Jason Robertson had two goals and two assists, Wyatt Johnston had another three-point game against Edmonton, and the Dallas Stars went up 5-0 early in the second period, before eventually winning 7-2.

Flat as a pancake, an emotional let-down. The Oilers chased the game right from puck drop. The usual clichés after a game like this.

“In the first period, we didn’t have many opportunities playing in the offensive zone,” said Kris Knoblauch post-game. “We wanted to stick handle through. They are a very defensively structured team. They had numbers back. It’s tough to get through there.”

The game represented a “heatcheck” type of spot for the Oilers, as the Stars were 12-0-1 in their last 13 games, pushing for the best record in the NHL.

The Oilers had put together two of their best wins of the season in succession against the Vegas Golden Knights and Colorado Avalanche. That team was nowhere to be seen on Thursday night against Dallas, as Edmonton was swept in the season-series by a total score of 19-8.

It was the fifth time this season the Oilers had allowed seven goals or more in a game, and the third time they’d lost by at least a five-goal margin.

Jamie Benn scored just 1:23 into the hockey game. Sam Steel and Jason Robertson scored 2:02 in the latter third of the period to give Dallas a comfortable edge. Despite the Oilers firing home two goals in the second period, scored by Evan Bouchard and Jason Dickinson, the Stars were never threatened.

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Jamie Benn wastes no time finding the back of the net 🌟 📺: Oilers 🆚 Stars live on SN1 and SNO 📲: Stream on Sportsnet+

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12:12 AM · Mar 13, 2026

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The Oilers couldn’t play with the puck, and Tristan Jarry couldn’t get in front of it often enough. He finished allowing seven goals on 27 shots, finishing with a .741 save percentage. That’s the third time in his Oilers’ tenure he was below a .750 save percentage.

Wyatt Johnston had 10 points against the Oilers this season. The Stars powerplay continued their streak and scored for the 11th straight game.

However, as opposed to other blowouts this year, Edmonton engaged in multiple scrums, showing some emotional intensity after the whistles were blown. Connor McDavid and Justin Hryckowian wrestled each other to the ice after the second period finished.

McDavid had his 19-game road point streak snapped, while Evan Bouchard and Leon Draisaitl were able to maintain nine, and seven, game streaks, respectively.

Jason Dickinson’s goal was his first in an Oiler uniform.

Zach Hyman went pointless, and was minus-3 in 17:57 of ice-time in his 700th NHL game.

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TENSIONS ARE HIGH IN DALLAS AND MCDAVID DROPS THE GLOVES?!?!

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1:48 AM · Mar 13, 2026

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What they said

Zach Hyman on what went wrong…
“Managing the puck. I think we gave them a lot of free offence, and they’re a pretty good team off the rush. So when you do that, it’s tough to climb out of a hole the situation at the end of the second period.”
Head coach Kris Knoblauch on his team showing some fight, literally, in the latter stages of the game, led by Connor McDavid…
“Obviously it’s very frustrating, and [they are] trying to fire up our team. Then, the shot at Leon where they’re trying to clear the puck and they just roughed it up a little bit. But, obviously, there’s a lot of fire from our leaders and we needed that,” said head coach Kris Knoblauch.
Dallas Stars bench boss Glen Gulutzan’s analysis of the action…
“I thought we started good and we executed really good in the beginning.
“It wasn’t quite our normal game. You get up 3-0 and the dynamic kind of changes. I thought they had some pushes at times. The power play kept stinging [Edmonton] a little bit and they could never get traction.”
Jason Robertson on what captain Jamie Benn has provided this season
“He’s been the heartbeat of this team for as long as I’ve been here, I’m sure for as long as he’s been with the team.
“You can’t say enough about him stepping up right now, that line stepping up this last month or two. It’s great, especially when you get it from your captain, he’s the most vocal. It’s great to see him get rewarded in one way or another.”
Wyatt Johnston on the team’s powerplay success
“It’s cool, just try to chip in however I can. I wasn’t exactly expecting to score a lot on the power play this year.
“Our goal isn’t to win all the games (remaining). It’s important to win now, but we want to be winning come April, May, June. That’s what we’re working for.”

Up next…

Now, the Edmonton Oilers head to St. Louis to finish the four-game roadtrip. Luckily, the Blues are also on a back-to-back, but are coming off of a victory, winning in Carolina 3-1.

The schedule is tightly compacted all next week too. Once the Oilers return home, they host Nashville on Sunday, San Jose on Tuesday, than Florida on Thursday, and Tampa Bay on Saturday.

Michael Menzies is an Oilersnation columnist and has been the play-by-play voice of the Bonnyville Pontiacs in the AJHL since 2019. With seven years news experience as the Editor-at-Large of Lakeland Connect in Bonnyville, he also collects vinyl, books, and stomach issues.