GAME STORY: Maple Leafs 6, Oilers 1

EDMONTON, AB – Jimmy Vesey scored the game’s first two goals to pace the Toronto Maple Leafs to a 6-1 win over the Oilers on Wednesday as they completed the three-game series sweep.

Video: Oilers TV Live Stream

FIRST BLOOD

Just as they did in the previous two games, the Leafs were the first team to light the lamp as Vesey made it 1-0 at 9:03 of the opening frame. Jason Spezza got the puck on the left side and tried to feed Travis Boyd in front of the net, but Boyd fanned on his one-timer attempt and the puck found its way through to Vesey cutting to the crease on the far side and he buried his third of the season.

PLAY OF THE GAME

William Nylander extended his goal-scoring streak to four games at 18:22 of the middle frame with a tremendous toe-drag move and snipe. The Leafs winger took a feed from John Tavares, cut down the right wing and maneuvered around Caleb Jones with the aforementioned toe-drag before firing a wrist shot past Mike Smith.

SAVE OF THE GAME

About a minute and a half into the third period, Leon Draisaitl was sprung on a shorthanded partial breakaway and made a deke to his forehand but Frederik Andersen stood his ground for the impressive blocker denial on his way to a 26-save performance in his first game since Feb. 20 due to being sidelined with an injury.

TURNING POINT

Ryan Nugent-Hopkins got the Oilers on the board at 13:46 of the middle frame with his 10th of the season and the home side continued to press as they looked to cut into the deficit further, but Nylander’s 5-1 goal with less than two minutes to go in the period all but squashed Edmonton’s aspirations for a comeback.

TOP PERFORMER

Vesey’s two tallies gave him his first multi-goal game since Nov. 4, 2018 when he played for the New York Rangers. The 27-year-old winger also recorded his first game-winning goal since Feb. 7, 2020 as a member of the Buffalo Sabres.

FACT CHECK

According to StatsCentre, Leafs forward Mitch Marner’s 232 career assists tie Guy Lafleur and Jaromir Jagr for the eighth most within a primary right-winger’s first five NHL seasons. The only players with more were Jari Kurri (281), Mike Bossy (270), Dave Taylor (254), Patrick Kane (243), Teemu Selanne (237), Sergei Makarov (236) and Mark Recchi (235).

NEXT UP

With the three-game series against Toronto complete, Edmonton’s seven-game homestand continues with a Battle of Alberta on Saturday against the Calgary Flames, followed by three in a row against the Ottawa Senators next Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

PARTING WORDS

“For whatever reason, we couldn’t figure those guys out and they had us pretty figured out,” said Connor McDavid, who was held off the scoresheet for the third game in a row for just the third time in his career. “On to the next one, a big one against Calgary, back to the Battle of Alberta, and then three against an Ottawa team that’s playing very, very well. This is a big point in our season.”

“They gave us a bit of a lesson,” said Tyson Barrie, who played 19:32 and had two shots on goal. “I think we thought we were playing pretty good, and they showed us otherwise. They embarrassed us three games in a row. That’s a tough one to swallow.”

“You win a few games, but that’s a really good dose of reality for us,” said Head Coach Dave Tippett, as the Oilers had won 11 of their previous 13 games prior to the Toronto series.