PREMATCH REPORT: Oilers vs. Golden Knights

If goaltender Calvin Pickard hadn’t made 29 saves, including some crucial saves in crucial moments, it certainly wouldn’t have been such a rousing win for the Oilers against a Wild team that has been so successful in the past.

Skinner has posted a save percentage of .935 or better in each of his last five starts, while Pickard’s only two losses in his previous nine starts (7-2-0) were narrow losses to New Jersey and Montreal, showing that the Die The backup’s performances were generally good enough when he was between the posts.

“I think lately it’s been the goalies and how well they’ve been playing,” Knoblauch said. “Look at the game the other night against Minnesota where we won convincingly and it was close.

“I think about the power play in the second period, I think it was 3-1, and that’s a different game when you take that into account. There were numerous times where a crucial save was made and it looked like the game was closer than it looked. We’ve had some of these games recently where we’ve won convincingly, but I just think our saves have been big and often at crucial moments of the game.

Edmonton’s blueline has contributed 19 goals this season, second best in the NHL behind the Blue Jackets with 20, after Minnesota defenseman Troy Stecher scored his second goal in three games to make it 6-1 for the Oilers in the third period .

Ty Emberson had an active game against the Wild, tussling with Jakub Lauko before adding an assist.

“It’s not an easy thing – center ice, a national broadcast and all that stuff. He’s a killer back there,” Mattias Ekholm said of Emberson. “This is crazy. I didn’t know he had what it took, but he showed it clearly last night and was great for us.”

“I think it took him a few weeks, maybe a month, to kind of get his head around it and find his way around it. He’s new to the league, but now I really feel like he’s doing well, finding his role and knowing what he needs to do. “I think he’s doing a great job for us.