A hat-trick from Leon Draisaitl, a five-point night from Connor McDavid, a .947 save percentage from Connor Ingram and a 5-1 win over the Calgary Flames.

Given all of that in the Edmonton Oilers’ final game before the Christmas Break on Tuesday night, it’s easy to see why the team would be feeling good. Couple that with an 8-2-1 record since the Oilers were shutout by the Minnesota Wild on Dec. 2nd, and the fact that the team is tied for the Pacific Division lead, and it paints an even clearer picture.

“I thought it was as good as it’s been,” said McDavid of the Oilers’ play. “Really solid all over. Special teams were great. Five-on-five generated and didn’t give up much, goalie played well. A lot of things to like.”

And for as much as McDavid’s been on a tear in the month of December, already tying a career-high in points for the month with three games to go, Draisaitl was mired in an eight-game goalless drought. It was his longest since between February 19th and March 6th, 2021, though in that drought, he had posted eight assists.

This recent eight-game stretch still saw him be productive in a big way, chipping in 15 assists.

“I’m happy because I’m creating other looks for guys that I’m on the ice with, so as long as that part of the game is there, I’m happy,” said Draisaitl. “I was never really in a panic mode because I didn’t score in six, seven games, whatever it was.

“But I felt like I had looks. I felt like the other parts of my games were there, and they were good. So I think it’s just a matter of time for it to bounce in.”

Ultimately, the Oilers find themselves in a great spot heading into the Christmas break. They surged up the Pacific Division standings in December, securing 17 of 24 possible points, and can prepare themselves for another push on the other side of Boxing Day.

This should scare opposing teams, as the Oilers have been tremendous coming out of the Christmas break for three years. As noted by our own Jason Gregor, the Oilers went 8-2-1 in their first 11 games after Christmas last year, 14-0 in 2023-24, and 9-3-1 in their first 13 in 2022-23.

And when they do return from their break, 13 of their next 19 games will be played on home ice.

“That’s a great opportunity, a great, great opportunity for our group here,” said McDavid. “Home for most of January (and) we don’t go east again.

“We’ve gotten a lot of tough trips out of the way. We’re healthy. We’re only getting healthier. A little bit of time (off) during this break. I like where our group can go. This is a big month for us coming up. We got to take advantage of this schedule at home here and make a good push.”

Zach Laing is Oilersnation’s managing editor, senior columnist, and The Nation Network’s news director. He also makes up one-half of the Daily Faceoff DFS Hockey Report. He can be followed on X at @zjlaing, or reached by email at zach.laing@bettercollective.com.