Leon Draisaitl's big night boosts Oilers over Preds

Edmonton Oilers centre Leon Draisaitl (29) celebrates his goal with teammates during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Nashville Predators, Thursday, Oct. 31, 2024, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

Leon Draisaitl had two goals with an assist and the visiting Edmonton Oilers looked solid minus injured superstar Connor McDavid, beating the Nashville Predators 5-1 on Thursday night.

With McDavid out two to three weeks after sustaining an ankle injury Monday at Columbus, the Oilers didn't look dejected en route to their highest-scoring game of the season. Draisaitl, the Hart Trophy winner (NHL MVP) in 2019-20, extended his team-leading goal total to eight and recorded his second three-point effort in three games.

Meanwhile, ex-Predator Viktor Arvidsson, Corey Perry and Zach Hyman also scored while Calvin Pickard made 26 saves for the Oilers, who have won three of four. It was also Edmonton's second victory this month at Nashville, which managed only Filip Forsberg's fifth goal while losing its second straight (0-1-1) after winning three in a row.

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Not smarting from McDavid's absence, Edmonton opened the scoring 37 seconds into the contest. After the Oilers' forecheck prevented the Predators from clearing their zone, the puck made its way to Draisaitl in front of the net, then over for Arvidsson to push home.

However, Nashville equalized just 5:05 into the first. On the power play, the Predators caught a break when Brett Kulak's clearing attempt for Edmonton hit bodies, with the puck then landing for Forsberg to send by Pickard.

The Oilers, though, regained the lead nearly five minutes later. Off an initial stop from Juuse Saros (24 saves), Perry was in position to convert.

Draisaitl extended Edmonton's lead with 10:57 remaining in the middle period. After Nashville's Michael McCarron lost an edge while trying to maintain the puck at the near board, Draisaitl picked up the puck, raced in alone and beat Saros for a 3-1 Oilers lead.

Draisaitl was at it again just 1:48 into the third. Taking a pass from Mattias Ekholm, Draisaitl did the rest, working his way around Brady Skjei and catching the metal of the cage before the puck made it by Saros.

Hyman recorded his first goal of the campaign, after scoring a career-high 54 last season, off a partial breakaway with 7:14 left in regulation.