The Oilers had a chance at history last night, as they could’ve won their 17th straight game.
The Oilers had not lost a single game since Dec. 19 but fell just one game short of tying the record set by the Pittsburgh Penguins, who won 17 straight in 1992-93.
It was clear how much the Oilers wanted that record, and they got a pretty good start against the Vegas Golden Knights on Tuesday.
Connor McDavid scored a shorthanded breakaway goal early in the first, and overall, the Oilers played a great game.
But it would turn out to be the only goal the Oilers scored. Adin Hill had a fantastic game in goal, robbing Leon Draisaitl with a mask save at one point, and with some luck, the Oilers would’ve won Tuesday night comfortably.
But they didn’t, and now, they’re just tied for the second-longest winning streak in NHL history.
Vegas scored to make it 3-1 through an empty-netter from William Karlsson, and Connor McDavid didn’t even try to hide how much it bothered him.
McDavid sat down on the bench and even threw a water bottle in disappointment over the loss.
It’s not often we see the Oilers captain express his emotions that much, and postgame, McDavid explained why.
“It’s fresh. We’re disappointed we lost tonight. It’s been a while since we’ve done that. You forget sometimes how bad you hate losing. It’s a good reminder,” he said.
The game had a playoff wipe to it, and with how strong the Canucks is going at the moment, it’s getting more and more likely we’ll see a first-round meeting between the Oilers and the Golden Knights.
”Two good teams going at it. It was a little bit of a playoff-like atmosphere. Tight games happen; you have to go out and get it and obviously we didn’t do that. I liked a lot of parts of our game,” McDavid said.
