is huge, especially against that team.”

Keller added, “I think we stuck with it all game, obviously being down 3-1, and I still feel like we were playing good hockey. A couple of bounces here and there, but just part of the way that we stuck with it. We had a big push in the third. We were playing our style of hockey. We get the goal there, and then we keep pressing. We don’t sit back and back up. It’s a good step in the right direction, and still got some games left, so it’s a huge win.” Of his linemate’s 30 goals, Keller said, “You guys know, I think the world of him. Him as a player and person and just so gifted, fast, skilled, thinks the game at such a high level, and has such a good stick. There’s so many things about his game that people don’t recognize or truly appreciate as much as all of us do in this room, and just how good he is. That’s huge for him, for sure. He’s got that sneaky little wrister, and he’s good in tight. He’s got good hands. That’s great to see him get that, and I don’t think that’s the ceiling for him honestly.”  On coming back from behind three separate times, the captain said, “I think just pressing when we were down. It still felt like we had lots of confidence all game. We never had that span of being down on ourselves, or whatever it may be. We just kept rolling it over and trusting that it would turn and I think that’s something that we’ve gotten better at as the year has gone on, so good on us.”

Head Coach André Tourigny was all smiles beginning his post-game session with the media, repeating a refrain from earlier in the season, “are we entertained?”  Talking about the lines of Schmaltz and Cooley containing McDavid, Bear commented, “those two lines shared McDavid all night long. I think they did a really good job … they played really well against 97, so I think they played a complete game.” Explaining why he started the overtime period with Cooley on the ice, Tourigny added, “I didn’t want somebody who couldn’t skate with McDavid. And he had the fire in his eyes; I got this, I got this. I said, ‘Hey, don’t take chase, don’t worry.’ He didn’t really even want to hear me. He was kind of just, just put me out there and don’t worry. He drew the penalty, and we scored on that. So, proud of the young guy.” On the team’s resiliency, Bear added, “People talk about going over the hump, and this and that; those guys want to win. They want to perform, and sometimes that gets in our way, because wanting to get a result sometimes makes you focus on the wrong thing. You need to focus on the process, but those guys have always been driven to achieve great things. They want to be a championship team. They know there’s growth to get there, but I never doubt their resiliency as a team, and they believe in each other. I like the fact that they believe in each other. They know we’re a good team and we can achieve good things together, so there’s a strong belief.”

Next up for Utah (41-30-6) on Thursday are the Nashville Predators (37-31-10), who shut out the Anaheim Ducks 5-0 on the road Tuesday night to leapfrog the Los Angeles Kings into the second Wild Card spot in the Western Conference.  

San Jose Sharks podcast Lincoln Juarez: Mighty Oilers come calling at SAP Center against potent Sharks Wednesday

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

San Jose Sharks Will Smith (2) is congratulated by teammate Dimitry Orlov (9) after scoring a first period goal against the Chicago Blackhawks on Mon Apr 6, 2026 (AP News photo)

San Jose Sharks podcast Lincoln Juarez podcast:

#1 The Edmonton Oilers are in first place for a reason they have won seven of their last ten games, are tied with the Anaheim Ducks for first in the Pacific Division with 87 points each and they pay a visit to the San Jose Sharks on Wednesday night at SAP Center.

#2 How will the potential absence or limited impact of the Oilers Leon Draisaitl affect Edmonton’s scoring depth and power play efficiency?

#3 Will the Sharks be able to capitalize on home-ice advantage and close the gap in the season series, which Edmonton currently leads?

#4 The Sharks are coming off an impressive 3-2 win against the Chicago Blackhawks. The Blackhawks despite being in last place the Central Division played Monday night like it meant something but the Sharks got the better of them with a one goal win.

#5 The Sharks have won five of their last six games since coming off a six game losing streak and face off with the Oilers on Wednesday night how do you see this match up?

Join Lincoln Juarez does the San Jose Sharks podcasts each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Sharks Recovered Form and Sealed a 3-2 Win Over Chicago

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Macklin Celebrini and Will Smith before puck drop on April 6, 2026 at SAP Center (Sharks Media)

By: Fernando Abarca

SAN JOSE, Calif. — The San Jose Sharks overcame a slow start and a highlight-reel play from Connor Bedard to rally past the Chicago Blackhawks 3-2 on Monday night, keeping their postseason hopes alive in the final stretch of the regular season.

Chicago struck first in the opening period after Bedard dazzled through the neutral zone, weaving past defenders and circling behind the net before sending a pass into the slot. Ryan Donato capitalized on the rebound at the right circle, finding himself in the right place at the right time to give the Blackhawks a 1-0 lead against a Sharks team that struggled defensively early.

San Jose responded in the second period with a much more aggressive and composed effort. William Eklund ignited the comeback with a strong defensive play, stripping the puck and racing in alone before finishing on a breakaway to tie the game 1-1.

The momentum continued to swing in favor of San Jose as their forecheck intensified. Kiefer Sherwood added to the surge, converting on a sequence created by sustained pressure, with assists credited to Henry Thrun (or Graf if applicable) and Macklin Celebrini. The Sharks’ ability to dictate pace and win puck battles led to another tally later in the period, turning a once-flat performance into a multi-goal response that gave them control heading into the third.

Early in the final frame, Will Smith extended the lead, scoring just over three minutes into the period to make it 3-1 and further cement San Jose’s turnaround. Chicago had an opportunity to respond on the power play, but despite generating chances, they were unable to break through consistently. While the Blackhawks managed to apply pressure, the Sharks held firm enough to prevent any meaningful comeback.

Goaltending and improved defensive structure in the final two periods proved decisive for San Jose, who limited second-chance opportunities after a shaky opening 20 minutes.

With the victory, the San Jose Sharks remain in the hunt for a Western Conference wild-card spot as the regular season winds down. The race remains tight, with the Los Angeles Kings currently holding the second wild-card position.

San Jose now turns its attention to a crucial matchup against the Edmonton Oilers on Wednesday night, a game that could significantly impact their playoff chances with just a week remaining in the season.

NHL podcast Len Shapiro: Jets get three goal win over Knights 4-1; Blues Hofer shuts out Caps 3-0; plus more NHL news

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Winnipeg Jets goaltender Connor Hellebuyck (37) makes a save on Vegas Golden Knights Keegan Kolesar (55) as Elias Salmonsson (57) defends in the first period at the T Moblie Center in Las Vegas on Tue Mar 24, 2026 (AP News photo)

NHL podcast Len Shapiro:

#1 The Winnipeg Jets handled the Vegas Golden Knights in Edmonton on Tuesday night with a 3 goal win 4-1. The Jets Mark Scheifele kept busy with a goal and two assists and got it hit with a fighting major in the second period. It’s rare for Scheifele to get into a scrape not to mention a major. The Jets Kyle Connor, Alex Iafallo and Cole Perfetti also scored for Winnipeg.

#2 St Louis Blues Jimmy Snuggerrud and Otto Stenberg scored goals and the Blues goaltender Joel Hofer saved 21 shots as the Blues got a shutout over the Washington Capitals 3-0 on Tuesday night. The Blues Jordan Kyrou scored his 17th goal on a empty netter with 41 seconds left to put the final touches for the win.

#3 The Calgary Flames edged the Los Angeles Kings Tuesday night 3-2 at Scotia Place in Calgary defeating the Kings in a four round shootout on Yegor Sharangovich’s shootout goal. Olli Maatta and Zayne Parekh each had goals in the first period scoring their first goals of the season. The Flames goaltender Dustin Wolf saved 23 shots.

#4 The Edmonton Oilers Connor McDavid reached 400 career goals Connor McDavid kept a straight face while making a curious revelation to a group of reporters after surpassing 400 career goals not to mention picking up a second goal his 401st goal of his career that helped the Edmonton Oilers to a 5-2 win over the Utah Mammoth at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Tuesday night.

#5 Mikael Granlund of the Anaheim Ducks scored two goals and Alex Killorn picked up goal and an assist as the Anaheim Ducks beat the Vancouver Canucks 5-3 on Tuesday night at Rogers Arena in Vancouver. Mason McTavish and Troy Terry both scored for the Ducks and John Carlson picked up three assists while goaltender Lukas Dostal saved 27 shots.

Join Len Shapiro for the NHL podcasts heard Thursdays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Utah Mammoth game wrap: Mammoth Flattened By Oilers In 5-2 Beatdown

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Edmonton Oilers Connor McDavid (97) takes the puck up the ice against the Utah Mammoth center Nick Schmaltz (8) in the first period at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Sat Mar 24, 2026 (AP News photo)

By Tom Walker

SALT LAKE CITY–The Edmonton Oilers capitalized 5-2 on a sloppy Utah Mammoth performance with Connor McDavid picking up his 39th and 40th goals, and 400th in his career, in a game which was never really contested.

The Mammoth (37-28-6) squared off against the Oilers (34-28-9) at Delta Center on Tuesday night for the third of four games on the current homestand. The Oilers entered the matchup as one of just two NHL teams which Utah has never defeated, the other being the Dallas Stars.

At 11:12 of the first period, Utah forward Alexander Kerfoot kicked off the scoring with his third goal of the season, technically assisted by Sean Durzi and Ian Cole, but his drive ricocheted off the bodies of Edmonton defensemen Darnell Nurse and Connor Murphy before sailing like a knuckleball over the shoulder of a helpless Tristan Jarry in the Oilers net who couldn’t keep up with the rapid fire changes of puck direction.

Jack Roslovic evened things up a few minutes later when his wrist shot got past Karel Vejmelka for his 18th goal of the season, assisted by Jake Walman and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, resulting in a 1-1 tie as the two squads entered their locker rooms. Jarry stopped 2-3 Mammoth shots in the frame, while Vejmelka turned away 7-8.

11 minutes into the second period, Edmonton forward Zach Hyman gave Utah the first power play opportunity of the game, going to the penalty box for high-sticking against Clayton Keller. Hyman’s teammate Matt Savoie bailed him out, scoring a short-handed goal 24 seconds later, his 12th of the season assisted by Evan Bouchard, to put the Oilers ahead 2-1.

35 seconds later, Utah Assistant Captain Lawson Crouse cashed in on the power play with his 20th goal of the season, the fourth time he has reached this milestone in his career, assisted by Michael Carcone and MacKenzie Weegar, evening things up 2-2.

That lasted all of eight seconds when Connor McDavid won the ensuing faceoff and then scored his 39th goal, and 400th of his career, assisted by Matthias Ekholm and Evan Bouchard. The Oilers continued to step on the gas, with Roslovic netting his second goal of the game at 15:04, assisted by Hyman and Bouchard, to give Edmonton a 4-2 lead.

All four goals for the two squads came in a span of 3 minutes and 40 seconds. André Tourigny called a 30-second timeout to settle his team down, and both teams shut down the other side the rest of the frame, with Jarry stopping 6 of 7 shots in the period and Vejmelka turning away 4 of 7.

The third period began with Vítek Vaněček replacing Vejmelka in goal for Utah, and he did his part to keep the Oilers off the scoreboard going 10-for-10 in stopped shots until the end when he was pulled for an extra attacker. The Mammoth have only ever scored once in a 6-on-5 situation, and Edmonton kept that streak of futility alive. With eight seconds remaining in the game, Connor McDavid sent everyone to the exits with an unassisted breakaway empty net goal, his 40th overall on the season, to give the Oilers a 5-2 victory in a game which wasn’t even that close. Edmonton continued its perfect domination of Utah, with the two squads scheduled to face one another for the final time this season on April 7 at Delta Center.

“It was tough, for sure,” said defenseman MacKenzie Weegar in the locker room after the game. “I thought [the] first half of the game was good, showed some compete and then obviously the power play goal that we tied up was big. Then they scored right after that, and then again quickly right after that, and then I thought we lost the momentum. We didn’t have the energy after that. The compete level in 50/50 battles wasn’t really there either. Definitely something that comes within, it’s not something that you can teach. That’s definitely look yourself in the mirror type stuff, but I trust in this group and we’ll bounce back the right way.”

Alexander Kerfoot, who opened the night’s scoring with a pinball machine shot caroming off of two Edmonton players, addressed the team’s lack of follow through in the game. “We obviously just didn’t have enough of a pushback, in the third especially. We’re down two goals in a game, fighting for a playoff spot against a team who’s also fighting, and we didn’t even make them work for it, didn’t make them earn it. Disappointing. It’s on us,” Kerfoot said. When asked why Utah hasn’t been able to defeat the Oilers, Kerfoot responded somewhat indignantly, “How many games have we played, like six? We were winless against LA, won last game. They’re a good team. They’ve been in the cup finals twice in a row. It’s hard to beat good teams in this league. They’ve got some elite players. We’d like to do a better job against them, and it’s no excuse.”

Utah Mammoth Head Coach André Tourigny, who coached his 400th career game on Tuesday night, said, “We did a lot of good stuff defensively, but I think we didn’t have our usual aggression and our pace, and we gave up too much time and space. Not that it cost us defensively, but it cost us offensively in a sense that we didn’t recover any puck play, we didn’t have the puck enough so that we let them maneuver too much with the puck. I will have loved us to be more aggressive on the puck carrier and generate turnovers or generate takeaways and stuff like that. So that’s what I think of the game.” Talking about the third period, Bear continued, “We didn’t have the puck enough. I think defensively, we were in contain mode. I have talked about that before, and I will repeat it. Your biggest enemy when you trail, is when you think you want to score, so instead you keep your tank, your energy for to go on offense. So what happens is you don’t have the puck, so you defend because you don’t have the same aggression. You don’t create a stop, you don’t create a hit where there’s a battle, then you can recover the puck and go on the offense. So you end up spending all your energy defending instead of spending quick energy defensively, recovering pucks, and then you can go on the offense. Instead of that, it’s a little bit of a human reaction, you get passive defensively. You keep your energy from going on the offense, and then you’re not going in the offense, because you end up not recovering the puck and the team and the other side keeps the puck below the goal line, and they play low, high, and so on and so forth. So you end up defending for the entire period. That’s what I think of the third period. We did not have the right aggression without the puck, so we had to defend away too much, and that took our offense away. That’s the period we generated the least, because we’re waiting for the offense instead of making it happen.”

Tourigny’s career won/loss record through Tuesday night is 164-191-45, with his Arizona record being 89-131-26 and his Utah record standing on the positive side of the ledger at 75-60-19.

The Mammoth (37-29-6) close out the current homestand on Thursday against the Washington Capitals (35-28-9) before embarking on a trio of Pacific coast games against Los Angeles, Seattle, and Vancouver.

Sharks Fall 5-3 to Oilers, Home Win Streak for Oilers Against Sharks at nine

Published on by M WalshLeave a comment

San Jose Sharks goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic (33) makes a save on the Edmonton Oilers Zach Hyman (18) shot in the second period at Rogers Place in Edmonton on Tue Mar 17, 2026 (Canadian Press via AP News ;photo)

By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks lost 5-3 to the Edmonton Oilers Tuesday. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Connor Murphy, Vasily Podkolzin, Max Jones and Zach Hyman scored for the Oilers. Connor Ingram made 27 saves for the win. Dmitry Orlov, Pavol Regenda and Kiefer Sherwood scored for the Sharks. Alex Nedeljkovic made 32 saves in the loss.

After the game, Sharks goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic talked about the role of the Sharks penalty kill in the third period: “The whole PK did an unbelievable job of taking back the momentum for us. I just think we gotta kind of take advantage of that a little bit.”

Sharks Head Coach Ryan Warsofsky was asked about how the ice time was allotted late in the game. He said: “For four years we’ve worked on development and getting guys better and kind of handing some things to some players. You’ve gotta earn your ice from here on out.”

Dmitry Orlov got the Sharks on the board first, 7:24 into the game. He scored with a wrist shot from close in after receiving a pass from Alexander Wennberg. An assist also went to Kiefer Sherwood.

By the end of the period, the Oilers had three goals, from Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Connor Murphy and Vasily Podkolzin. One of those goals came on the power play.

The shots were close, 10-8 Edmonton. The Sharks took two penalties and the Oilers took one.

The Sharks scored twice in the second period, with goals from Pavol Regenda and Kiefer Sherwood. The shots were close again, 15-12 Sharks. There were no penalties called in the second.

In the third period, the Oilers found another gear and the Sharks did not. The Oilers outshot the Sharks 15-7 and had two goals, from Max Jones and Zach Hyman. The Sharks took two penalties and the Oilers took none.

The Sharks next play on Thursday at 7:00 PM PT in San Jose against the Buffalo Sabres.