DENVER – Defenseman Justin Schultz broke a second-period tie and Richard Bachman stopped 29 shots, helping the Edmonton Oilers snap a five-game road losing streak by beating the Colorado Avalanche 4-1 on Monday night.
Brandon Davidson scored his first NHL goal, while Nikita Nikitin and Taylor Hall scored empty-net goals 32 seconds apart to help Edmonton capture its first game away from home since Feb. 24 at Minnesota. Andrew Miller added three assists.
Ryan O'Reilly scored for the Avalanche, who failed to gain ground as their postseason chances grew slimmer. They trail Winnipeg by eight points for the last wild-card spot in the Western Conference with six games remaining.
Trailing by a goal, Colorado pulled Semyon Varlamov with around 2:25 remaining. But Nikitin launched a shot from his own blue line that found the empty net. Hall scored right after to seal the win.
Bachman frustrated the Avalanche all game, making one brilliant save after another, including one with his head that knocked off his mask.
This has been quite a stretch for Bachman. He shut out Dallas — his former team — last week and now beat Colorado. Bachman played down the road at Colorado College in Colorado Springs.
With his first-period goal, O'Reilly has at least a point in a career-best eight straight games. He's scored five times and dished out eight assists during the stretch.
Schultz took advantage of a miscue by defenseman Nate Guenin, who struggled to corral a loose puck. Schultz sped by him and beat Varlamov with a backhand to give the Oilers a 2-1 lead at 15:28 of the second period.
Bachman was exceptional in the middle period, stopping a point-blank shot by Tyson Barrie, kicking away an attempt from Gabriel Landeskog and even using his helmet to stop Matt Duchene's hard liner.
Davidson gave the Oilers an early lead when he pinched in from the blue line and tapped in a shot off a cross-ice pass from Anton Lander. Davidson was recalled from Oklahoma City of the American Hockey League last Thursday. He had four goals in 52 games with the Barons this season.
O'Reilly tied the game at 13:18 of the opening period on a play he helped orchestrate. Leading a rush up the ice, O'Reilly cruised up the right boards before dropping the puck back to a trailing Alex Tanguay, who took a slap shot that bounced off Bachman's pads. O'Reilly was there to knock in the rebound for his 15th goal of the season.
NOTES: Oilers RW Jordan Eberle played in his 350th game. ... Mark Fayne (shoulder), Andrew Ference (concussion) and Boyd Gordon (back) were all scratches. ... Avalanche D Erik Johnson (knee) will practice Tuesday. Coach Patrick Roy said a decision will be made after that about when he will play. Johnson has been out since late January. ... Colorado starts a three-game road swing Wednesday at San Jose. ... O'Reilly was the league's third star for his production last week. He had a goal and seven assists. "It's nice to get that," O'Reilly said.
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