National Hockey League
Edmonton 4, Florida 2
When: 2:00 PM ET, Saturday, March 17, 2018
Where: BB&T Center, Sunrise, Florida
Referees: Dean Morton, Kendrick Nicholson
Linesmen: Pierre Racicot, Tony Sericolo
Attendance: 14192
Connor McDavid scored the tying goal and had an assist on the go-ahead score as the Edmonton Oilers rallied to defeat the host Florida Panthers 4-2 on Saturday afternoon at the BB&T Center.

McDavid also added an assist on Ty Rattie's empty-net goal with 50 seconds left. McDavid has 19 goals in his past 22 games. For the season, he has 34 goals and 55 assists, ranking him third in the NHL with 89 points entering Saturday night.

All three of McDavid's points came in the third period.

Despite the loss, the Panthers are 16-5-1 since Jan. 30 and 9-2-0 in their past 11 home games as they chase a playoff berth.

Edmonton's Ryan Nugent-Hopkins also had a goal and an assist, and Adam Larsson scored the go-ahead goal with 13:47 left in the third period.

Frank Vatrano and Vincent Trocheck scored for Florida. Trocheck, who scored a hat trick at Edmonton on Feb. 12, has a team-high 28 goals to extend his career best.

The Panthers were 0-for-6 on their power play, and Oilers goalie Cam Talbot made 40 saves. Panthers goalie Roberto Luongo made 32 saves.

Florida opened the scoring with 11:58 remaining in the second period.

Talbot made what became a poor decision to race about 40 feet out of his net to try to get to a loose puck before Vatrano arrived. Vatrano won the race and easily skated to his left, around Talbot, before shooting into an empty net.

Edmonton tied the score three minutes later on a short-handed goal by Nugent-Hopkins, who scored on a wrist shot from the left circle, getting the puck under Luongo's glove. Leon Draisaitl got the assist, helping to generate that odd-man rush.

Florida took a 2-1 lead with 4:06 left in the second period. Trocheck, skating on the left wing, took a pass from Derek MacKenzie and hit the far side of the net, under Talbot's arm.

Edmonton tied the score just 38 seconds into the third period as McDavid shot the puck between the legs of Panthers defenseman Aaron Ekblad. The shot got past two more Panthers players and Luongo before hitting the net.

The Oilers took their first lead of the game on Larsson a bad-angle shot from below the right circle as the puck went in off Luongo's pads. Florida argued goalie interference on Rattie, but the Panthers were denied after a brief video review.

-- Field Level Media

Top Game Performances
 
Edmonton   Florida
Connor McDavid 3 Points Vincent Trocheck 1
Connor McDavid 1 Goals Vincent Trocheck 1
Connor McDavid 2 Assists Aaron Ekblad 1
N/A Power Play Goals N/A
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins 1 Short Handed Goals N/A
Cam Talbot .952 Save Percentage Roberto Luongo .914
Cam Talbot 40 Saves Roberto Luongo 32
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Shots Goals Power Play Penalty Kill Penalty Mins Face Offs Won
Edmonton 36 4 0-1 6-6 19 34
Florida 42 2 0-6 1-1 9 29
Upcoming Games
  • Florida will play their next game on the road against Montreal. The Panthers have a W/L % of .514 after a win and .500 after a loss.
  • Edmonton will play their next game on the road against Tampa Bay. The Oilers have a W/L % of .367 after a win and .488 after a loss.