Oilers finding ways to thrive in close encounters

Edmonton Oilers' Connor McDavid (97) battles for the puck against San Jose Sharks' Mikael Granlund (64) and Timothy Liljegren (37) during second period NHL action in Edmonton, Saturday, Dec. 21, 2024. (Timothy Matwey)

The Edmonton Oilers have certainly displayed a flair for the dramatic of late.

Following much the same script from a 3-2 overtime victory over the Boston Bruins on Thursday, the Oilers scored a late goal to tie it and then won early in overtime, coming from behind to defeat the San Jose Sharks 3-2 on Saturday.

Edmonton tied the game 2-2 with just 18 seconds left in the third period and with their goalie pulled as Corey Perry made a quick pass back to defenceman Mattias Ekholm and he blasted his fifth of the season into the net.

Then Leon Draisaitl, who hit a post on a wide-open net earlier in the game, scored his league-leading 24th goal of the season 18 seconds into overtime to extend his point streak to eight games, giving him seven goals and 19 points in that span.

“These are always exciting and fun, if they go your way, of course,” Draisaitl said of the carbon copy cardiac contests. “I thought we’ve done a good job the last two nights of finding a way to put away the game.

“You have to find a way to win any kind of hockey game in this league and the last two nights we certainly won two the same way. You don’t want to do that every night, but sometimes you need those.”

It was Draisaitl’s franchise-leading 17th overtime goal, moving one ahead of Connor McDavid in that category and 10 up on Jari Kurri in third. It was the 99th time that McDavid and Draisaitl have combined on the game-winning goal. Only one other duo in NHL history recorded more, twins Daniel and Henrik Sedin of the Vancouver Canucks with 149.

Zach Hyman and Mattias Ekholm also scored for the Oilers (20-11-2), who have won 10 of their last 12 contests. Connor McDavid had three assists, while Evan Bouchard had a pair of helpers.

“We stuck with it, we found a way and our big boys came through,” Perry said. “It’s about staying with the process. We played as a team tonight. We moved the puck around and made some great plays.

“It’s just the way it goes sometimes. You miss a couple of open nets and you have to fight right to the end to tie it. That’s hockey for you.”

McDavid had three assists to extend his own points streak to eight games, while Evan Bouchard had a pair of helpers.

Sharks rookie goalie Yaroslav Askarov frustrated the Oilers for more than 59 minutes, making 41 saves in just his sixth NHL game.

“I didn’t think we were ever going to score again, to be honest,” laughed Oilers goalie Calvin Pickard, who was called upon to make just 20 stops. “But the one that tied it was great and the overtime goal was even better."

San Jose defenceman Cody Ceci was suitably impressed by his team’s 22-year-old Russian netminder.

"He kept us in that game the whole way. It's great to see, especially from a young guy, to have that much composure and play against some high-end talent and do as well as he did. It's awesome for us,” Ceci said.

“He looks like he's having fun, too. He's always smiling, making big saves and having fun out there. I think that's huge as a young guy, to have that confidence and it allows you to play as well as he has.”

Luke Kunin and Jan Rutta replied for the Sharks (11-19-6), who have lost four in a row and seven of their last eight.

Takeaways

Sharks: Playing in his 31st game of the season, Jake Walman picked up an assist, giving him 20 helpers on the season. He became the fastest defenceman in franchise history to pick up his first 20 assists with the team, besting the previous mark established by Erik Karlsson who did it in 34 games in 2018-2019.

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Oilers: Hyman continues to be on a real hot streak, scoring for the fifth consecutive game. Hyman now has nine goals in his last eight games since returning from an injury, giving him 12 goals on the season after scoring just three goals in his first 20 games. Hyman, whose nine goals are tied for the league lead since Dec. 5, had a career year last season with 54 goals.

Key moment

Edmonton tied the game 2-2 with just 18 seconds left in the third period and their goalie pulled as Corey Perry made a quick pass to Ekholm in the slot and he blasted his fifth of the season into the net. Ekholm now has a four-game point streak.

Key stat

Edmonton has dominated the Sharks in recent years, now with wins in 10 of their last 11 meetings. Edmonton has outscored San Jose 57-22 over the last three seasons.

Up next

Sharks: Visit the Vancouver Canucks on Monday.

Oilers: Host the Ottawa Senators on Sunday.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 21, 2024.