Oilers clinch home ice for first round
VANCOUVER, British Columbia -- Iiro Pakarinen's power-play goal proved to be the winner as the Edmonton Oilers beat the Vancouver Canucks 3-2 on Saturday night in the second-to-last game of the NHL regular season for both teams.
Pakarinen gave the Oilers a 3-1 lead at 9:20 of the third as he put in Milan Lucic's rebound. After coming out of the penalty box, Lucic had a partial breakaway and got a shot away while holding off Canucks defenseman Troy Stecher. As Lucic followed through on the shot, his stick hit Stecher in the face and as he lay writhing on the ice in pain, the goal was scored.
Edmonton (46-26-9) remained in contention for the Pacific Division title while clinching home-ice advantage for its first-round playoff series against San Jose or Calgary.
The Oilers posted their ninth win in 11 games as they cracked the 100-point barrier for the first time since 1986-87, when they posted 106. They managed 70 points last season.
The Canucks (30-42-9) suffered their seventh straight loss and finished 18-17-6 at home.
Vancouver visits Edmonton on Sunday night.
Jordan Eberle and Mark Letestu also scored for the Oilers. Edmonton captain Connor McDavid earned an assist to extend his points streak to 13 games -- the longest in the NHL this season.
Rookie Brock Boeser and Alex Edler with his 300th career point replied for the Canucks.
Vancouver captain Henrik Sedin assisted on both goals. Edmonton goaltender Cam Talbot recorded 29 saves while Vancouver counterpart Ryan Miller stopped 32 shots.
Eberle opened the scoring 1:01 into the second period. His shot ramped up Stecher's stick and went in over Miller's shoulder.
Boeser created a 1-1 tie at 16:36 of the second, firing in Sedin's goalmouth backhand pass during a power play.
Letestu put the Oilers ahead 2-1 on a power play at 3:04 of the third period as he deflected in McDavid's pass from the side boards during an Edmonton man-advantage situation. The power play extended from late in the second period when Vancouver's Reid Boucher took a double-minor for high-sticking.
With Miller pulled for an extra attacker, Edler scored in the final minute.
NOTES: Oilers G Cam Talbot made his NHL-leading 73rd start of the season. ... C Bo Horvat was chosen as Vancouver's most valuable player and most exciting player for 2016-17 as the Canucks played their final home game of the season before closing out their campaign Sunday in Edmonton. ... Oilers rising superstar Connor McDavid led the NHL in scoring at some point in all seven months of the season. He is poised to become the first player to win the Art Ross Trophy in his second NHL season since Pittsburgh Penguins C Sidney Crosby in 2006-07. ... Canucks W Sven Baertschi missed the game because of a neck injury suffered Thursday in Arizona. He will also miss Sunday's season finale in Edmonton. ... Vancouver's Alex Biega, usually a defenseman, played wing on the fourth line Saturday. He played as a forward periodically this season. ... Oilers W Leon Draisaitl (75 points) eclipsed the NHL mark for most points by a German player in a single season. He bettered Marco Sturm, who managed 59 with the Boston Bruins and San Jose Sharks in 2005-06. At the time, Sturm was in his eighth NHL campaign. Draisaitl is in his second full NHL season.