3 takeaways from Knights’ loss: Good energy, but win streak ends

At least the Golden Knights can feel good about this: It didn’t feel like a three-goal loss.

The offensive energy was there. The Knights had good looks when the puck was on their sticks. They just couldn’t find the back of the net.

The Edmonton Oilers, however, certainly did. Four of them found their way past goaltender Adin Hill in the second period, and the Knights’ four-game winning streak ended with a thud in a 6-3 loss Saturday at Rogers Place in Edmonton, Alberta.

“I liked our offensive energy, the willingness to get inside, put pucks to the net, recover pucks, make plays to the slot,” Knights coach Bruce Cassidy said. “We did a lot of good things in that regard.”

The Knights (19-8-3) did everything right offensively. Their checking game from the moment the puck dropped dictated the flow of the action early.

The chances they had were quality ones. They just couldn’t find the target for the most part, with 22 missed shot attempts.

Edmonton, meanwhile, didn’t miss. The Oilers (18-10-2) took a 5-0 lead at 12:53 of the second period on right wing Corey Perry’s goal. It was their fourth goal of a period that was the ultimate case of bad puck luck.

The Knights hit three posts through the first two periods that could have changed the game completely. Instead, the Knights spent most of the afternoon playing catch-up.

And it almost worked. The Knights reeled off three unanswered goals from right wing Victor Olofsson, left wing Ivan Barbashev and left wing Brett Howden to make it a two-goal game one minute into the third period.

But Edmonton forward Jeff Skinner scored 38 seconds after Howden’s short-handed goal to thwart any comeback attempt.

“We can’t give up that next goal,” Cassidy said. “They’re a good hockey team. They’re going to be on alert after that.”

Hill allowed all six goals, a season high, on 34 shots for his first regulation loss since Nov. 20. It was only the second time since Nov. 11 that Hill allowed more than three goals in a game.

“There (were) a lot of details in our D-zone,” said Barbashev, who scored his 15th goal of the season in the second period. “We’ve been on a good stretch defensively the last five, six games. We’ve done a good job. Today, it just wasn’t there.”

Those details were what stifled Edmonton stars Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl in the first two meetings. The Oilers’ superstars did not have a point in the first two matchups.

Draisaitl had a goal and two assists, and McDavid had two assists for Edmonton for its fifth straight win.

The Knights won’t have much time to reflect on this one, though. They take on the NHL-leading Minnesota Wild at 3 p.m. Sunday.

“It’s like a little wake-up call,” Barbashev said. “We’ve just got to get back to our normal game. Regroup on the flight to Minny, just try to go out there and play better.”

Here are three takeaways from the loss:

1. Tight division race

Early December won’t dictate division races, but the Pacific Division is as tight as it’s been all season.

The Knights hold a two-point cushion on the Los Angeles Kings following their 5-1 win over the New York Rangers on Saturday. The Oilers, who were in 10th place in the Western Conference a month ago, are now three points back in the division.

The Knights haven’t been able to create much separation with the Kings and Oilers being as good as they’ve been. With the halfway mark of the season on the horizon, it’s something to keep an eye on.

2. Hanifin’s milestone

Defenseman Noah Hanifin reached 300 points in his NHL career with two assists in the second period.

It’s been a struggle for Hanifin this season on the defensive end, but two of his best offensive games have come against the Oilers. He scored twice in the win in Edmonton on Nov. 6.

“We found a way to claw back a bit and give us a chance in the third,” Hanifin said. “There was definitely life, but that’s something we’ve had all season.”

3. Quick turnaround

The Knights have managed to salvage at least a split in their first four back-to-backs. To make it five, they’ll need to take down the league-leading Wild on Sunday.

Minnesota left wing Kirill Kaprizov scored twice in the Wild’s 4-1 win Saturday over Philadelphia to give him 20 goals this season. Kaprizov is tied for second in the league with 45 points.

Contact Danny Webster at dwebster@reviewjournal.com. Follow @DannyWebster21 on X.