Skinner, Nugent-Hopkins lead Edmonton Oilers to 3-0 victory over Stars in Game 2 to even series

It wasn’t the same Edmonton Oilers team from the third period of Game 1 when they gave up five goals to the Stars. It wasn’t the same Stuart Skinner, either.

The Oilers did everything right in the second game of the Western Conference final — from exemplary shot blocking, immaculate special teams and a standout shutout performance from Skinner — to beat the Dallas Stars 3-0 and even the series at one game apiece.

“We’ve shown it for many years now, just perseverance from our team, maturity, just the way that we do respond,” Skinner said. “I said it at the beginning of playoffs, it’s a roller-coaster. There’s lot of highs, lots of lows. Sometimes the score doesn’t always tell everybody exactly how the game unfolded. A few minutes where we didn’t play our best, it looks a lot worse than what it was.

“For us, just going back to tonight, it was really just playing the same game, doing the same thing, put on our work boots and get to work. That’s what it takes.”

Skinner stopped all 25 shots he faced — his third shutout of the post-season — and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins scored once and added an assist to lead the Oilers to victory and earn a crucial split on the road. Brett Kulak and Connor Brown also found the back of the net for the Oilers, and Evan Bouchard had two assists.

The series now shifts to Edmonton for Games 3 and 4.

“We bounce back,” said Oilers captain Connor McDavid. “We believe that we’re a good team. In a tough situation, down one on the road, you gotta find a way to have your best game, and we definitely had a good one. Found a way to get a win.

“We played defence, Stu was great.”

Skinner had already stopped 16 shots heading into the third period, at which point he put together a highlight reel of saves. He denied Wyatt Johnston on a breakaway two minutes into the frame, getting a piece of the shaft of his stick on the shot.

His best save came at the 10-minute mark of the period, with the teams playing four-on-four hockey. A Stars shot went off the end boards and fell right to Esa Lindell. With Skinner seemingly too far out of his net, the Edmonton goalie dove across his crease and got his stick down on the shot, redirecting it behind him as it skirted along the goal line and out.

That save cemented Skinner’s bounce-back performance just two days after the Game 1 meltdown.

“That’s just desperation, and I was lucky enough to get a stick on it,” Skinner told Sportsnet after the match.

Defence, penalty kill shows up

And it wasn’t just about the goaltending. The Oilers were overall tighter on defence and gave the Stars nothing on the power play — rectifying everything that went wrong in that third period.

After giving up those three special teams goals in Game 1, the Oilers’ penalty kill was under intense scrutiny coming into the second game of the series. It was tested — and showed it was up to that test — eight minutes into the first period when Corey Perry went to the box for roughing.

They did it again three minutes into the third period. With Darnell Nurse in the box for slashing, the Oilers played perfect shutdown hockey. They took away time and space in the slot, and prevented Dallas from putting together any good zone entries. The end of Dallas’ power play was met with a spattering of boos from the home crowd.

All that was left was some offence. Nugent-Hopkins scored 17 seconds into a Mikael Granlund boarding penalty to give Edmonton an early 1-0 lead, tapping in the puck from the doorstep after Bouchard’s shot from the point at 5:51.

The Oilers had chances to add to their lead, but Stars goalie Jake Oettinger made sure to keep the game close. He made a big save on Leon Draisaitl on an Edmonton quick break midway through the frame.

The Oilers did a good job taking away Dallas’ chances in the second period, shutting down play build-ups and blocking shots.

A two-goal lead proved insufficient heading into the third period of Game 1, so the Oilers made sure to step up their insurance this time around.

Edmonton scored two goals in quick succession through Kulak and Brown — 1:13 apart — late in the second to put the away side up 3-0.

Kulak’s first shot in the slot was blocked by Mikko Rantanen, but he put away his own follow-up shot up and over Oettinger at 15:23. Kulak snapped a 35-game goalless drought dating back to the regular season.

Brown then sent fans at the Oilers watch parties — inside and outside Rogers Place — into a frenzy when he perfectly redirected Nugent-Hopkins’ shot at 16:36.

Hintz carried off the ice

Early in the third, Roope Hintz left the game with a lower-body injury after taking a slash from Nurse. He dropped to the ice and appeared to grab his shin. The Stars did not provide an update on Hintz’s health after the game.

Nurse was given a two-minute penalty on the play, which prompted jeers from fans at American Airlines Center, who wanted to see a five-minute major.

Stars coach Peter DeBoer questioned that decision by the officials.

“Let me answer your questions with a question: Does anyone in this room think if Connor McDavid gets carried off the ice like that, it’s not a five-minute major? That’s my answer to your question,” DeBoer said.