Oilers close in on Stanley Cup final
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins scored a pair of power-play goals to lead the Edmonton Oilers to a 3-1 victory over the host Dallas Stars on Friday and put them one win away from the Stanley Cup Final. Philip Broberg added his first career playoff goal and Stuart Skinner made 19 saves for the Oilers, who lead the best-of-seven Western Conference final 3-2. They will try to finish the series Sunday night at home. Even Bouchard posted two assists, which gives the defenseman 25 points in Edmonton's 17 playoff games. Wyatt Johnston replied for the Stars, the conference's regular-season champions, who have lost two straight games in the series. Goalie Jake Oettinger stopped 23 shots. Nugent-Hopkins netted the first power-play goal of the series for either team when he opened the scoring at 14:09 of the first period. After Bouchard's point shot was stopped, Nugent-Hopkins chipped a back-handed rebound attempt into the cage. Nugent-Hopkins, the 2011 first overall draft choice who is Edmonton's longest serving player, doubled the lead with another man-advantage marker 66 seconds into the second period. He was fed a pass in the slot and whipped a shot off the post and into the net for his sixth goal of the playoffs. Broberg, who played his first game of the playoffs in Game 4, netted his milestone marker at 5:09 of the middle frame with a long slap shot that beat Oettinger's glove hand. Johnston finally put the Stars on the board with 5:51 remaining in regulation by deflecting a point shot for his 10th goal of the playoffs. It snapped Skinner's shutout streak at 108 minutes and 43 seconds. The Stars, who were held to only four shots on goal in the first period, had a tough time generating many shots the whole game, but Skinner provided a few key saves, including a clutch denial of Johnston's attempt from the slot when it was a 2-0 count.