After destroying the Dallas Stars by a 6-1 score on Sunday afternoon, the Edmonton Oilers were back at Rogers Place for Game 4 with the chance to take a stranglehold on the Western Conference Final. And while it wasn’t always perfect, the Oilers still managed to grind out a crucial 4-1 win to take a 3-1 series lead heading back to the American Airline Center for Game 5.

RYAN NUGENT-HOPKINS IS ON FIRE

Are you tired of me pumping Ryan Nugent-Hopkins’ tires yet? Too bad. The dude is on fire, has arguably been the best skater for either side in this series, and just put up his fourth consecutive multi-point game to start off the Western Conference Final. Pretty good, right? How about if I tell you that he became the first player in the last 35 years to start a conference final with four multi-point games? He joins Wayne Gretzky (1983, 1988), Cam Neely (1990), and Craig Janney (1990) as the only other players to do what he’s done since the 70s. McDavid hasn’t done it, Draisaitl hasn’t done it, Crosby hasn’t done it… only Nuge. Incredible.

If you’ve been around long enough to remember when RNH got drafted, you’ll likely remember how many horrible teams and seasons the guy slogged through without so much as a peep about it. He never complained, he never wanted out, and he handled his business in any role or job his (many) coaches asked him to do. So, I couldn’t be happier to see him have the success he’s had through the first four games of this series. With the two primary assists he picked up on Tuesday, Nugent-Hopkins has nine against the Stars (2G, 7A) and 18 points (5G, 13A) in 15 games overall. I know RNH had 104 points two seasons ago, but from where I was sitting in section 121, this is the best hockey I’ve ever seen him play.

STUART SKINNER REMAINS UNDEFEATED IN GAME 4S

If you haven’t heard about how unbelievable Stuart Skinner is in Game 4s of the playoffs, please allow me a moment to educate the class. Skinner is perfect in the six career Game 4s he’s played in the playoffs. Not only is he 6-0, but he’s done it with a .955 save percentage, a 1.26 goals-against average, and two shutouts. Friends, it doesn’t get much better than that. After getting tagged for five goals in Game 1, Skinner has gone on to stop 86 of 88 shots he’s faced in the three games since. That’s a ridiculous turnaround for a guy who lost the crease after the first two games in Los Angeles. It’s one of the best stories going. I wish I knew what was going on behind the scenes in those six games Skinner waited for his chance to get back in the crease, but whatever happened was clearly what he needed. It’s as if he found his Zen or something.

Either way, Stu continues to fill the net and gives the Stars nothing to shoot at, and that’s causing fits for some very good Stars scorers. And let’s be honest, had it not been for Skinner’s brilliance, we may not be talking about wins in the last two games. The Stars were the better team for big stretches of Games 3 and 4, but Edmonton’s goaltender was always there to cover up the mistakes when his teammates needed him. And even though that wasn’t happening early in the run or even at times during the regular season, I can tell you that nothing erases those memories quite like watching Stu do what he’s doing at the most important time of year. The job’s not finished, but Stuart Skinner is certainly playing like he wants to make that happen.

ZACH HYMAN LEAVES WITH UPPER-BODY INJURY

You can’t have a recap of last night’s win without talking about Zach Hyman leaving the game after only five shifts and 3:11 of TOI after Mason Marchment connected on a fly-by hit that clearly landed the wrong way. Hyman dropped his stick immediately after the hit and went straight down the tunnel, his right shoulder seemingly sagging as TD Forss trailed behind. I was sitting across the ice from the Oilers’ bench and kept watching to see if Hyman would come back, but you knew it was bad when the rest of the first period played out and he was nowhere to be seen. He’s not the kind of player to fake it, you know?

While we don’t yet know what the injury is or how long Hyman will be out, it’s hard to imagine we’re going to get good news based on how he left the game. TSN’s Ryan Rishaug spoke after the game about how Zach Hyman was waiting to congratulate the boys when they got off the ice, but he was using his left hand to fist-bump the boys as they rolled through. I’m not trying to play Internet doctor here, but that doesn’t seem like it’s going to be a day-to-day thing. And honestly, I don’t think I’ve ever hoped to be wrong more than I am now. This is a big loss, no matter how you slice it.

OTHER THINGS WORTH MENTIONING