Leon Draisaitl, Mike Smith power Oilers over Predators

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Leon Draisaitl had three goals and Mike Smith made 30 saves, leading the Edmonton Oilers to a 4-0 win over the Nashville Predators on Thursday night.

Draisaitl’s hat trick gave him 54 goals this season, four behind NHL-leading Auston Matthews (58) of Toronto.

Darnell Nurse also scored and Connor McDavid and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins each had two assists for Edmonton, which snapped a two-game losing streak. The Oilers swept the three-game season series with Nashville and have beaten the Predators six straight games.

"We knew that in order for us to walk away with two points, we needed everybody firing on all cylinders," Edmonton coach Jay Woodcroft said. "We came at that team in waves tonight, we skated well and we asserted what we wanted to do on them."

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Edmonton Oilers' Leon Draisaitl (29) is congratulated by Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (93) after Draisaitl scored a goal against the Nashville Predators in the first period of an NHL hockey game Thursday, April 14, 2022, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

The shutout was Smith’s first of the season and the 43rd of his career. His finest save came 24 seconds into the third period when he made a glove save of Matt Duchene’s shot from close range on the right side.

"He made a good move on me and I kind of bit on it then just instincts kick in and you try and get something on it and it ended up in my glove," Smith said. "Obviously, it’s an important time of the game to make a save like that."

Juuse Saros made 28 saves for Nashville, which has lost three of four. The Predators entered Thursday in the Western Conference’s top wild-card spot by one