Draisaitl, Bouchard help Oilers snap 7-game skid with 5-3 win over rival Flames
It had been more than a month since the Edmonton Oilers landed in the win column.
Leon Draisaitl had two goals and two assists and Evan Bouchard had two goals as the Oilers came from behind to snap a seven-game losing skid, rallying to defeat the Calgary Flames 5-3 on Saturday.
It was Edmonton's first win since defeating Seattle on Dec. 18.
“It feels great. Losing is awful, it sucks, it is not fun. It feels like there is always a cloud around you,” Draisiatl said. “We are not where we want to be yet, but this is a start and you have to start at some point. (Mikko Koskinen) was amazing. It was a full team effort, a good game for us.”
Koskinen was solid in the Edmonton net, making 44 saves.
Brendan Perlini also scored for the Oilers (19-16-2), who were in desperate need for a win, having gone 2-11-2 in their previous 15 games. Connor McDavid chipped in with two assists.
“Whenever you're losing games it's obviously a bad feeling,” McDavid said. “We're human. We have feelings. Those losses pile up and they weigh on you. It's human nature. It's nice to find a way to get a win. Hopefully we build a little momentum here.”
Matthew Tkachuk, Milan Lucic and Noah Hanifin replied for the Flames (18-12-6), who are 3-8-1 in their last 12 games. Hanifin added two assists.
“It's very disappointing, we did a lot of things right, we created a lot of chances and in the third period, we spent the majority of the time in the O-zone and only gave up four shots in the third period,” Lucic said.
“It's disappointing especially with the effort that we gave and how well we played. It's one of those things, they get life on the power play and they get themselves back in it and we deserved better than the result that we got.”
Flames goalie Jacob Markstrom stopped 26-of-30 shots.
As has come to be expected, Edmonton allowed the game's first goal. It came 8:29 into the first period as Tkachuk lifted a rebound over Koskinen's leg to tie for the team lead with his 18th goal of the season. It was the 15th time in the last 16 contests - and the 24th in the last 28 games - that the Oilers have allowed the first goal.
The Flames made it 2-0 with a power-play goal scored with just 41 seconds remaining in the opening frame as Lucic was able to tip a Hanifin shot through the Oiler goalie's legs.
Edmonton got on the board 5:35 into the second period as a Bouchard blast from the point on the power play beat Markstrom. McDavid earned an assist to avoid going pointless for four games in a row for the first time in his career.
Bouchard picked the top corner for his second power-play goal of the game midway through the middle period to knot the game 2-2.
The Oilers surged in front with 1:42 left in the second as Perlini beat Markstrom with a long wrist shot, however the Flames erased that lead less than a minute later on an even longer shot from Hanifin.
Edmonton went up 4-3 with 5:31 left in the third period as Draisaitl showed tremendous patience in waiting for Markstrom to go down before sending home his 27th goal of the season.
Draisaitl added an empty netter with one second to play.
The Flames are back at it on Monday as they host the St. Louis Blues, while the Oilers are off until Tuesday when they travel to Vancouver to face the Canucks.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 22, 2022.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Fluid in eye cells can 'boil' if you watch the eclipse without protection: expert
Millions of people in parts of Eastern and Atlantic Canada will be able to see the rare solar eclipse happening on April 8. But they should only look up if they have proper eye protection, experts say.
He didn't trust police but sought their help anyway. Two days later, he was dead
Jameek Lowery was among more than 330 Black people who died after police stopped them with tactics that aren’t supposed to be deadly, like physical restraint and use of stun guns, The Associated Press found.
CRA no longer requiring 'bare trust' reporting in 2023 tax return
The Canada Revenue Agency announced Thursday it will not require 'bare trust' reporting from Canadians that it introduced for the 2024 tax season, just four days before the April 2 deadline.
Being harassed at work? What to consider when deciding what to do next
If you've been the victim of workplace harassment, it can be difficult to feel you're not alone - and even more difficult to know where to go with a complaint.
Sunshine list: These were the Ontario public sector's highest earners in 2023
Ontario released its annual sunshine list Thursday afternoon, noting that the largest year-over-year increases were in hospitals, municipalities, and post-secondary sectors.
Grandparent scam: London, Ont., senior beats fraudsters not once, but twice
It was a typical Tuesday for Mabel Beharrell, 84, until she got the call that would turn her world upside down. Her teenaged grandson was in trouble and needed her help.
Half of Canadians support TikTok ban, with U.S. concerns 'trickling' north: poll
A new poll indicates 51 per cent of Canadians support banning the social media app TikTok, after a U.S. bill aiming to do just that passed in the House of Representatives.
Where is the worst place for allergy sufferers in Canada?
The spring allergy season has started early in many parts of Canada, with high levels of pollen in some cities already. Experts weigh in on which areas have it worse so far this season.
More unauthorized products for skin, sexual enhancement, recalled: Here are the recalls of this week
Health Canada and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency recalled various items this week, including torches, beef biltong and unauthorized products related to skin care and sexual enhancement.