Oilers use the back shot to get past Avs, 6-2 Oilers punch ticket to playoffs

In Edmonton, Evander Kane and Connor McDavid hit for doubles on Friday night in a 6-2 thumping of the visiting Colorado Avalanche.

The win clinched a playoff spot for the Oilers.

After trailing 2-1 in the opening stanza, the Oilers reeled off five unanswered goals.

“We really buckled down after a really poor start (to the season),” Edmonton’s Leon Draisaitl said. “There’s a lot of resiliency and character in this group. It’s only one step, of course, [but] it’s a step that you need to do to give yourself a chance to win.”

Stuart Skinner made 21 saves in the win.

The Oilers moved to 46-24-5.

The two teams traded a pair of goals in the opening stanza.

Corey Perry staked the Oilers to a 1-0 lead at 1:52, scoring off a deflection.

Jonathan Drouin replied for Colorado at 11:58 to tie the game, 1-1, scoring off shot from the high slot.

Ross Colton  then put the Avs ahead, 2-1, 15:59, scoring after a solo effort.

Edmonton then started their run with McDavid tying the game, 2-2, at 17:18, scroing off a bank shot on an Avs skate.

The Avalanche dropped to 48-23-6.

“We weren’t good enough,” Colorado coach Jared Bednar said. “It’s a tough game to start coming into, getting in late playing the back-to-back end of the road trip. My No. 1 concern was our energy, it looked like we lacked it. And with the lack of energy comes the lack of execution.

“We weren’t smart enough and they outplayed us. They’re a hungry team, they got beat up the other night in Dallas (5-0 loss on Wednesday), we knew we were going to see the best version of them. We may have, but we didn’t give ourselves a chance.”

In the middle frame, the Oilers continued the run with Mattias Ekholm hitting 8:55 to give the Oilers a 3-2 lad, scoring off another bank shot off a Colorado skate.

“For the last two seconds of that play, I am trying to get my stick toward the puck and I just can’t do it because I have somebody climbing on my back,” Ekholm said. “I am trying to move and make a shot but I can’t get a shot off, so in my opinion I am getting pushed in there.

“I’m not going right at him, I guess I am going on the side, but there was no chance for me to avoid contact at that point. I think the rule stands that way, where you get pushed in or helped in there, it is supposed to stand and it is nice to see that.”

Kane potted his first of the night with two seconds left on the clock in the second period for a 4-2 advantage headed to the third.  He was credited with the goal after the puck caromed off this leg.

“It was nice to end the streak tonight. It seemed like that was the only way it was going to go in,” Kane said. “Any time you’re going double digits without scoring it’s never fun, so however it goes in you’ll take it.”

McDavid collected his double in the third period when he scored at 4:05, scoring off a  nifty pass form Evan Bouchard for a 5-2 lead..

Kane picked up his double at 11:59, scoring off yet another bank shot for the 6-2 final count on the scoreboard.

Colorado’s Mikko Rantanen left the ice early in the middle frame with an apparent injury, after taking a hit along the boards.

“Obviously, you guys saw what happened, right? He takes a hit and was unable to continue, so he’ll be under evaluation for a while,” Bednar said. “All I saw was one quick replay.

“He clearly catches him high, he catches his head. My first look at the replay didn’t look like it was intentional, it just kind of caught him wrong.”

Alexandar Georgiev made 40 saves in the loss.