In Edmonton, Thatcher Demko made 31 saves and the Vancouver Canucks defeated the Oilers, 4-1, on Saturday.
“You know that’s going to be a desperation play,” Demko said. “I noticed he was in a good enough spot to raise it, so I was just trying to elevate my leg a little bit to help give myself a chance to get a piece of it. It was kind of sitting on the goal line for a split second and luckily we were able to live to see another day.”
Connor McDavid assisted on the Oilers’ goal for 105 points on the season.
“That game was a win if nobody got hurt, and nobody got hurt, so we’re taking a win,” Oilers head coach Dave Tippett said. “Other than that, it was a game that had no meaning to it from our side, so we got through it fine.”
Adam Larsson scored Edmonton’s lone goal.
“It would have been nice to end on a high note, but we’ve had a great season and now the important stuff starts,” the Oilers’ Tyson Barrie said. “It was good to get that one out of the way.”
Matthew Highmore struck for two goals for Vancouver.
“The guys stuck with it, had a big third [period],” Vancouver head coach Travis Green said. “To come on the road and play a lot of games and go .500 (3-3-0), I thought it was a good trip.”
The Canucks improved to 22-28-3, with three games left on their dance card.
“I like [Highmore’s] game a lot. He’s tenacious on pucks and he’s good in his own end,” Horvat said. “Obviously, you saw tonight he can put the puck in the net when he wants to. He’s been a great addition to our group, a good guy in the locker room and we’re happy to have him.”
Bo Horvat and Travis Boyd added single markers for the Canucks.
The Oilers ended their season with a record of 35-19-2.
Mikko Koskinen made 37 saves in the loss.
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