Oilers score season-high 5 in win over Stars
EDMONTON, Alberta -- Nobody expected an offensive eruption from the second-lowest scoring team in the NHL, least of all the Dallas Stars.
But the Edmonton Oilers surprised them Thursday night.
Matt Benning scored the winning goal with 2:27 left in the third period as the Oilers erupted for a season-high goal total in a 5-4 victory over the Stars at Rogers Place.
The Oilers came into the game averaging 1.88 goals-per-game, and even less than that during a three-game road trip that saw the score just four times. However, they finally discovered their scoring touch to improve to 3-5-1 on the season.
Ryan-Nugent Hopkins scored twice while Connor McDavid, Patrick Maroon and Benning added singles in Edmonton's second win in seven games.
The Stars (5-5-0) lost their second in a row. Jamie Benn scored twice for Dallas, which also got goals from Alexander Radulov and Esa Lindell.
McDavid made it 1-0 at 10:31 if the first period, marking the first time Edmonton had a lead in regulation since the second game of the season, a span of 427 minutes. Unfortunately, it lasted all of 63 seconds before the Stars tied it on Benn's first goal of the night.
Maroon restored the lead at 19:35 of the first period.
The team continued trading punches in the second, with Radulov scoring on a power play at 2:58, Nugent-Hopkins tying it for Edmonton at 13:46 and Benn tying it again on another power play at 16:19 to make it 3-3 after 40 minutes.
Lindell gave the Stars their first lead of the game at 10:25 of the third period on yet another power play, but this time the Oilers fought back to tie it on another one from Nugent-Hopkins at 12:16.
Benning scored the winner on a point-shot that banked in off of Radulov's skate.
The Oilers finally found some offense, but their penalty killing was a disaster, giving up three goals on five Dallas chances.
NOTES: C Connor McDavid's goal marked the first time the Oilers scored first in seven games. They were 1-4-1 in that span. ... Edmonton rookie RW Kailer Yamamoto was a healthy scratch. He is two games away from the Oilers having to decide whether to keep him or send him back to junior hockey. ... Stars G Ben Bishop came into the game with a 5-1-1 record and 1.82 GAA against Edmonton. He made 30 saves in the loss. Oilers G Cam Talbot stopped 28 shots. ... Stars C Tyler Seguin extended his consecutive-game point streak to six, notching four goals and five assists in that span. ... Dallas LW Jamie Benn has five goals in his past three games and 16 goals in 26 career games against the Oilers. ... The Oilers have given up 10 power-play goals in their first nine games. It took them 25 games to give up 10 last year.