Coyotes 3, Oilers 1
COYOTES 3, OILERS 1: Mike Smith stopped 21 shots for his 10th consecutive victory as red-hot Phoenix cruised past Edmonton.
Oliver Ekman-Larsson and Ray Whitney had first-period goals and Shane Doan added a third-period marker for the Coyotes, who improved to 10-0-1 in February to move two points clear of San Jose atop the Pacific Division. The Sharks dropped a 6-2 decision to Nashville later in the day.
Ekman-Larsson opened the scoring for Phoenix at 5:43, firing a shot from the point that glanced off the leg of Oilers defenseman Jeff Petry and past netminder Devan Dubnyk.
Antoine Vermette thought he had given the Coyotes a 2-0 lead a short time later, but a video review confirmed the whistled had been blown prior to the puck crossing the goal line.
Whitney left no doubt with 1:14 remaining, blowing past Oilers defenseman Ladislav Smid on the outside and tucking a shot beneath Dubnyk.
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins finally put the Oilers on the board with 11:32 remaining in the third period, tipping home an Ales Hemsky shot in his return after missing 20 of the previous 23 games with a shoulder injury.
Doan put the game away with 2:28 left, whipping a wrist shot into the top corner for his 20th goal of the season.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Hemsky, who signed a two-year, $10-million contract extension Friday, has just one goal in his last 19 games. ... Phoenix has won nine of the last 10 meetings between the teams. ... Coyotes F Martin Hanzal had two assists, his fourth multi-point effort in the last 11 games.