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A day late and a dollar short as Oilers third period comeback against Sabres fails: Recap, Highlights, and Reaction
Edmonton Oilers Buffalo Sabres
Photo credit: Walter Tychnowicz-Imagn Images
Ryley Delaney
Dec 10, 2025, 00:00 ESTUpdated: Dec 10, 2025, 00:25 EST
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Well, at least the Edmonton Oilers got a point.
On Tuesday evening, the Oilers played the fourth of five games on this homestand, falling 4-3 in overtime to the Buffalo Sabres. Let’s take a look at what happened in this one.
Late in the first period, the Oilers found themselves on the penalty kill. No one was covering the net front presence, Josh Doan, as he was able to deflect the puck downward and past Stuart Skinner for the 1-0 lead.
The Oilers got the benefit of a missed call, as Alex Tuch passed it with his hand to Tage Thompson, who banged it in. That may not have counted, but the second one did midway through the second period. It was a classic Evan Bouchard gaffe, as Thompson stole the puck from the Oilers’ defender and deposited it into the back of the net.
A short time later, the Sabres made it 3-0 with Zach Hyman in the box. Doan was down low in front of Skinner and received the puck. Instead of passing it, Doan put it between his legs and shot it past Skinner.
Down 3-0 heading into the third period, the Oilers found that next level. Just 10 seconds into the final frame, the Oilers got the benefit of a whistle on what should’ve been an icing. Zach Hyman got to the loose puck, passed it to Connor McDavid, and the Oilers out waited the Sabres’ netminder for their first goal of the game.
It didn’t take long for the Oilers to make it a one goal game, doing so just a minute and 46 seconds later. Vasily Podkolzin had a few whacks at the puck, and eventually beat Alex Lyon to the glove side for his sixth of the season.
A whole bunch of penalties came in the second half of the third period, grinding the Oilers’ momentum to a halt. In the dying seconds, a loose scramble ensued, with the puck finding its way to the weak side. The Oilers were first on the puck, and it was none other than McDavid to tie the game with 1.9 seconds left in the game.
Wouldn’t it be lovely if I wrote that the Oilers completed the overtime in comeback? Unfortunately, it wasn’t meant to be as the Oilers won the opening draw too clean, and the Sabres were able to capitalize on the Oilers’ poor defending. Former Oiler Ryan McLeod picked up the primary assist on the OT winner.

Takeaways…

The good news is that at least the Oilers don’t get the distinction of being the first team to lose to the Sabres on home in regulation this season? They played a full 20 minutes and forgot how to defend in overtime. At least they got a point, I guess.
Thankfully, we still got an exciting finish to regulation, but some of those penalty calls in the second half of the third period were horrendous. In particular, the Alex Tuch “hooking” call and the Ryan Nugent-Hopkins “hooking” call. The officials really liked calling hooking penalties, as four of the 10 calls were hooks.
Vasily Podkolzin is burgeoning into a true top six player. On top of scoring his sixth goal of the season, he showed confidence in carrying the puck, something missing from his game last season. As it stands, Podkolzin is on pace for 16 goals and 35 points, which would blow by his eight goals and 24 points last season and be more inline with his rookie campaign.
Connor McDavid remembered that he can shoot and he now has 16 goals for the season. He’s now just 10 goals shy of matching what he did last season in 37 fewer games. Leon Draisaitl, and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins were the other two forwards to pick up an assist.
Evan Bouchard picked up an assist, but that was a brutal giveaway on the Sabres’ second goal. Those gaffs happen a little bit too often, but his postseason production is absolutely worth it. Mattias Ekholm and Ty Emberson also picked up assists.
It was another sub-.900 save percentage game for Skinner, allowing four goals on 28 shots for an .857 save percentage. He didn’t really have much of a chance on any of the goals, the Oilers had a horrendous defensive game, but they needed a save.
The Oilers’ finish their five game homestand with a matchup against the Detroit Red Wings 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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