National Hockey League
Chicago 4, Edmonton 3
When: 8:30 PM ET, Thursday, March 5, 2020
Where: United Center, Chicago, Illinois
Referees: Trevor Hanson, Frederick L'Ecuyer
Linesmen: David Brisebois, Scott Driscoll
Attendance: 21481

Alex DeBrincat scored twice, and Corey Crawford stopped 21 shots to boost the host Chicago Blackhawks past the Edmonton Oilers 4-3 on Thursday night for their fourth straight victory.

The Blackhawks moved within four points of the final Western Conference playoff spot while snapping the Oilers' three-game winning streak.

Edmonton is 8-4-2 in its past 14 games but missed an opportunity to tie Vegas atop the Pacific Division standings. The Oilers scored twice in a 49-second span midway through the third period to draw within the final margin but were unable to overtake the Blackhawks.

Patrick Kane opened the scoring for Chicago at 14:34 of the first period, taking a pass from Dylan Strome in the slot before skating to his left and capitalizing on an opening against Oilers goaltender Mike Smith.

Jonathan Toews scored on a wraparound just 47 seconds into the second period. Chicago made it 3-0 at the 4:59 mark of the second on a DeBrincat goal assisted by Adam Boqvist and Duncan Keith.

The Oilers answered one minute later as Ryan Nugent-Hopkins converted a give-and-go pass from Leon Draisaitl to beat Crawford from close range. DeBrincat made it 4-1 with his second tally at 13:02.

After the Blackhawks limited the Oilers to four shots in the second period, Edmonton broke through with a pair of quick goals from Josh Archibald and Kailer Yamamoto in the third. Draisaitl also assisted on the Yamamoto goal at 8:52 of the third for his NHL-leading 110th point.

Chicago secured the season series against Edmonton with the win. The Blackhawks topped the Oilers 3-1 in Chicago on Oct. 14 before Edmonton responded with a 5-3 home victory on Feb. 11.

Boqvist had two assists to extend his point streak to three games. Nugent-Hopkins has 15 points in his past nine games.

The Oilers will play 10 of their final 14 games at home, while the Blackhawks will play nine of their final 15 contests on home ice.

Mike Smith stopped 17 of 21 shots for Edmonton before he was relieved by Mikko Koskinen, who stopped all 10 shots he faced.

--Field Level Media

Top Game Performances
 
Edmonton   Chicago
Leon Draisaitl 2 Points Alex DeBrincat 2
Josh Archibald 1 Goals Alex DeBrincat 2
Leon Draisaitl 2 Assists Adam Boqvist 2
N/A Power Play Goals N/A
N/A Short Handed Goals N/A
Mikko Koskinen 1.000 Save Percentage Corey Crawford .875
Mike Smith 17 Saves Corey Crawford 21
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Shots Goals Power Play Penalty Kill Penalty Mins Face Offs Won
Edmonton 24 3 0-1 2-2 4 19
Chicago 31 4 0-2 1-1 2 28
Upcoming Games
  • Chicago will play their next game on the road against Detroit. The Blackhawks have a W/L % of .500 after a win and .432 after a loss.
  • Edmonton will play their next game at home against Columbus. The Oilers have a W/L % of .444 after a win and .625 after a loss.