Oilers hold off Flames after nearly blowing big lead
CALGARY, Alberta -- Jesse Puljujarvi scored twice and the Edmonton Oilers withstood a third-period charge by the Calgary Flames to beat their provincial rival 7-5 on Saturday.
The Oilers hung on after leading 6-1 heading into the third period. They have now won six straight against Calgary.
Jujhar Khaira, Mark Letestu, Milan Lucic, Pat Maroon and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins scored for the Oilers (11-14-2). Lucic also had two assists.
Sam Bennett with two, Michael Frolik, Micheal Ferland and Johnny Gaudreau scored for the Flames (14-11-1).
Bennett (twice), Ferland and Gaudreau scored within a span of 7:12 in the period to get Calgary back in the game but Flames defensemen TJ Brodie knocked Nugent-Hopkins' pass into his own net with 1:01 remaining in the third period.
The Oilers have won three of four and their only loss was a frustrating 6-4 defeat at the hand of the Toronto Maple Leafs at home on Thursday that ended with Edmonton's Kris Russell scoring the decisive goal into his own net with just over a minute to go.
Oilers regular backup Laurent Brossoit made 29 saves for his first win in eight games. He's taken over for injured No. 1 Cam Talbot, who is on injured reserve with an upper-body injury.
Mike Smith surrendered five goals on 27 shots and was replaced after the second period by David Rittich. Smith has started 23 of Calgary's first 26 games.
Puljujarvi opened the scoring at 10:31 of the first. Connor McDavid fed Drake Caggiula, who missed the net. The puck bounced off the boards to Puljujarvi and he backhanded it past Smith.
His second came 4:04 later when a shot from the point hit his ankle and found the net. The young Finn has four goals in 10 games since being recalled from the American Hockey League.
The Flames got on the board with a short-handed marker at 16:21 of the first. Mikael Backlund picked Matt Benning's pocket, raced in on a two-on-one with Frolik, who buried the pass.
Khaira made it a two-goal game again 1:23 later with a snapshot through Smith's pads from the slot.
Smith faced three breakaways in the second period and stopped two of them. The one he didn't was Letestu's short-handed marker at 3:40.
Lucic deflected a point shot in with 22 seconds left in the period.
Maroon made it 6-1 early in the third on a wrap-around.
Bennett scored from a bad angle from the boards at 5:04 and Ferland got the Flames to within 6-3 on a wrister 3:09 later.
Bennett burst down the left wing and put a shot over Brossoit's shoulder.
NOTES: Flames RW Kris Versteeg will have hip surgery Monday in New York. He suffered a labrum injury Nov. 24 in Dallas. ... Oilers D Adam Larsson missed his third straight game because of an upper-body injury. He is not expected to miss more than a week, Oilers coach Todd McLellan told reporters Friday. ... Oilers RW Liro Pakarinen cleared waivers Saturday and was signed to the Bakersfield Condors of the American Hockey League. ... Edmonton healthy scratches were LW Anton Slepyshev, D Ryan Stanton and D Yohann Auvitu. ... Not dressed for Calgary were C Curtis Lazar, C Freddie Hamilton and D Matt Bartkowski. ... Flames undrafted captain Mark Giordano will play his 700 game Monday, when the Philadelphia Flyers visit Calgary.