Avalanche center Nathan MacKinnon extended Colorado’s lead in its Western Conference showdown against the Oilers with two first-period goals in rapid succession.

Nathan MacKinnon is good for at least a handful of highlight-reel goals each season. His second tally in Thursday’s first period at Ball Arena was exactly that.

The Edmonton Oilers defeated the Colorado Avalanche 4-3 in an NHL Western Conference clash at Ball Arena in Denver on Thursday (Jan. 16) night. Viktor Arvidsson, Evan Bouchard, Brett Kulak and Connor McDavid scored for the Oilers.

Thursday night’s high-powered showdown between the star-laden offenses of the Avalanche and Oilers, featuring the league’s past two Hart Memorial Trophy winners, lived up to its

The CH won their game against the Stars, but we also need to talk about what happened elsewhere across the league. Nathan MacKinnon is part of the elite in the National League. And we saw it last night, as the Avalanche hosted the powerful Oilers at home.

Tonight's matchup features Nathan MacKinnon, Draisaitl ... Calvin Pickard played in their win over the Minnesota Wild on Wednesday, all signs point to Stuart Skinner earning the start tonight. For the Avalanche on the other side of the ice, it'll be ...

Calvin Pickard makes 28 saves to earn his ninth win in his last 10 starts, helping lift the Oilers back into first place in the Pacific Division on Monday night with a 4-2 victory over the Kraken at R

Hopkins' second goal of the game snapped a tie with 11:01 left as the Connor McDavid-less Edmonton Oilers overcame a barrage of Buffalo shots in the final two periods to beat the Sabres, 3-2, Saturday at Rogers Place.

The Edmonton Oilers went 2-1-0 in three games last week, improving to 31-15-3 on the season. With their win over the Buffalo Sabres on Saturday afternoon, they claimed the top spot in the Pacific Division for the first time in five years.

The Sabres didn't have a shot on goal for the first 11 minutes of this game but had a 19-7 advantage in the third period and didn't score. Over the final two periods, they had 36 shots on goal, 35 scoring chances and and 12 high-danger chances,

Draisaitl leads the league with 35 goals, while his 75 points on the year have him closing in on the only player with more, Nathan Mackinnon of the Colorado Avalanche (77). The fact he’s not even considered the Oilers’ best player is icing on Edmonton’s cake.

The Edmonton Oilers wake up this Sunday morning in First Place in the Pacific Division, and third overall in the NHL. The Oilers went 2-1 with Connor McDavid out due to suspension and have been 25-8-2 since November 9 th. How different will the Oilers look when Connor is back is not the question. How officials will look at him…is.