The Edmonton Oilers’ game on Tuesday felt closer before the final score emerged. A second-period play involving Darnell Nurse changed the flow of the game and drew disagreement from the Colorado bench.
Edmonton also continued the game without its starting goaltender after the incident. That moment likely influenced how the third period played out and set up the deciding goal.
Darnell Nurse Collision Ejects Nathan MacKinnon in Oilers Win
The Oilers defeated the Colorado Avalanche, 4–3, on Tuesday at Ball Arena after a game that swung dramatically during the second period.
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins scored two goals for Edmonton, while Leon Draisaitl and Evan Bouchard each recorded two assists. The winning play arrived midway through the third period when Connor McDavid scored on the power play, beating Mackenzie Blackwood with a snap shot at 9:03. The Oilers captain had also assisted on the team’s first goal.
Before that goal, the game changed during a controversial moment late in the second period involving Oilers defenseman Nurse.
While trying to defend a rush, Nurse dove and collided with Colorado forward Nathan MacKinnon, and the contact pushed MacKinnon toward Edmonton goaltender Connor Ingram. The impact knocked Ingram to the ice and left him with a cut on his forehead.
The injury forced Ingram to leave the game before the third period began. Tristan Jarry replaced him late in the second period and continued in relief for the rest of the night.
Despite Colorado’s argument, officials upheld the ruling on the ice. MacKinnon received a five-minute major penalty for goaltender interference, along with an automatic game misconduct, and was ejected with 35 seconds remaining in the second period.
The call removed one of Colorado’s top players from the remainder of the game. MacKinnon entered the matchup leading the NHL with 43 goals and ranking second in the league with 104 points. He had only 20 penalty minutes through 61 games before Tuesday’s game and had never been suspended in his 931-game NHL career.
Edmonton had to rely on Jarry after Ingram’s exit, and the goaltender handled the situation well. Jarry stopped 11 shots in relief as the Oilers held on for the win in the final period.
Sportsnet reporter Mark Spector later commented on the difficult stretch surrounding Nurse’s recent plays. Posting on X, Spector wrote, “That’s the third goal in as many games that goes off Nurse and past an Edmonton goalie. An incredible run of poor luck.”
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Nurse still contributed to the Oilers’ effort by recording an assist in the win. The 31-year-old defenseman now has 21 points through 65 games this season while also providing physicality and shot-blocking throughout the contest.
Colorado received goals from Ross Colton, Martin Necas, and Valeri Nichushkin, but Edmonton closed the game after McDavid’s third-period goal and secured the 4–3 victory. The result also ended Colorado’s five-game winning streak.
