Day After Highlights 25.0: Edmonton Oilers 5, Montreal Canadiens 3

The Edmonton Oilers kicked off their four-game homestand with a 5-3 win over the Montreal Canadiens. Here are highlights from the game…

The Habs opened the scoring just a few minutes into the first period while Connor McDavid was in the penalty box for holding. Nick Suzuki took a behind-the-back pass from Mike Matheson and roofed a shot past Stuart Skinner.

Early in the second period, defenceman Joel Edmundson took a penalty for high-sticking and the Oilers tied the game on the ensuing power play. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins snuck down from the point and Leon Draisaitl fed him with a pass from beside the net.

Edmundson’s terrible discipline cost the Habs again a few minutes later. With Kirby Dach already in the penalty box, Edmundson drilled Zach Hyman with a cross-check to his head. Edmundson was booted from the game and the Habs had to navigate a five-minute penalty.

The Oilers could connect twice on the opportunity. First, it was Draisaitl connecting on the classic one-timer and then it was McDavid sniping a shot five-hole on Jake Allen.

The Habs battled back in the latter half of the second period. Joel Armia threw a low shot from the top of the face-off circle and Skinner kicked the rebound out to Evgenii Dadonov who buried it into the open net. A few minutes after that, Arber Xhekaj scored a power-play goal with a wrister from the point.

 

With just a few seconds left to go in the second period, the Oilers regained a 4-3 lead. Zach Hyman retrieved the puck on the forecheck and fed a pass to Draisaitl in the face-off circle. Every Habs defender got caught watching the puck and Darnell Nurse was able to slide into the slot untouched. Draisaitl fed Nurse the puck and he fired a shot through Jake Allen.

Connor McDavid gave the Oilers an insurance goal with just over five minutes to go in the third period. The Habs coughed the puck up just outside Edmonton’s blueline and Draisaitl sent McDavid the other way on a partial breakaway. He burned past Montreal’s backchecker and roofed a shot after deking out Allen. A gem for McDavid’s 21st of the season.