EDMONTON — The longest point streak in the NHL this season will extend through the holiday break.
Nikita Kucherov had a goal and four assists while Steven Stamkos and Tyler Johnson each scored twice as the Tampa Bay Lightning extended their point streak to 12 games with a 6-3 victory over the Edmonton Oilers on Saturday.
"I’m just playing hockey and trying to enjoy the game, trying to make the right play every time and sometimes it doesn’t happen, sometimes it happen and today it happened," Kucherov said.
J.T Miller also scored for the Lightning (28-7-2), who have gone an impressive 11-0-1 in their last 12 games.
"I think we played great," said Lightning defenceman Victor Hedman. "Overall, it was a great performance by the guys and you can tell we really wanted to win this game and go into the break on a high note and we’re feeling good about ourselves."
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Alex Chiasson and Leon Draisaitl scored while Connor McDavid had three assists for the Oilers (18-15-3), who have lost three straight.
"Rather than relying on the same people every night to do everything, I’m trying to get people connected," said Oilers head coach Ken Hitchcock. "We’re going to have to figure out who’s helping and who’s hurting, for us get to another level.
"We can’t keep doing it the same way over and over. It’s not going to work."
Chiasson added: "To win every night, it doesn’t matter who you’re playing… we’re going to need a little better out of everyone."
Oilers goalie Mikko Koskinen lost for the first time on home ice, dropping to 7-1-0.
Edmonton got on the board first midway through the opening period on a give-and-go play from McDavid to Nugent-Hopkins, who sent his 12th goal of the season past Tampa Bay goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy.
McDavid picked up his 200th career assist on the play, becoming just the sixth player in NHL history to reach the milestone before his 22nd birthday – joining a club including Wayne Gretzky, Sidney Crosby, Mario Lemieux, Dale Hawerchuk and Ron Francis.
Tampa Bay tied it up on the power play with three minutes left in the first when Stamkos blasted a one-timer past Koskinen for his 19th of the season.
Koskinen made a huge save on a Kucherov breakaway early in the second.
The Oilers pulled back in front on the power play three minutes into the middle frame on a Chiasson tip of a point blast by Darnell Nurse.
Kucherov got another clear breakaway with seven minutes left in the second period and this time made no mistake in scoring his 16th goal.
The Lightning went up 3-2 a minute-and-a-half later as Miller redirected in a shot from the front of the net.
Tampa Bay added to its lead four minutes into the second when Johnson pounced on a big rebound for his 15th.
Edmonton got that one back quickly on a power play as McDavid fed it to Draisaitl for his 17th of the season, however the Lightning put it away on Stamkos’s second of the game with five minutes left and got an empty-netter from Johnson.
Both teams are now off for the holiday break until Thursday when the Oilers play host to the Vancouver Canucks and the Lightning return home to face the Philadelphia Flyers.
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