May 15 (UPI) -- Kasperi Kapanen wedged his stick into a crowd and poked the puck into the net with his final effort to lead the Edmonton Oilers past the Vegas Golden Knights in overtime and into the Western Conference finals.
Kapanen lit the lamp 7:19 into the bonus period of the 1-0 Game 5 triumph Wednesday in Las Vegas. The Oilers will face the Dallas Stars or Winnipeg Jets in the Western Conference finals.
"It doesn't really matter who scores as long as somebody does," Kapanen told reporters, when asked about his game-winner.
The Oilers, who lost to the Florida Panthers in last year's Stanley Cup Final, outshot the Golden Knights 32-24 in their Western Conference semifinals finale. Oilers goaltender Stuart Skinner made 24 saves for his second consecutive shutout.
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"I'm really happy I was able to come in and give my team a chance to win," Skinner said. "Obviously, being able to do it in five is huge. The guys' support and the way they played in front of me is massive."
Oilers players blocked several shots early on to help Skinner keep it clean between the pipes. The Oilers went on to unleash 18 shots through the first two periods, but could not beat Golden Knights goaltender Adin Hill.
Hill, who totaled 31 saves, stayed strong to keep the game scoreless in the third period. Defenseman Darnell Nurse and forward Leon Draisaitl eventually set up Kapanen's game winner after seven more minutes of scoreless overtime action.
Forward Vasily Podkolzin fired a pass to Draisaitl on the right flank to start that sequence. Draisaitl passed back to Nurse, who ripped a shot toward the net. Hill saved the shot, but couldn't trap the puck.
Several players attempted to get their blade on the puck before Kapanen used his final lunge to knock it in behind Hill, who was on his back in the crease.
The Stars, who own a 3-1 lead in their Western Conference semifinal series, will take on the Jets in Game 5 at 9:30 p.m. EDT Thursday in Winnipeg. Game 6, if necessary, will be Saturday in Dallas. Game 7 is scheduled for Monday in Winnipeg.
