Forward has 2 assists, becomes 4th-fastest player to reach mark; St. Louis ends 7-game skid
Oilers at Blues | Recap
ST. LOUIS — Connor McDavid became the fourth-fastest player in NHL history to reach 1,100 points by getting two assists for the Edmonton Oilers, who lost 3-2 to the St. Louis Blues at Enterprise Center on Monday.
McDavid, who was playing in his 726th career game, became the 69th player in League history to reach the milestone (364 goals, 737 assists). Only Wayne Gretzky (464 games), Mario Lemieux (550) and Mike Bossy (725) reached the feat faster.
However, Pius Suter scored the go-ahead goal at 18:37 of the third period, burying the rebound of Colton Parayko’s shot to help the Blues rally from a 2-0 deficit.
“I’m seeing him teeing it up,” Suter said of Parayko. “He’s got a hard shot. I saw a guy I think trying to block it, so kind of was in the way of both sides. I just stayed there and hopefully the bounce and the rebound goes there.”
EDM@STL: McDavid reaches milestone on Roslovic PPG
Dalibor Dvorsky scored his first NHL goal, and Robert Thomas had a goal and an assist in his return from an upper-body injury for the Blues (4-7-2), who ended a seven-game skid (0-5-2). Jordan Binnington made 24 saves.
“We needed it,” St. Louis coach Jim Montgomery said. “But I think we’re a process-oriented team. … Game management was really good tonight, and belief leads to good results. For me, this was the third good hockey game in a row that we’ve played, and if we keep playing like this, we’re going to win a lot of hockey games.”
Jack Roslovic and Andrew Mangiapane scored, and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins had two assists for the Oilers (6-5-3), who were 2-0-2 in their past four games. Calvin Pickard made 19 saves.
“It looked like it was going to go to overtime,” Edmonton coach Kris Knoblauch said. “It didn’t feel like we were sitting back. I thought we had a lot of push, had our chances. Not that we were playing it safe. Unfortunate that with a minute and a half, to give them that goal like that. It’s tough, especially when we’re up 2-0 and then end up losing and not getting any points.”
Roslovic scored a power-play goal to give the Oilers a 1-0 lead at 18:38 of the first period. He scored eight seconds into the man-advantage by tapping in McDavid’s pass from the goal line to the far side of the crease.
Mangiapane extended it to 2-0 at 2:27 of the second period with a one-timer from the right circle on a 4-on-2 rush after Parayko’s shot from the right point was blocked.
“I thought we had a good start,” Edmonton defenseman Mattias Ekholm said. “Probably a good half, somewhere in there. When they got their first one, we got on our heels a little bit. And they got another one. But going in from that second period knowing that you’ve (got a chance) to win a game on the road, just win the period.
“Obviously, we had our looks, but I think we can do a better job of maybe imposing our will a little more in that third (period) and maybe earning that win more than we did tonight. We had some glimpses, but I think we can do more.”
EDM@STL: Suter shovels it in for the lead
The Blues tied it with two goals in a 2:30 span.
Dvorsky cut it to 2-1 at 16:08 with a power-play goal, a one-timer from the right circle short side on Pickard off a feed from Justin Faulk.
The 20-year-old, who was playing in his fifth career game, was selected in the first round (No. 10) of the 2023 NHL Draft.
“Obviously, it was awesome,” Dvorsky said of scoring his first NHL goal. “Nothing else to say. Great pass from Faulk there. Just tried to shoot it and I’m happy it went in.
“To be honest, I wouldn’t care if I kicked the puck in or shoot it. The first goal is the first goal. I’m happy it went in this way, but whatever, first goal, doesn’t matter how I scored.”
Thomas, who missed the previous four games, tied it 2-2 at 18:38. After Philip Broberg missed on a one-timer from the slot, Thomas banked in a shot that hit off the near post and Pickard’s stick and body.
“A little lucky, off the post, off the goalie and in,” Thomas said. “We’ll take it. … Sometimes you get those bounces and that was a big one.”
Until Suter broke the tie, the Oilers held the Blues to just three shots on goal in the period.
“It was one of those games where the last 10 minutes, everyone was kind of waiting for overtime,” Ekholm said. “We did a good job defending, so did they. Just a fluky play got to the D-man, but we’ve got to bear down in those situations, and we’re not doing that as of right now. We’ll be better tomorrow (at the Dallas Stars).”
NOTES: McDavid was held without a shot on goal for only the 28th time in his career. … Oilers forward Leon Draisaitl had his eight-game point streak (six goals, six assists) end. … Binnington was 0-3-2 his previous five decisions (four starts). … Nugent-Hopkins has nine points (one goal, eight assists) in his past eight games. … St. Louis forward Oskar Sundqvist played 11:08 in his 500th NHL game.
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