You can't win 'em all. At least, that's what the old saying goes. Life will throw you some undesirable curveballs, whether it's your car with the "check engine" light on or an unexpected breakup. It's a matter of overcoming those bumps in the road, similar to the one Ivan Barbashev and the Vegas Golden Knights endured on Saturday afternoon.
The Edmonton Oilers doubled the Golden Knights, 6-3. Connor McDavid and company exploded for four second-period goals to the tune of a 5-0 lead. Although the Golden Knights responded with three straight goals (including a Brett Howden short-handed goal one minute into the third), the Oilers got one last goal from Jeff Skinner 38 seconds later.
It wasn't the best night for Adin Hill, either. The Calgary native stopped 28 of 34 shots, but was hammered by the four-goal barrage in the second period. Meanwhile, Stuart Skinner stopped 38 of 41 shots for the Oilers, keeping the game from becoming an old-fashioned barnburner.
Connor McDavid notched an assist while Leon Draisaitl scored his 22nd goal. Other Oilers to score include Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (sixth, power play goal), Zach Hyman (eighth), Connor Brown (fifth), and Corey Perry (sixth).
This game wasn't pretty by any stretch of the imagination. Penalties (four penalty minutes) and giveaways also lost the game for the Golden Knights. In turn, the Oilers won their fifth straight game and beat Vegas for the first time this season. Here are three takeaways from Saturday's dud in Edmonton.
1.) Brett Howden continues to impress
Scoring a career-high 11th goal should always feel good. Coupled with a contract extension worth five years and $2.5 million AAV, you should have some nice feelings after a game. Brett Howden felt that on Saturday night, pouncing on a mistake from Stuart Skinner.
The Edmonton Oilers netminder had an Ilya Samsonov-esque moment, misplaying the puck on a dump. Howden jumped on the loose puck, skated around the net, and put the Vegas Golden Knights within two.
The 26-year-old continues impressing fans and the front office with his improved play. His speed has helped the penalty kill, specifically on this play. Poaching pucks and disrupting the man advantage flow is part of that improvement.
It's no wonder he got a five-year extension with the Golden Knights. Flying around and being the energy player the team needs goes a long way in keeping the team atop the division. Expect more exciting moments from Howden in the upcoming years.