Oilers strike early and late to beat Flames 5-3 in Game 4

Ryan Nugent-Hopkins scored the sport winner with 3:27 left within the third because the Edmonton Oilers beat the Calgary Flames 5-3 Tuesday night time at Rogers Place. The Oilers lead the sequence 3-1

It took the Oilers solely 21 seconds to seize the lead. Jacob Markstrom turned the puck over together with the online, permitting Nugent-Hopkins to flick in his third of the post-season.

​”He sort of falls beneath the radar when it comes to actually good hockey gamers on our staff,” Oilers head coach Jay Woodcroft mentioned. “However Ryan Nugent-Hopkins was a first-overall draft choose within the NHL for a motive.

“He’s a heck of a hockey participant. He does numerous delicate issues very nicely and he makes us a deeper staff.”

On an influence play midway by way of the primary, Zach Hyman muscled in a rebound for his seventh. The Oilers survived a giant push from the Flames late within the first, then took a 3-0 lead on Evander Kane’s eleventh.

​”I don’t assume we performed our greatest interval, by any means,” Oilers goaltender Mike Smith mentioned.

“We caught collectively as a gaggle and by no means wavered, and we discovered a approach to win a recreation. Within the playoffs, that’s what it’s a must to do.”

The Flames got here to life with two objectives 36 seconds aside within the second. Elias Lindholm sniped one on the facility play, then Mikael Backlund drove down the suitable facet and beat Mike Smith beneath the suitable arm.

Rasmus Andersson tied the sport with a stunning aim with 9:04 left within the third. With the Flames shorthanded, Andersson cleared the puck from inside his personal blue line. Smith didn’t see the puck till it was too late, and it was 3-3.

​”I can giggle now, proper,” Smith joked. “I don’t assume there’s been a time in my profession once I misplaced the puck and had no thought the place it went.”

​”We may’ve simply packed it in after they obtained that lengthy one on me,” Smith added. “We simply confirmed resilience to come back again and rating a giant aim and push the sequence to 3-1.”

“Our guys had been saying the suitable issues on the bench,” Woodcroft mentioned post-game. “There was calm, there was composure and we knew we simply needed to proceed to do the issues that result in success.”

Late within the third, Kailer Yamamoto labored the puck again to Tyson Barrie. His shot didn’t get by way of, however Nugent-Hopkins chopped within the rebound.

​”We caught with all of it recreation,” Nugent-Hopkins mentioned. “We knew they’d have a pushback and the way in which we caught collectively and didn’t activate one another at any second reveals good indicators for our staff.”

​”The fellows confirmed a extremely good measure of resolve and resiliency, and ultimately, we obtained the suitable individuals on the ice on the proper time and located a approach to rating,” Woodcroft added.

Andersson took a double minor for top sticking with 2:40 to go. Kane iced it with an empty netter on the facility play.

Smith completed with 29 saves.

Recreation 5 is Thursday in Calgary (630 CHED Face-off Present beings at 5:30 p.m., the sport is about to start at 7:30 p.m.).

— With information from Brenden Escott, 630 CHED