Nicolas Roy moved his hands in front of the crease faster than a sleight-of-hand magician.
Edmonton Oilers goaltender Stuart Skinner saw them at first. Until he didn’t.
Roy took his time trying to bait Skinner with a backhand move, only to put his own rebound into the net to give the Las Vegas Golden Knights a 4-3 win in overtime Saturday at Rogers Place. The center was only in his second game back after missing 14 with a lower-body injury. He clearly found a way to keep his stickhandling sharp in his time away.
Roy’s goal capped off a thrilling back-and-forth affair between Pacific Division contenders. Three times the Knights took the lead. Three times the Oilers came back to tie it.
Roy gave the Knights one more response for the team’s seventh straight road win, finishing off a 3-0-0 trip against Pacific foes.
Center Jack Eichel got the action started early by scoring on Skinner 1:01 into the game. Right wing Zach Hyman tied the game only 2:27 later after a great pass from center Leon Draisaitl.
Rookie left wing Pavel Dorofeyev gave the Knights the lead back 3:33 before the first intermission with a wrist shot that beat Skinner from 30 feet out.
Edmonton’s top-ranked power play evened things out when play resumed. The NHL’s leading scorer, Oilers captain Connor McDavid, set up the league’s second-leading scorer, Draisaitl, to tie the game with 9:30 left in the second.
The goal was Draisaitl’s 28th on the power play, the most in an NHL season since Mario Lemieux in 1995-96.
The two sides kept trading punches.
Eichel set up Marchessault for a one-timer that gave the Knights (46-21-6) the lead 6:57 into the third. Edmonton came right back 4:22 later with a goal from left wing Warren Foegele from the right circle.
Roy gave the Knights the last laugh 2:26 into overtime. The win moves the team seven points clear of third-place Edmonton (41-23-9) with nine games remaining, bringing home-ice advantage in at least the first round of the playoffs almost in reach.
Another victory in the Knights’ next game, Tuesday against the Oilers again, could all but clinch it.
“It was a big win, big road trip,” defenseman Brayden McNabb. “They’re sneaking up on us, and we get an extra point out of this game.”
Here are three takeaways from the win:
1. Brossoit returns
The Knights lost a goalie Thursday and got one back Saturday.
Laurent Brossoit was activated off injured reserve to make his first start since Feb. 25. His return from a lower-body injury came one game after Logan Thompson exited his start against Calgary in the third period with a lower-body injury of his own.
Brossoit made 26 saves in what he called his “second home,” because he played junior hockey and his first three NHL seasons in Edmonton. He’ll compete with two-time Stanley Cup winner Jonathan Quick to be the Knights’ playoff starter if he can stay healthy the rest of the way.
2. Dorofeyev doesn’t stop
Another game, another goal for Dorofeyev.
His goal was his fifth in seven games since being called up to play March 12 in St. Louis. He also has two assists in that span.
Dorofeyev’s five goals are tied for the third-most by a rookie in Knights history with Nicolas Roy and Cody Glass. Only Alex Tuch (15) and Paul Cotter (13) have more.
3. Lineup changes
Brossoit wasn’t the only new face for the Knights.
Right wing Keegan Kolesar returned to the fourth line after missing the last six games with an upper-body injury. Right wing Michael Amadio moved up to the second line with left wing Reilly Smith out with a lower-body injury.
Defenseman Ben Hutton also played his first game since Jan. 28 with Alec Martinez out for personal reasons. Hutton took Martinez’s spot on the first pair with defenseman Alex Pietrangelo.
”We feel really confident about the depth in our team,” Eichel said. “Guys stay ready. When their number is called, they’re contributing to our team.”
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