Everyone loves a good, old-fashioned butt-kicking.
On Saturday evening, the Edmonton Oilers played their penultimate road game ahead of the Olympic break, smashing the Vancouver Canucks 6-0 to move their record to 24-17-8. Let’s take a look at what happened in this one.
In the first period, it looked like it was going to be a battle of the netminders for the second consecutive game. Then, the second period happened. Just over three minutes into the middle frame, the Oilers got on the board thanks to a good zone entry, a little bit of goalie interference, and Jack Roslovic’s 13th of the season. The Canucks challenged the goal, but it was deemed that the defender pushed Lazar into their netminder.
Jack pulls it back#LetsGoOilers pic.twitter.com/1c89hlBtYe
— Edmonton Oilers (@EdmontonOilers) January 18, 2026
While the Oilers didn’t score on the delay of game power play after the failed challenge, they did get on the board thanks to a power play goal after Roslovic drew a high-sticking penalty. It was Zach Hyman’s 17th goal of the season and he, of course, scored from in front of the net seven minutes into the second period.
Hy-man advantage#LetsGoOilers pic.twitter.com/KbNYEFqaHT
— Edmonton Oilers (@EdmontonOilers) January 18, 2026
From that point onward, the game came completely off the rails for the Canucks. With eight minutes left in the second, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins sprung the speedy Kasperi Kapanen for a breakaway, with the Finn going post and in to make it 3-0 for the good guys.
Kappy & you know it#LetsGoOilers pic.twitter.com/kLIm11SCQy
— Edmonton Oilers (@EdmontonOilers) January 18, 2026
Nearly three minutes later, the Oilers got on the board again, as the third line finally got a goal. On a breakout, Matthew Savoie found Ike Howard on the opposite side of the ice. The rookie carried the puck in and found a streaking Roslovic on a semi-breakaway for a tap-in.
Jack at it again#LetsGoOilers pic.twitter.com/YyyXM7cUcI
— Edmonton Oilers (@EdmontonOilers) January 18, 2026
Not to be out done, Kapanen scored his second of the game 37 seconds later. Nugent-Hopkins came out of the corner and made a beautiful back-handed pass to Kapanen in the slot. It was a good finish by Kapanen, but an even better cut to the centre of the ice to get open.
What’s Kapanen?!#LetsGoOilers pic.twitter.com/kyXGSNHRNC
— Edmonton Oilers (@EdmontonOilers) January 18, 2026
The Oilers scored their sixth goal of the period about a minute and half following the second Kapanen goal. Connor McDavid brought the puck in, had the puck swiped off his stick, but it was cleared to a trailing Vasily Podkolzin. The former Canuck ripped it past the netminder for his 11th goal of the season.
This is getting Vasilly#LetsGoOilers pic.twitter.com/lyMi1SM5nx
— Edmonton Oilers (@EdmontonOilers) January 18, 2026
Takeaways…
The Oilers got a big boost thanks to scoring from those who don’t get on the scoreboard all that often. Kasperi Kapanen has been great since his return, but he had just one goal entering this season. Playing alongside Trent Frederic and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, he was able to score twice, giving him three goals for the season.
With Leon Draisaitl out of the lineup, Podkolzin was elevated to the top line alongside Connor McDavid and Zach Hyman. He was able to score his 11th goal of the season to make it a 6-0 game for the Oilers at that point. Podkolzin is now on pace for 18 goals and 35 points, which would be career highs in both categories.
Jack Roslovic also had a strong game, scoring his 13th and 14th goals of the season. His first goal came thanks to a nice drop pass by Curtis Lazar, set up by Mattias Janmark with the Gretzky assist. Roslovic’s second goal was assisted by Ike Howard and Matthew Savoie, the first time that trio has gotten on the board.
Frederic was held pointless in this game, but he played well alongside Kapanen and Nugent-Hopkins, as the trio was on the ice for two goals. Andrew Mangiapane received a couple of hard hits in the first period and was briefly missing from the bench to begin the second period, but he returned shortly into the middle frame.
The third line may have scored their first goal as a unit, but much like last Saturday, it wasn’t a great game for their unit when looking at their under-the-hood numbers. They outshot opposition eight to seven during five on five action, but had just 27.70 percent of the expected goal share, and gave up seven high-danger chances, while generating just three of their own. Their second and third period was rough in particular.
With the addition of Andrew Mangiapane on the fourth-line, it had 42.77 percent of the expected goal share. But the Oilers’ top two lines had a strong game. The second line of Frederic, Nugent-Hopkins, and Kapanen owned 90.77 percent of the expected goal share with three high-danger scoring opportunities, while not allowing one of their own. Expect this line to get another look on Sunday.
The Connor McDavid line with the addition of Podkolzin were okay, as they had 57.76 percent of the expected goal share in the 10:25 of ice time during five on five action. All these stats come courtesy of Natural Stat Trick.
Three defencemen had a point in this game, as Evan Bouchard, Ty Emberson, and Jake Walman all had assists. Nurse was a +3 and Mattias Ekholm was a +4 in this game. Strong stuff from the Oilers’ back-end in this game.
This was easily Jarry’s best game as an Oiler. Aside from stopping 12 of 13 shots in the game he was injured in, Jarry hadn’t finished with a save percentage above .900. That changed in this game, as he stopped all 31 shots he faced for his second shutout of the season. It’s not like he wasn’t challenged either, as the Canucks had 2.43 expected goals.
Up next for the Oilers is an eight-game home stand that carries into early February. They’ll host the St. Louis Blues on Sunday at 6:00 PM MT.
Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for Oilersnation, FlamesNation, and Blue Jays Nation. Follow her on Twitter @Ryley__Delaney.
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The Edmonton Oilers are starting to find their way defensively.
Since Christmas, the Oilers rank fifth in goals against per game played at 2.42 and their penalty kill is tied for second best at 88.9 percent. In January they are even better at 2.11 goals against per game and their PK is 89.5%.
It has taken longer than Kris Knoblauch and his team would have liked, but Edmonton has found consistency in their defensive end, have reduced the glaring turnovers/giveaways and they are giving up fewer high danger chances.
Many facets of the Oilers’ overall games are trending in the right direction. They’ve limited scoring chances, goals, are defending better, both five-on-five and on the PK, and they’re starting to get a bit more depth scoring. Vasily Podkolzin has seven points in his last eight games. Kasperi Kapanen had seven points in seven games before getting injured in the first period against St. Louis. Curtis Lazar has points in consecutive games. Andrew Mangiapane scored last game. They still need some production from Matt Savoie, Isaac Howard and Trent Frederic, but the bottom six have started to chip in.
But the most important improvement has been lowering their goals against. The Oilers rank third in goals scored, and while you like a bit more depth scoring, offence is rarely a major concern for the Oilers. Heading into the Christmas break, Edmonton ranked 25th in goals against per game at 3.32. It wasn’t pretty, but Santa Claus delivered a defensive mindset to the group at Christmas, because since returning from that short three-day break, Edmonton has been much better defensively.
The glaring turnovers have been reduced significantly, and not surprisingly their goals against have gone down. They allowed 3.32 goals against per game in their first 38 games before Christmas and they’ve dropped almost one goal per game down to 2.42 post Christmas. That’s a significant improvement and with no travel and a favourable schedule, the Oilers look poised to go on a run. They’ve yet to have a real dominant stretch of games this season. Here’s a quick look at their first 50 games in 10-game intervals.
Games 1-10: 4-4-2
Games 11-20: 5-3-2
Games 21-30: 4-4-2
Games 31-40: 7-3
Games 41-50: 5-3-2
The Oilers should be able to win at least seven of their next ten, and have realistic chance to win 8+. The only team ahead of them in the standings in their next 10 is Minnesota, and their next seven games are at home and five of them have clear “scheduling advantages.”
Edmonton and Vegas have separated themselves from the rest of the Pacific Division, and if the Oilers want to finish first in the division, they need to take advantage of this stretch and win at least seven games, and likely more.
They are playing well enough to do it.
SNAPSHOTS….
— For the ninth time this season the Oilers will try to win three games in a row. They’ve are 0-6-2 in their previous eight attempts but tonight is set up favourably. The Oilers are playing their best defensive hockey of the season, allowing only one goal in their past three games, while the Devils are struggling at 8-16-1 in their last 25 games and tonight is the Devils’ third game in four nights and the second half of a back-to-back. The Oilers haven’t capitalized on some of their previous “scheduling advantages” and tonight might be their best chance.
— Here’s a look at all 32 teams and how many 3+ game winning streaks they’ve had. The chart below outlines the streaks beginning with the most recent and the * means it is an active streak.
[td width="64px"]TEAM[/td][td width="119px"]3+ GWS[/td][td width="58px"]TEAM[/td][td width="114px"]3+ GWS[/td][td width="64px"]ANA[/td][td width="119px"]4*, 3, 7[/td][td width="58px"]BOS[/td][td width="114px"]6*, 4, 7, 3[/td][td width="64px"]CGY[/td][td width="119px"]3, 3, 3[/td][td width="58px"]BUF[/td][td width="114px"]3, 10[/td][td width="64px"]CHI[/td][td width="119px"]4, 3[/td][td width="58px"]CAR[/td][td width="114px"]3*, 4, 5, 4, 5[/td][td width="64px"]COL[/td][td width="119px"]10, 10, 3[/td][td width="58px"]CBJ[/td][td width="114px"]4*, 3, 4[/td][td width="64px"]DAL[/td][td width="119px"]4, 4, 4, 5, 3, 3[/td][td width="58px"]DET[/td][td width="114px"]4, 3, 3, 3, 5[/td][td width="64px"]EDM[/td][td width="119px"]0 (9: 2GW)[/td][td width="58px"]FLA[/td][td width="114px"]4, 3, 3[/td][td width="64px"]LAK[/td][td width="119px"]4[/td][td width="58px"]MTL[/td][td width="114px"]3, 3, 3, 4[/td][td width="64px"]MIN[/td][td width="119px"]7, 7[/td][td width="58px"]NJD[/td][td width="114px"]3, 8[/td][td width="64px"]NSH[/td][td width="119px"]3, 3[/td][td width="58px"]NYI[/td][td width="114px"]3, 3, 4, 4[/td][td width="64px"]SJS[/td][td width="119px"]3, 3, 3, 4[/td][td width="58px"]NYR[/td][td width="114px"]3, 3, 3[/td][td width="64px"]SEA[/td][td width="119px"]4, 4[/td][td width="58px"]OTT[/td][td width="114px"]4, 3[/td][td width="64px"]STL[/td][td width="119px"]0 (5: 2GW)[/td][td width="58px"]PHI[/td][td width="114px"]3, 3[/td][td width="64px"]UTA[/td][td width="119px"]3*, 3, 7[/td][td width="58px"]PIT[/td][td width="114px"]6, 4[/td][td width="64px"]VAN[/td][td width="119px"]4, 3[/td][td width="58px"]TBL[/td][td width="114px"]11, 7, 5[/td][td width="64px"]VGK[/td][td width="119px"]7, 4, 4[/td][td width="58px"]TOR[/td][td width="114px"]4, 3, 3[/td][td width="64px"]WPG[/td][td width="119px"]4, 3, 5[/td][td width="58px"]WSH[/td][td width="114px"]6, 3, 4[/td]
Edmonton and St. Louis have yet to win three in a row while Los Angeles has one winning streak of 3+ games. Colorado has 23 of their 34 victories in three different streaks, while Tampa Bay has amassed 23 of their 30 wins during three winning streaks.
— Edmonton’s upcoming schedule gives them a wonderful opportunity to go on a winning streak. New Jersey plays its third game in four nights and second half of a back-to-back after a 2-1 OT victory in Calgary last night. The Penguins, Capitals and Ducks play in Edmonton this Thursday, Saturday and next Tuesday and all of them will be playing their third game in four nights and the second half of a back-to-back. All three of the Penguins, Capitals and Ducks will be playing their fourth game in six nights as well. The next four games are “scheduling advantages” and comes at a time when Edmonton is playing very well.
— Philadelphia did the Oilers a huge favour last night by defeating Vegas 2-1 in regulation. The Golden Knights are two points ahead of Edmonton with two games in hand. Sam Ersson played, arguably, his best game of the season stopping 24 of 25 shots. He needed that performance and so did the Flyers as they ended a five-game losing streak. Ersson’s performance could also help Edmonton on the waiver wire. If he can string together a few strong performances the Flyers are less likely to claim Calvin Pickard, if the Oilers put him on waivers later this season.
— Zach Hyman (163) passed Shawn Horcoff for 13th on the Oilers’ all-time goal list last game. He needs three to pass Jordan Eberle (165) and 16 to pass Esa Tikkanen (178).
— Connor McDavid needs two goals to pass Mark Messier (392) for fifth on the Oilers’ goal list.
— Vasily Podkolzin is tied with Leon Draisaitl for second most 5×5 goals on the Oilers with 12. McDavid has 15. Podkolzin is on pace for 19.8 goals at 5×5. He’s having an outstanding season scoring goals 5×5. Here’s the list of Oilers who have scored 20 goals 5×5 in the salary cap era:
6x: McDavid (32, 30, 24, 22, 21 and 21). He’s at 19 this season.
4x: Leon Draisaitl (28, 26, 23, 22).
1x: Zach Hyman (36), Patrick Maroon (24 in 2017), Dustin Penner (23 in 2010), Jordan Eberle (23 in 2012).
Only six players have done it. It is difficult to score 20 goals 5×5, and more rare for a player who doesn’t play on the power play. Although, Podkolzin will get a look on the first unit PP tonight in place of Jake Walman, who was filling in for Leon Draisaitl. Podkolzin has a sneaky good one-timer so don’t be surprised to see him let one rip tonight.
— McDavid has scored a point in every game he’s ever played against New Jersey. He has a 17-game point streak, and the only longer streak against an opponent is Leon Draisaitl’s 20-game point streak versus Chicago. McDavid has 7-24-31 in 17 games against New Jersey including 15 points in seven home games.
— Curtis Lazar will skate in his 600th game tonight. Lazar has dressed in seven of the last eight games and he’s made a positive impact. He’s only been on the ice for one goal against, while chipping in with two assists and being on the ice for three goals for. He’s been physical ranking third on the team in hits with 14, but first in hits/60. Most importantly he’s been solid defensively and his line has outscored the opposition. Lazar has carved out a very nice career and now that he’s fully healthy again, he’s showing he can be a contributor on a good team. He’s quietly been a very good signing for Edmonton.
LINEUPS…
Oilers…
Podkolzin – McDavid – Hyman
Frederic – RNH – Roslovic
Howard –??? – Savoie
Janmark – Lazar – Mangiapane
Ekholm – Bouchard
Nurse – Emberson
Walman – Stastney
Regula
Jarry
Tristan Jarry threw a curveball at me and other media members. Tonight will be his first home game with the Oilers, and turns out he prefers to practice in the non-starting goalie net. I’ve covered the Oilers for 25 years, and the starting goalie is always the goalie who spends the most time at the morning skate in the net that the Oilers defend in the first and third period. Connor Ingram was in that net all morning, which usually means he would start. But turns out that Jarry prefers the other net, and he will be starting tonight. I’m interested to see if that will last, as most goalies like to practice in the net they will play most of the game in. It is a small quirk, but something I’ll be watching. It makes no difference to me (now that I know which net he prefers), but I’m interested to see if he will morph into taking the “home” net in the future.
Kasperi Kapanen and Leon Draisaitl are out tonight. Kapanen will be out “around a week” said Knoblauch this morning, while Draisaitl will be returning to Edmonton later this week. I suspect he will play against Washington on Saturday.
Devils…
Meier – Hughes –Bratt
Palat – Hischier – Mercer
Gritsyuk – Glass – Hameenaho
Dadonov – Cotter – Brown
Dillon – Pesce
Siegenthaler – Kovacevic
Nemec – Hamilton
Allen
Luke Hughes separated his shoulder in Calgary last night and is out. The Devils are 9-15-1 in their last 25 games after a very good start to the season. They have the Dougie Hamilton drama of sitting him out trying to force him to expand his no-trade list on top of their sub-par play.
This is their third game in four nights, which is the same for the Oilers, but Edmonton has been at home since Sunday morning and are well rested and playing better.
TONIGHT…
Photoshop by Tom Kostiuk
GAME DAY PREDICTION: It finally happens…the Oilers win three in a row and defeat New Jersey 4-1.
OBVIOUS GAME DAY PREDICTION: McDavid extends his point streak to 18 games against New Jersey and picks up two points.
NOT-SO-OBVIOUS GAME DAY PREDICTION: Podkolzin scores his first power play goal since 2022. He has only played a total of 1:41 on the PP with the Oilers, but he gets a look tonight and makes the most of it.
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Once again, the Edmonton Oilers have failed to win three consecutive games.
On Tuesday evening, the Oilers dropped a 2-1 decision to the New Jersey Devils after sleepwalking through the first two periods. Let’s take a look at what happened in this one.
For the first 25 minutes of the game, the Oilers and Devils played low-event hockey. Five minutes into the second period, the Devils opened the scoring as a pass from the boards found Arseny Gritsyuk wide open in the slot. Tristan Jarry got a piece of it, but it squeaked through him for the 1-0 Devils’ lead.
Arseny Gritsyuk opens the scoring, 1-0 Devils.
: Sportsnet pic.twitter.com/9Q7jpoNfGm
— Oilersnation.com, Oily Since ‘07 (@OilersNation) January 21, 2026
Seven minutes into the second, the Oilers tied the game. Off a faceoff, Isaac Howard was able to get the puck back to Jake Walman at the point. His shot deflected off Matthew Savoie and past Jake Allen to tie the game up at one.
Matt Savoie's goal, 1-1.
*not anymore*
— Oilersnation.com, Oily Since ‘07 (@OilersNation) January 21, 2026
And then, the lead was gone 30 seconds later. Darnell Nurse had a horrendous change, allowing the Devils to break into the Oilers zone on an odd-man rush of sorts. A pass over to the weak-side gave Cody Glass all the time in the world to one-time it past Jarry.
Cody Glass takes the lead back for the Devils, 2-1.
— Oilersnation.com, Oily Since ‘07 (@OilersNation) January 21, 2026
Takeaways…
After two low-event periods, the Oilers realized they were down a goal and put heavy pressure on the Devils. The game was extremely entertaining down the stretch, but the Oilers couldn’t pull out the game-tying goal. With the Devils on the second game of a back-to-back, the Oilers should’ve played like this all game.
A big reason for the win was because of Jake Allen’s third period. There’s something about Allen against the Oilers, as he has now won his last five games against the Albertan team, where has a .945 save percentage. He made numerous big saves when called upon in the third.
In under a minute, the Edmonton Oilers created about three scoring chances but couldn't bury the puck.
God bless Jack Michaels and his voice.
— Oilersnation.com, Oily Since ‘07 (@OilersNation) January 21, 2026
That doesn’t mean Tristan Jarry was bad. The Oilers had a power play shortly after the Devils made it 2-1, and on the power play, he made a massive stop on a breakaway. In the third period, the faced a few high-danger scoring opportunities. Jarry had a sub .900 save percentage, but he was decent.
WE HAVE A ROBBERY AT ROGERS PLACE.
TRISTAN JARRY HOW DARE YOU, THAT'S DISGUSTING!
— Oilersnation.com, Oily Since ‘07 (@OilersNation) January 21, 2026
As you know, the Oilers are down to 11 forwards on their roster, meaning they went 11/7 for this game. Well, Vasily Podkolzin answered a hit on Connor McDavid and fought late in the first period. Thanks to an instigator penalty, Podkolzin received 17 penalty minutes. Realistically, this was a horrendous penalty to give as both players accepted the fight. It also dropped the Oilers down to 10 forwards for those 17 minutes.
Because of dressing 11 forwards and Podkolzin being in the locker room for as long as he was, the Oilers’ lines were a mess. The only two lines that got more than seven minutes were the Isaac Howard/Jack Roslovic/Matt Savoie line, and the Ryan Nugent-Hopkins/Connor McDavid/Zach Hyman line.
Savoie and Howard both picked up a point in this game, as Howard had a secondary assist and Savoie picked up his first goal in 16 games. In their last three games, both rookies have two points, as they each had an assist on Saturday.
This game was another failed attempt at stringing three wins together, so the Oilers will be back to the drawing board. The drawing board is running out of room, as this is the ninth time they’ve had a “win streak” end at two games. You can say it’s two steps forward, one step back.
Former Oiler Connor Brown made his return to Edmonton in this game and picked up an assist. Well, Stuart Skinner and Brett Kulak return to Edmonton for the first time since the trade, as the Penguins roll into town. That game is at 7:00 PM MT on Thursday.
Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for Oilersnation, FlamesNation, and Blue Jays Nation. Follow her on Twitter @Ryley__Delaney.
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The Edmonton Oilers have played 23 home games this season. They’ve won 12 and are only 12-7-4 and have outscored teams 83-74.
In the three previous seasons, the Oilers had the eighth most home wins in the NHL and were three back of the fifth most. They have been a very good to dominant team on home ice (in 2024, when they went 28-9-4), but lately they’ve struggled to win.
Kris Knoblauch felt his team wasn’t ready to play against New Jersey, and it cost them two points. Tonight is game three of a season-long eight-game homestand, and Edmonton needs to be better and more engaged on home ice.
The January schedule has Edmonton playing 11 games at home and four on the road. They went 3-0-1 on the road, which is great, but they are only 2-3-1 at home thus far. Edmonton was 4-0-2 in its first six home games, but then they got pounded 9-1 by Colorado and that started them on a run of where they’ve only won eight of 18 home games. They have lost their last four home games against Eastern Conference teams, and they face the Pittsburgh Penguins tonight and the Washington Capitals on Saturday.
The Oilers need to rediscover a killer instinct on home ice, especially against non-conference teams. The Oilers have played nine games against Eastern teams, and they’ve allowed the first goal eight times. I don’t expect the Oilers to score first or be the hungrier team every game. Both teams are paid to play and want to win, but they need to be much better at home this season against Eastern opponents. You can’t be chasing the game that often. The Penguins are one of the better road teams in the NHL this season. They’ve scored first in 16 of 24 road games, and they rank 9th in points percentage on the road and they have the third-best GAA at 2.50. They’ve allowed two goals or fewer in half of their road games.
Head coach Dan Muse has the Penguins playing well on the road, especially lately as the Penguins are 5-1 in their last six road games and have outscored teams 26-13. Their only blemish was a 1-0 loss in Boston. They have four victories by three or more goals. The Penguins have moved ahead of Edmonton in the standings with 59 points in 49 games compared to Edmonton’s 58 points in 51 games. Pittsburgh is one of the hottest teams in the NHL over the past month going 10-3-2. They rank fourth in wins and P%.
The Oilers need to be ready from the opening puck drop. They need to be ready to play and be emotionally engaged against a non-conference opponent.
They need to start piling up some wins at home, to keep pace with Vegas and hopefully earn first place in the Pacific Division. Over the past two seasons, Edmonton has been one of the best home teams in the playoffs with a record of 15-7. They were 14-11 on the road, which is solid, but a much lower winning% than at home. Edmonton has Stanley Cup aspirations, and while earning home ice advantage doesn’t guarantee them a championship, it can make their path to a ring easier, and any small advantage in the playoffs is one you should try and obtain.
Edmonton has 18 home games remaining, including six to finish out this homestand. They need to win more than 52% of their home games down the stretch and increasing their intensity, especially against eastern opponents, should lead to more victories.
SNAPSHOTS…
— Stuart Skinner lost his first start with Pittsburgh, against the Oilers, but in his last eight starts he’s been good with a .922 save percentage and 1.89 GAA. He’s allowed one goal in five of those eight starts. He and Arturs Silovs have split time evenly as Silovs is expected to start his eighth game since December 21st tonight while Skinner made his eighth start last night in Calgary. Tristan Jarry and Skinner faced their former teams the first time these teams met in December, but it doesn’t look like we will see a rematch tonight.
— The Penguins are 10-3-2 in their last 15 games outscoring opponents 56-36. They’ve been better defensively, and Edmonton is getting a bit of a break as they face Silovs instead of Skinner. In their last 15 games Skinner is 6-2 and Silovs is 4-1-2. Skinner has a .922 save percentage and 1.89GAA while Silovs has a .896 save percentage and 2.64 GAA.
— The Oilers are 14-5-4 in the game after a loss. They struggle to win three in a row, but have been pretty good at not extending losing streaks. Edmonton is now 0-7-2 when trying to win three in a row, and not surprisingly, they have allowed the first goal in eight of those games. Edmonton is a woeful 4-17-4 when allowing the first goal, and they are 21-4-1 when scoring first. They win 21 of 26 when scoring first and only four of 25 when trailing first. In the five regulation losses after losing the previous game, the Oilers allowed the first goal in all five games. It is pretty clear how important the first goal is tonight, and most games, for the Oilers.
— The Oilers have won four consecutive home games against the Penguins. Pittsburgh hasn’t won in Edmonton since December 20th, 2019. Oddly, the Penguins had won six consecutive games in Edmonton prior to this four-game losing skid.
— Matt Savoie ended his 16-game goal drought against the Devils. It was the longest goal drought of his hockey career at any level. He did go 10 games last year in Bakersfield, but the NHL is a different beast and for many young players a lengthy goalless streak often occurs. Savoie wasn’t playing poorly during the drought, but he did miss the net a few times on some of his best chances, which is often a sign of trying to be perfect with your shot. The goal was a huge relief for him, and don’t be surprised to see him get back to scoring more frequently. He did have six goals in the previous 22 games prior to the slump. Slumps happen in the NHL, and it can be challenging, especially for skilled players who have never gone that long without a goal. It is a hard, but good learning experience, and I thought Savoie played quite well despite not scoring.
— Isaac Howard hasn’t scored in his last 16 games with the Oilers, and like Savoie a goal would be very welcoming. The hardest part is not getting frustrated and letting it get you down, but that is easier said than done.
LINEUPS…
Oilers…
RNH – McDavid – Hyman
Howard –Roslovic– Savoie
Podkolzin – ??? – Frederic
Janmark – Lazar – Mangiapane
Ekholm – Bouchard
Nurse – Emberson
Walman – StastneyRegula
Jarry
Tristan Jarry will face his former team and play back-to-back games for the first time since returning from injury. Connor Ingram has made eight quality starts in his nine appearances. He’s been excellent since being recalled from the American Hockey League, and I’d expect he will play Saturday against Washington. At least he should. He shouldn’t go too long without playing, considering how well he’s playing, plus with Jarry coming off his second injury of the season, giving him a bit of rest between games could be beneficial. I’m sure the Oilers want to see Jarry in consecutive games, but it is a delicate dance to not have Ingram sit out too long.
Penguins…
Rakell – Crosby – Rust
Chinakov – Novak – Malkin
Mantha – Kindel – Brazeau
Dewar – Lizotte – Acciari
Kulak – Letang
Wotherspoon – Karlsson
Graves – Clifton
Silovs
Erik Karlsson has missed the last five games, but there is a good chance he returns to the lineup tonight. Kris Letang also didn’t play last night in Calgary, and will be a game-time decision. Without their top two defencemen, the Penguins played a very good defensive game last night. Parker Wotherspoon and Brett Kulak were the top pairing logging over 20 minutes each at 5×5, while Connor Clifton/Ryan Graves and Ryan Shea/Jack St. Ivany played between 16 and 17 minutes each. The top six is simply a projection with the assumption Karlsson and Letang might play. We won’t know until Dan Muse speaks to the media around 5:30 p.m. MT.
Muse rolled four lines about as evenly as you could imagine. Each team took one minor penalty, and no one scored on the power play, so the game had 56 minutes of 5×5 time. Muse rolled his four lines as follows:
Rakell/Crosby/Rust played 13:25
Mantha/Kindel/Brazeau logged 12:58
Chinakov/Novak/Malkin played 12:46
Dewar/Lizotte/Acciari skated 12:00
That is very abnormal. In their previous game in Seattle Crosby’s line played 12:42 at 5×5, while Novak’s played 11:28, Kindel’s skated 8:26 and Lizotte’s line played 7:25. Last night was the perfect storm to rotate lines evenly. There weren’t many penalties, the Penguins led for 52:11 of the game and the Flames don’t have a dominant top line to try and match against. It allowed Muse to spread out minutes, and the Penguins shouldn’t be as fatigued playing their third game in four nights and second half of a back-to-back tonight.
The forwards’ TOI ranged from 17:14 (Rust) down to 13:28 (Acciari) while the defenders logged between 22:14 (Wotherspoon) and 16:55 (St. Ivany).
TONIGHT…
Photoshop by Tom Kostiuk
GAME DAY PREDICTION: Edmonton improves to 15-5-4 after a loss with a 4-2 victory.
OBVIOUS GAME DAY PREDICTION: McDavid produces two points. He has 24 points in his last nine games against the Penguins and strangely he had two home games with no points. The 24 points came in the other seven games.
NOT-SO-OBVIOUS GAME DAY PREDICTION: Mattias Ekholm scores a goal.
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Well, that was ugly.
On Thursday evening, the Edmonton Oilers hosted the Pittsburgh Penguins on the third game of their eight-game home stand. With Tristan Jarry starting against his former team, it didn’t go well, as the Penguins put six past their old netminder in a 6-2 victory. Let’s take a look at what happened in this one.
The game was won by the Penguins in the first three minutes.
A minute and 20 seconds into the game, Anthony Mantha was found by the back post for the easy tap-in. On the same shift, about 15 seconds later, Mantha was sprung for a breakaway to score twice in just 22 seconds. Before the game even hit the three-minute mark, the Penguins got in the zone and shot from the point, with Sidney Crosby deflecting it in from the high-slot. Officially, the Penguins scored three times in 37 seconds, setting an Oilers franchise record for the fastest three goals against.
That was it for scoring in the first period, and the Oilers got a brief glimmer of hope five minutes into the middle frame. On a penalty kill, the Oilers stopped a Penguins break in, turned it around for a three-on-two, and Jake Walman was found in as the trailer in the slot. The defenceman scored his second short-handed goal of the season with a well-placed shot.
Jake & bake#LetsGoOilers pic.twitter.com/KU1uTrYpv6
— Edmonton Oilers (@EdmontonOilers) January 23, 2026
That hope was quashed by a goal from Rickard Rakell with seven and a half minutes remaining in the middle period. Just a minute and 58 seconds later, the Penguins made it a 5-1 game thanks to an Evgeni Malkin breakaway goal.
Watch out… GENO'S LOOSE
— Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) January 23, 2026
At this point, the game was very much over, but that didn’t stop the Penguins from scoring one more, as Egor Chinakhov ripped one past Jarry’s shoulder to make it 6-1. The Oilers added another goal with six minutes left in the game, as Matthew Savoie sniped it past Artūrs Šilovs.
Savvy snipe#LetsGoOilers pic.twitter.com/AzDVMZVgox
— Edmonton Oilers (@EdmontonOilers) January 23, 2026
Takeaways…
There aren’t really many positive takeaways from this game, other than seeing Matt Savoie continuing to play better. With that goal, he now has two goals and an assist in his last four games, while also being on the ice for the Oilers’ other goal.
That was Jake Walman’s second shorthanded goal of the season. The first one came against the Columbus Blue Jackets on November 10th. The Oilers are a better team with him in the lineup, he just has to remain healthy.
After missing three games due to a personal absence, Leon Draisaitl returned for the game against the Penguins, which came to the surprise of everyone. He was a -1 in his 19:17 minutes of ice time. The majority of his five-on-five action was spent with Andrew Mangiapane and Vasily Podkolzin, where the trio picked up 96.95 percent of the expected goals over six minutes and 42 seconds, according to Natural Stat Trick.
The line of Isaac Howard, Jack Roslovic, and Savoie had a strong game for the first time in a while, at least looking at under-the-hood numbers. In seven minutes and 21 seconds, the trio had 54.4 percent of the expected goals, scoring the Oilers’ only five-on-five goal.
With the return of Draisaitl, the Oilers reunited Curtis Lazar, Trent Frederic, and Mattias Janmark. The fourth line out-shot opposition 2-0 and finished with 75.7 percent of the expected goals. Janmark picked up his seventh assist of the season, but that was on the penalty kill.
It was a tough game for the Oilers defence, as every defender but Darnell Nurse was a minus. Evan Bouchard was a -3 and Mattias Ekholm was a -2. Both Bouchard and Ekholm had an assist on Savoie’s goal, while Walman scored a goal.
A rough game from the Oilers’ defence didn’t help Tristan Jarry, as he allowed six goals on 22 shots for a .727 save percentage. Not very nice of his former team. Since joining the Oilers, Jarry has only finished a full 60+ minutes with a save percentage above .900 once, his shutout victory over the Vancouver Canucks on Saturday. This game should’ve been started by Connor Ingram, who has been playing much better.
The Oilers continue their home stand with a game against the Washington Capitals on Saturday at 8:00 PM MT. Let’s hope that one goes a bit better than Thursday’s game.
Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for Oilersnation, FlamesNation, and Blue Jays Nation. Follow her on Twitter @Ryley__Delaney.
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Oilersnation is reviving the Top 100 Edmonton Oilers of All Time list, a project originally created by the late Robin Brownlee in 2015. Jeff Beukeboom comes in at No. 54 on our updated 2025 list. He was ranked No. 37 on Brownlee’s original list.
There were many better Edmonton Oilers, but does anyone have a better hockey name than Jeff Beukeboom?
His name is a great throwback, just like his play was. An imposing stay-at-home defenceman, Beukeboom concerned himself with the front of his own net rather than the opposition.
So much so, when he was drafted 19th overall by the Oilers in 1983, Beukeboom became the first non-goaltender to be drafted in the first round after going goalless the season prior.
For a guy who carved out a long NHL career, over 800 NHL games, and was a part of four Stanley Cup championships, that’s pretty darn good.
As Steve Levy of ESPN learned during one of their iconic “This is Sportscenter” commercials, don’t call him “Puke-a-boom” or you’re gonna get whacked.
Beukeboom was a tough SOB. But like many who played in the 1980s and 1990s, his career ended due to several concussions, including one of the most gutless assaults you’ll ever see, where Matt Johnson cold-cocked him from behind.
Notable
Drafted from the Soo Greyhounds in 1982-83, Beukeboom played three seasons in the OHL, ending his junior career with a league title in 84-85 on a great Greyhounds team. That Soo team went undefeated on home ice that year, earning a Memorial Cup bid.
After one of the best drafting runs in NHL history, the 1983 draft was the last where the Oilers would get multiple pieces for later Stanley Cup teams, as Esa Tikkanen was taken later in the fourth round.
As a prospect, Beukeboom’s size was attractive. Standing 6’5”, 215lbs, he was an imposing force that Glen Sather believed would only help the blueline.
He got a brief taste of a playoff game in 1985-86, and would stick around the Oilers until 1991-92 where he was traded as part of the exodus to the New York Rangers. Although a separate trade, it really completed the Mark Messier swap.
He’d play eight more seasons with the Rangers, became a depth pillar on the 1994 Stanley Cup team, but was forced to retire at age 33.
The Story
Beukeboom played the game heavy and hard, giving and taking as good as he got.
In 1987-88, he enjoyed his best individual season in a career high 73 games. He scored five goals and 25 points, while accumulating 201 penalty minutes. But he would also miss portions of the season due to injury or as a scratch. Even in that career-high year, Beukeboom only played seven playoff games.
But he and the organization kept at it. In 1990-91, it was Beukeboom’s time to shine against the Calgary Flames in that wildly entertaining Smythe Division semi-final series.
As Edmonton Journal writer Cam Cole put it, “He has personally turned the Mild Disagreement of Alberta [sic] into a battle, after all, by starching several of the Calgary Flames with murderous hits in the first two games of the series.”
That included a nasty hit from behind on Gary Roberts that he didn’t feel too great about. But as he said, Roberts speared him earlier in the season, so he didn’t lose any sleep.
“It is better to give than to receive,” he said on April 8, 1991.
His terrific play helped the Oilers make a real go of another playoff run in 1991, defeating the Flames in seven and dispatching the Los Angeles Kings in six. But they ran out of gas in the Campbell Conference final.
Beukeboom’s performance made him hard to keep, as he was a later piece added to complete the Mark Messier trade in November 1991.
He is remembered fondly for his honest style of play, and he’s got the rings to show it.
Jeff Beukeboom after 1991 CGY series on April 18, 1991 via Edmonton Journal.
What Brownlee said
The Last 10
- No. 64 — Tom Gilbert
- No. 63 — Mike Grier
- No. 62 — Marty McSorley
- No. 61 — Ken Linseman
- No. 60 — Evander Kane
- No. 59 — Adam Larsson
- No. 58 — Cam Talbot
- No. 57 — Boris Mironov
- No. 56 — Mike Comrie
- No. 55 — Fernando Pisani
Michael Menzies is an Oilersnation columnist and has been the play-by-play voice of the Bonnyville Pontiacs in the AJHL since 2019. With seven years news experience as the Editor-at-Large of Lakeland Connect in Bonnyville, he also collects vinyl, books, and stomach issues.
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The Edmonton Oilers are a couple of days removed from an embarrassing beatdown by the Penguins, and tonight’s game feels like it should come with a bit of a lecture. Not the yelling kind. Not the dramatic kind. Just a quiet, arms-crossed big-dad disappointment that comes when you know a team is capable of more than what it’s been showing. The Oilers dropped their last two games in horrific fashion, not because they were unlucky, but because they didn’t look particularly interested in playing winning hockey. When that happens, no one around here is going to give you sympathy. You get scrutiny, and deservedly so.
The most frustrating part about the Oilers being this bad at this point in the season is that there are numbers that suggest they should be doing better than what we’re getting. Edmonton sits at 25-19-8, scores 3.33 goals per game, controls play north of 50 percent in both Corsi and expected goals, and gives up fewer shots than they take. This is not a bad team. This is a broken team. This is a team that, from my side of the TV screen, has been going through the motions and paying for it on the scoreboard. You expect better from a group that should know exactly what it takes by now, and watching this mess is beyond annoying at this point.
The Washington Capitals roll into town at 25-21-6, right in the same neighbourhood in the standings, but are really struggling to put wins on the board right now. They’ve only won four of the 12 games they’ve played in January, including the 3-1 dub they picked up in Calgary last night. But even though Washington is a bit of a mess lately, there’s a catch. Though these two teams score score at a similar rate, the Caps do tend to defend better on average, and are getting strong goaltending, as shown by a .919 team save percentage. That said, they are not playing anything close to their best hockey right now, and I see this as the perfect opportunity for the Oilers to get this train back on the rails.
Special teams are still an area where the Oilers should feel confident, assuming the boys actually show up ready to work. Edmonton’s power play continues to hum along at 32.2 percent, while Washington’s sits at 16.7. The penalty kills are closer, but the Oilers still hold a slight edge. If this game turns into a special teams battle, that’s an advantage Edmonton should be able to lean on. The key word there is should. The special teams advantage only matters if the effort matches the opportunity. But if Edmonton is going to earn those opportunities, it has to start with a whole lot more effort at 5v5, especially against a team that played the night before.
In the end, the most important thing I’m looking for isn’t just that the Oilers find a way to win, but that they look like they deserve the two points. I don’t even care if they lose, provided that the effort is there and they look like they actually want to be playing hockey. We haven’t seen that in the last two games. This isn’t about proving anything to anyone, but reminding themselves who they’re supposed to be. The Oilers are at home, playing a team on the second half of a back-to-back, and there’s no hiding from the effort level in your own building. This doesn’t need to be perfect hockey. It just needs to be honest hockey. Show up. Compete. Care.
Let’s see what the numbers say…
THE NUMBERS
OILERS CAPITALS RECORD 25-19-8 25-21-6 WIN/LOSS STREAK L2 W1 LAST 10 GAMES 5-3-2 4-6-0 GOALS FOR 173 165 GOALS AGAINST 166 153 POWER PLAY% 32.2 16.7 PENALTY KILL% 80.9 77.7 GOALS FOR/GAME 3.33 3.17 GOALS AGAINST/GAME 3.19 2.94 AVG. SHOTS/FOR 29.2 29.3 AVG. SHOTS/AGAINST 26.9 28.3 TEAM SAVE% .892 .919 CORSI FOR% 50.23 50.84 PDO .981 1.018 TEAM SHOOTING% 8.86 9.92 EXPECTED GOALS FOR% 51.41 51.48
Numbers courtesy of Natural Stat Trick (Sv%, CF%, PDO, Shooting%, xGF% all at 5×5)
- The Oilers are 4-2-0 over their last six home games against Washington.
- Evan Bouchard will play in his 400th career game.
- The Oilers have the best PK percentage in the NHL since December 23rd, sitting at a sparkling 91.2%.
LINEUPS…
Oilers
Nugent-Hopkins – McDavid – Hyman
Podkolzin – Draisaitl – Mangiapane
Howard – Roslovic – Savoie
Frederic – Lazar – Janmark
Ekholm – Bouchard
Nurse – Emberson
Walman – Stastney
Ingram
Kris Knoblauch went back to some classic line combos for Saturday’s game, with the exception of having Andrew Mangiapane up on the second line. We all know that this hasn’t been the Bread Man’s year, but I’m hopeful that being up with Draisaitl could help him make something happen in this revenge game. Looking in net, Connor Ingram is getting the start and another opportunity to show that he can not only be a competent backup, but maybe even challenge Tristan Jarry for the starter’s job.
Capitals
McMichael – Strome – Leonard
Protas – Sourdif – Wilson
Ovechkin – Dowd – Frank
Duhaime – Lapierre – Beauvillier
Fehervary – Carlson
Chychrun??? – Roy
Sandin – Van Riemsdyk
Lindgren
With the Capitals playing last night, I haven’t seen any updates on their line combos, aside from Jacob Chychrun being day-to-day. Considering the guy has 18 goals on the season, not having him in the Capitals’ lineup would be a nice bonus for an Oilers team trying to get back in the win column. That said, we can’t expect dubs just because the other team is/could be missing pieces.
TONIGHT…
Edmonton Photoshop Leon Draisaitl GDB by Tom Kostiuk
Game Day Prediction: Oilers score first. Oilers score on the power play. Oilers win 4-2 with the empty-netter.
Obvious Game Day Prediction: Connor McDavid called himself out after the loss to Pittsburgh, and that has me thinking (and betting) on a two-point night for the captain.
Not-So-Obvious Game Day Prediction: You didn’t expect a two-goal game from Andrew Mangiapane, but it’s going to happen. Revenge game success. LFG.
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What. A. Game.
On Saturday evening, the Edmonton Oilers took on the Washington Capitals for the second and final time this season. After losing the first game 7-4, the Oilers defeated the Capitals 6-5 in one of the most entertaining games of the season. Let’s take a look at what happened in this one!
Although the Oilers had a ton of chances throughout the first period, it took them until the final minute of the opening frame to get on the board. The Oilers won a puck battle in the corner, Zach Hyman passed it to Mattias Ekholm at the point, who passed it over to Evan Bouchard. He ripped a wrist shot past Charlie Lindgren, going bar-down in the process for the 1-0 lead, kicking off what would be a three-goal, six-point night.
BOUCH LASER
pic.twitter.com/2lC2FKxQbc
— Oilersnation.com, Oily Since ‘07 (@OilersNation) January 25, 2026
Unfortunately, that lead lasted just 22 seconds. After getting the zone entry, the Capitals were able to get the puck to a trailing Rasmus Sandin. His initial shot was stopped by Connor Ingram, the first shot of the game for the Capitals, but Aliaksei Protas was able to bang in the rebound to tie the game heading into the first intermission.
Four minutes into the second period, the Oilers restored their lead. It was Bouchard again, as Hyman set a strong screen and Bouchard beat Lindgren, despite the netminder attempting to throw his trapper at the puck.
Again, that lead didn’t last for the Oilers, as the Capitals tied it less than three minutes later. It was another rush goal for the Capitals, as Justin Sourdiff broke into the zone, looked as if he was passing it, ripping it past Ingram high-glove to make it 2-2.
With about five and a half minutes left in the second period, the Capitals took their first lead of the game. Anthony Beauvillier attempted to pass it across the net, but the puck took a deflection off Spencer Stastny’s skate and went through Ingram’s five-hole to make it 3-2 heading into the third period.
The Oilers tied the game on four-on-four action. Once again, it was Bouchard, as the defenceman scored four and a half minutes into the third period. He was given way too much time to get his shot off, ripping it off the post and in.
Evan Bouchard First Career Hat Trick!
pic.twitter.com/k9V3I5EqtH
— Oilersnation.com, Oily Since ‘07 (@OilersNation) January 25, 2026
Unsurprisingly, the Capitals answered right back, as Dylan Strome broke the deadlock 130 seconds after Bouchard’s hat trick goal. Connor McDavid’s former teammate with the Erie Otters ripped it off the post and in.
DYLAN STROME ANSWERS RIGHT BACK FOR THE CAPSpic.twitter.com/iXOX3xNQrZ
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) January 25, 2026
The Oilers received a power play, and then they scored on the said power play midway through the third. Like Bouchard’s third goal, McDavid was given far too much time to shoot in a high-danger area, beating Lindgren from the faceoff dot for his 31st goal of the season. Bouchard picked up an assist on this goal.
After the Capitals made it 5-4, the Oilers found a way. You knew this game was going to be exciting down the stretch, and with the net pulled and tons of pressure, the Oilers scored the game-tying goal with about half a minute left. McDavid got the puck to the front of the net, and Hyman did the rest to poke it home.
ZACH HYMAN TIES IT WITH 30 SECONDS LEFT!
pic.twitter.com/aEx1XjJZsc
— Oilersnation.com, Oily Since ‘07 (@OilersNation) January 25, 2026
The Oilers capped off the comeback in overtime. Bouchard jumped high to grab the puck, was tripped, but was able to find McDavid for the breakaway. The best player of all-time made no mistake to win the game.
Takeaways…
On January 14, 2006, Marc-André Bergeron scored all three goals in a 5-3 loss to the Ottawa Senators. It was the last time an Oiler defenceman scored a hat trick until Evan Bouchard did it on Saturday. He’s simply one of the best defenders in the league. Bouchard also picked up three assists and had a terrific zone keep in the dying seconds of the third period. The last time an Oiler defenceman had a six-point game was 40 years ago.
This was the Oilers’ third consecutive game where they faced a team playing in the second game of a back-to-back. Both the New Jersey Devils (Tuesday) and Pittsburgh Penguins (Thursday) played the Calgary Flames the night before, winning that game. The Capitals also played the Flames the night before, defeating the other Albertan team 3-1, but thankfully, the Oilers were able to pick up both points in this one.
Part of that is thanks to a full 60 minutes (plus overtime). They got off to a good start in the first period, as both Isaac Howard and Vasily Podkolzin had breakaways that were stuffed by Lindgren, while Matthew Savoie had a great chance early in the first. The Oilers were less than a minute away from keeping the opposition shotless in a period for the first time in franchise history.
Savoie in general had a solid game, especially in the first half. On top of that strong chance, Savoie drew a penalty and was just solid all around. Him and Howard are starting to develop some chemistry, but the line of those two and Jack Roslovic owned 24.51 percent of the expected goals during five-on-five action. It may be time to break up that line and put the rookies with Ryan Nugent-Hopkins.
It looks like the Oilers have finally figured out their fourth line. Aside from Curtis Lazar’s double-minor for high sticking, that line had 65.59 percent of the expected goals during five-on-five action, attempting eight shots to the opponents two.
It hasn’t happened often since he’s been called up, but Connor Ingram finished the game with a sub-.900 save percentage. Allowing three goals on 12 shots, it’s just the second time in 10 games that Ingram has finished with a save percentage below 90%. Ingram was pulled and Tristan Jarry stopped 13 of the 15 shots he faced, a slightly better outing than Thursday.
The officials were whistle happy in this game. Overall, the two teams combined for 24 penalty minutes, with both teams going 20% on their five power plays. However, the Capitals’ game-winning goal was scored shortly after a power play ended.
This was the fourth game of an eight-game home stand. That home stand continues on Monday, as the Oilers host the Ducks with a start time of 6:30 PM MT on Prime Hockey.
Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for Oilersnation, FlamesNation, and Blue Jays Nation. Follow her on Twitter @Ryley__Delaney.
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Fifteen of the Edmonton Oilers’ final 29 games are against Pacific Division opponents.
The Oilers are in a battle for first place with Vegas, but Anaheim is suddenly right behind the Oilers after winning seven consecutive games, so home ice for the 2-3 matchup will also be settled down the stretch. Edmonton is 6-2-3 against divisional foes so far this season and tonight will be the first of three meetings against the Ducks this season.
The Oilers dominated the Ducks during the 2022, 2023 and 2024 seasons winning 10 of 11 games, but last season the Ducks won three of four meetings. The Ducks are vastly improved this season, and they arrived in Edmonton last night bursting with confidence. The Ducks started this season very well going 19-10-1 in their first 30 games. They had the fifth best points% in the NHL through 30 games, but then they went 2-11-2 in their next 15 games and were the worst team in the NHL in that span. Some, including myself, wondered if the Ducks’ inexperience would ground them, again, but the Ducks didn’t let that rough stretch continue. They dug in and have won seven in a row thanks to a 4-3 overtime victory in Calgary last night.
Rookie Beckett Sennecke registered his first hat trick and first three-point game of his young career. What’s most impressive about the Ducks’ seven-game winning streak is they’ve done it without their top two forwards. Troy Terry hasn’t played since January 6th when he was injured v. Philadelphia. He’s missed nine games. Terry had 42 points in 43 games before his injury. Four days later, their #1 centre, young Leo Carlsson, got hurt against Buffalo. Carlsson has 44 points in 44 games. The Ducks lost their two leading scorers, but this active winning streak began the game after Carlsson was hurt. The Ducks have shown incredible resiliency to not only play well without their two best forwards, but also excel.
Sennecke has seven points in seven games. Cutter Gauthier has 3-3-6. Jackson Lacombe and Mikael Granlund have five points. Jeffrey Viel, who was acquired from Boston two weeks ago, has 2-1-3 in five games. Twelve different skaters have goals during the streak and 17 have points. But the main reason they are winning is their low goals against total. The Ducks have only allowed 13 goals in seven games, mainly due to Lukas Dostal.
Lukas Dostal is 6-0 with a .931Sv% and 1.93 GAA. He was unreal stopping 40 of 41 shots v. Colorado and he’s been great in his other games. Ville Husso is 1-0 and allowed one goal on 18 shots on January 17th v. Los Angeles. but he didn’t face one high danger chance that game. That was the second half of a back-to-back and Husso is expected to get the start again tonight. The Ducks locked it down that night defensively, although the Kings are far from a dangerous offensive unit.
The Oilers have scored 5+ goals in three of their last five games. They are the third highest scoring team in the NHL averaging 3.38 goals/game. Edmonton can score, but the Oilers have allowed 13 goals in their past three games. They need to tighten up defensively. Tonight is a big game when you look at the standings. Ottawa did Edmonton a favour yesterday spanking Vegas 7-1. Edmonton trails the Golden Knights by two points and Vegas has two games in hand, while the Ducks are only one point behind Edmonton and they have one game in hand. The Oilers’ inability to get on a winning streak yet this season has them in a fight for home ice advantage.
The good news is they play Anaheim and Vegas three times each down the stretch. Edmonton is 8-3-1 over Vegas since 2023, but they need to be better against Anaheim than they were last year. Not facing Dostal tonight, combined with the Ducks playing their third game in four nights and second half of a back-to-back, are advantages Edmonton needs to use in its favour.
Anaheim is 4-2-1 on the second half of BTB games, however, all seven games were against teams currently not in the playoffs. They are 3-0 against Western Conference opponents in LA, Winnipeg and St. Louis, while they defeated Columbus, but also lost to them in OT and lost in regulation to Ottawa and Philadelphia.
This is another game where Edmonton has a “schedule advantage.” They outplayed Washington on Saturday but made it way too hard on themselves and needed a heroic performance from Evan Bouchard to win. They were awful against Pittsburgh and didn’t show up for the first two periods against New Jersey and lost. They need to reverse that trend tonight and beat a team without two of its best players and battling fatigue. The Oilers have lacked a killer instinct in games this season and need that instinct from the opening faceoff tonight.
SNAPSHOTS…
— Evan Bouchard had one of the greatest games by a defenseman in NHL history on Saturday. He was incredible in all facets of the game. He scored his first career hat trick. He had three assists. He was +5, had eight shots on goal, two blocked shots, a big hit and his play to keep the puck in at the blueline kept the Oilers in the game. I think Bouchard gets overlooked at how great he actually is, because he plays on the same team as Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid. Also, because we are in the highlight era, where more people watch highlights than actually watch games, I find there is more emphasis on the big giveaways, rather than all the good plays he makes. He makes way more good plays than bad — like 10-15x more good plays — but many can’t seem to get past a bad turnover.
— But on Saturday, Bouchard was an absolute beast in all facets of the game. He also logged 29:25, his third highest total this season. There have been 71 occasions where a player has logged 29+ minutes this season. Nathan MacKinnon is the only forward to do it, and he did it in the game the Ducks defeated the Avs 2-1 in a shootout. The other 70 were D-men and only 13 other games did one have one goal. Bouchard is the first to have three goals, more than three assists and no player had better than a +2 compared to Bocuhard’s +5. It was an amazing performance. Since TOI was tracked in 1997-98, Bouchard has the most points, tied for most goals and tied for the best + rating of any player to log 29+ minutes in a game.
— This season the only players with four games of 29+ minutes include Quinn Hughes (20x, 12 with MIN and eight with VAN), Zach Werenski (8) and Bouchard, Miro Heiskanen and Jackson Lacombe (4). Lacombe and Bouchard will be on the ice tonight. Hughes is averaging 28:12 in his 21 games with the Wild. Ryan Suter and Drew Doughty are the only players to average 29+ minutes/game during a full season. Suter averaged 29:25 in 2014 and 29:04 in 2015, both with Minnesota while Doughty logged 29 minutes in 2015 with LA.
— Bouchard is one of only five D-men in NHL history to score at least three goals and three assists in one game.
What you witnessed on Saturday hadn’t happened in 34 years. It was the 14th time in Oilers franchise history a player had at least 3-3-6 in a game. Wayne Gretzky did it eight times while Don Ashby, Glenn Anderson, Dave Lumley, Sam Gagner, Connor McDavid and Bouchard have done it once.
— Bouchard is now tied for second with Zach Werenski in scoring among D-men with 55 points. They are one point behind Cale Makar. Lane Hutson is fourth with 53 points. It sets up for a great race down the stretch.
— McDavid’s 13th career five-point game was overshadowed by Bouchard’s effort on Saturday, but McDavid now leads the NHL with 90 points. McDavid is the sixth player in NHL history to score 90+ points in 10 different seasons.
McDavid, Dale Hawerchuk and Jaromir Jagr did it 10 times.
Mario Lemieux had 11.
Marcel Dionne had 12.
Gretzky had 17.
McDavid needs 10 points to reach 100 for the ninth time in his career and he’ll only trail Lemieux (10) and Gretzky (15). McDavid is guaranteed to finish second in most 90+ point seasons and most 100+ point seasons. He has a legitimate chance to catch or pass Gretzky in both.
LINEUPS…
Oilers…
RNH – McDavid – Hyman
Podkolzin – Draisaitl – Kapanen
Savoie – Samanski – Roslovic
Janmark – Lazar – Frederic
Ekholm – Bouchard
Nurse – Emberson
Walman – Stastney
Jarry
Kasperi Kapanen returns to the lineup, while Josh Samanski will make his NHL debut. Samanski has had a strong rookie season in Bakersfield with 7-21-28 in 39 games and he leads Bakerfield in even strength points with 24. He’s also really improved on faceoffs. “The first couple weeks, especially the rookie games and preseason games, I wasn’t really good,” said Samanski. “In the North American game, faceoffs are more of a focus. I have been practicing a lot with the group of centres in Bakersfield, and they’ve been great at helping me. I’ve watched closely in games what works for others, and I’ve been able to learn and adapt different strategies. It has been fun, and I feel I’m getting better, but I still have a lot to learn about faceoffs.”
The Oilers had an optional skate this morning, so the above lines are a guess. Kapanen and Roslovic might swap, but either way the third line will have some speed.
Ducks…
Killorn – Granlund – Sennecke
Viel – Poehling – Gauthier
Kreider – Harkins – Strome
Johnston – Washe – Moore
Lacombe – Trouba
Zellweger – Gudas
Mintyukov – Helleson
Husso
The Ducks’ forward group is decimated by injuries with Carlsson, Terry, Mason MacTavish and Frank Vatrano injured, but they’ve managed to win seven in a row. Edmonton has more offensive punch and they should be able to outscore them, as long as they play sound defensively. Edmonton is 22-1-4 when scoring first, while the Ducks have allowed the first goal 31 times. Anaheim is 12-16-3 when allowing the first goal. They have the 10th best winning% when allowing the first goal, while the Oilers, despite their high-powered offence, rank 29th in w% at an ugly .154 when they allow the first goal. The Oilers are 4-18-4 when the opposition scores first. The Ducks’ blueline has produced the fifth most goals of any D corps in the NHL. The Oiler forwards need to be alert in the defensive zone.
TONIGHT…
Photoshop by Tom Kostiuk
GAME DAY PREDICTION: Oilers have made this homestand much harder than it should be, outside of the 5-0 win over St. Louis. But Edmonton ends the Ducks’ winning streak with a 5-2 victory.
OBVIOUS GAME DAY PREDICTION: McDavid produces two points. He has 54 points in his last 27 games dating back to December 1st.
NOT-SO-OBVIOUS GAME DAY PREDICTION: Spencer Stasney picks up his first point as an Oiler. He has no points in 22 games after producing nine in 30 games with Nashville.
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It wasn’t pretty, but the Edmonton Oilers won back-to-back games.
On Monday evening, the Oilers hosted the Anaheim Ducks for the fifth game of their eight-game home stand. Like Saturday, it was another high-scoring game, as the Oilers defeated the Ducks 7-4 in thanks to Mattias Ekholm’s hat trick. Let’s take a look at what went on in this one!
Three and a half minutes into the game, the Anaheim Ducks took the lead with a power play goal. Evan Bouchard failed to clear it, and after a handful of passes, Mikael Granlund got in behind Bouchard and was able to beat Tristan Jarry above the blocker from the faceoff dot.
On a power of their own late in the first period, the Oilers managed to find the game-tying goal. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins received a pass down low with no one on him, giving the longest-tenured Oiler all the time in the world to pass it over to Zach Hyman. The power forward won a battle for position in the crease and was able to tap it in for the goal.
Within the first minute of the second period, the Ducks restored their lead. On a seemingly harmless play, the Oilers committed three players behind the net. Ryan Poehling won the puck battle and got it out front for Alex Killorn, who beat Jarry for the 2-1 lead.
Then, the Oilers exploded for four goals in under four minutes. Just over four and a half minutes into the second period, Spencer Stastney attempted a pass to the slot, but instead of finding an Oilers’ stick, he banked the puck off Olen Zellweger’s skate into the back of the net for his first as an Oiler.
The Oilers added a second goal about two minutes later. Connor McDavid got the zone entry, passed it over Mattias Ekholm who was driving up the middle of the ice. The Oilers defenceman made a nice no-look pass to Hyman, who found Ekholm all alone in front of the net for a tap-in. A very nice goal.
Just over a minute later, the Oilers extended their lead to two. A Duck tripped on a zone entry, sending the Oilers back on a three-on-one. Darnell Nurse elected to shoot the puck, going short-side on Ville Husso to make it 4-2 for the Oilers.
Less than a minute later, the Oilers scored again, as the Ducks blew an odd-man rush opportunity. The Oilers forced a turnover, and Matthew Savoie and Ekholm had a two-on-one. Ekholm was patient with the puck, firing it top shelf on the glove side to make it 5-2. Granlund scored another power play goal with a little over six minutes remaining in the second period.
EKHOLM ON HATTY WATCH
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— Oilersnation.com, Oily Since ‘07 (@OilersNation) January 27, 2026
Granlund completed the power play hat trick with just over six minutes left in the third period to cut the Oilers’ lead to one. The puck took an unfortunate bounce off a skate and deflected top shelf. Jarry wasn’t in a great position to save this shot. Thankfully, McDavid was able to ice the game with an empty netter, and Ekholm was able to hit his hat trick on an empty-net of his own moments later.
EKHOLM HAT TRICK!
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— Oilersnation.com, Oily Since ‘07 (@OilersNation) January 27, 2026
Takeaways…
The big story of the last two games has been scoring from the Oilers’ defence. Three of the six goals on Saturday came from defenceman Evan Bouchard, the first hat trick for an Oilers’ defender since 2006. Well, they got four goals from defencemen in this game over three minutes, two from Mattias Ekholm, one from Darnell Nurse, and one from Spencer Stastney, his first as an Oiler.
In fact, the Amazon Prime broadcast noted that this was the first time since November 19, 2000, that a team has gotten four goals from defencemen in the same period. That was done by the Anaheim Ducks, and it’s only been done five other times. Moreover, the four goals in three minutes and 49 seconds is the quickest a team has gotten four goals from a defenceman. Over their last two games, seven of the 12 goals have been scored thanks to the Oilers’ back end.
It’s not often you see a hat trick from each team in the same game, but that happened in this one thanks to Mikael Granlund’s three power play goals and Ekholm’s first career hat trick. After not getting a hat trick from a defenceman in over 20 years, the Oilers have gotten back-to-back hat tricks from defencemen in their last two games. That’s the first time in NHL history.
The Oilers’ first goal was scored by Zach Hyman, giving him 21 goals and 35 points in 35 games. Since November 29, Hyman has scored all 21 of those goals in just 28 games. It’s incredible how productive Hyman has been since joining the Oilers.
Before Monday’s game, the Oilers called up German centre Josh Samanski, who made his debut in this game. Between Matthew Savoie and Jack Roslovic, Samanski came oh so close to scoring his first career goal, as he just didn’t put enough mustard on the shot.
Mentioning Savoie, he picked up an assist on Ekholm’s second goal, giving him two goals and four points over his last six games. The rookie seems to be heating up after picking up two assists in his previous 14 games. He did take two bad penalties though.
After scoring twice and picking up three assists in Saturday’s 6-5 win over the Washington Capitals, Connor McDavid was held to an assist and an empty net goal in this game. The Oilers captain went down hard while driving the net, then received his second penalty shot of the season just seconds later. He was stopped on the most exciting play in hockey.
Defending McDavid on the play where he went hard into the boards was Ducks defenceman Jackson LaCombe. He also laid a heavy hit on Hyman and Mattias Janmark late in the third period. He’ll be a darn good player for the Ducks.
The Oilers were heavily outplayed in this game, as they were out-shot 40 to 32, with the Ducks having 2.93 expected goals to the Oilers 1.74 expected goals. Overall, Jarry stopped 36 of 40 shots for a .900 save percentage. Not too often you see four goals allowed and a .900 save percentage.
According to Natural Stat Trick, the two lines with an expect goal share above 50 percent was the third line of Roslovic, Samanski, and Savoie (53.51 percent of the expected goals) and the fourth line of Trent Frederic, Curtis Lazar, and Janmark, who had 55.99 percent of the expected goals.
It was a tough game for the Oilers penalty kill, as three of the four goals the Ducks scored came on the power play, all courtesy of Mikael Granlund. The penalty kill has to be better moving forward.
As they say, the 10th time is the charm, as this is the Oilers’ 10th two-game winning streak. They’ll look to become the 32nd team to register a three-game winning streak this season, as they host the San Jose Sharks on Thursday at 7:00 PM MT.
Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for Oilersnation, FlamesNation, and Blue Jays Nation. Follow her on Twitter @Ryley__Delaney.
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