Draisaitl's four assists lead Oilers' five-goal rally in 5-2 win over Ducks
Edmonton scored five unanswered second-period goals to erase a 2-0 deficit in Anaheim. Evan Bouchard now leads the NHL with six goals through four games.
Five second-period goals after a 2-0 deficit
Edmonton trailed 2-0 at the first intermission after Beckett Sennecke scored two power-play goals for Anaheim. The New York Times reported the Oilers were outshot 31-19 over the game and had been outplayed at five-on-five in the first period. The second period changed the night, with five unanswered Edmonton goals producing a 5-2 road win. The Oilers are now 3-0-1 and have scored 22 goals in their first four games. The Ducks lost for the first time in three games after winning their previous two.
- Beckett Sennecke scores two power-play goals, and Anaheim leads 2-0 after the first period
- Evan Bouchard cuts the deficit to 2-1 with a long wrist shot through traffic
- Bouchard puts Edmonton ahead 3-2 on a one-timer from Leon Draisaitl
- Connor McDavid scores the 5-2 goal during 4-on-4 play
Bouchard's start
Evan Bouchard had two goals and an assist, scoring twice in the second period. His first goal came 11 seconds into the frame, a long wrist shot through traffic that cut the deficit to 2-1. He put Edmonton ahead 3-2 on a one-timer from Leon Draisaitl with 5:48 to go. Through four games Bouchard has six goals, the league lead, and AP reports he is only the second defenseman in NHL history with at least six goals through the first four games of a season. He is also the fifth defenseman in league history with at least 10 points through four games, a feat last matched by Morgan Rielly in 2018-19 for the Maple Leafs. Harry Cameron scored eight goals in four games for the Toronto Arenas in the league's inaugural 1917-18 season.
Draisaitl, McDavid and the Ducks' goaltending
Leon Draisaitl had four assists, and Connor McDavid added a goal and two assists. McDavid's goal came with 51.7 seconds left during 4-on-4 play, his third goal and 12th point of the season. Kasperi Kapanen and Vasily Podkolzin also scored for Edmonton. Devon Levi made 28 saves according to AP and Przeglad Sportowy, while Reuters gives 29. Lukas Dostal was replaced to start the third period after stopping six of 11 shots in the middle frame, and Ville Husso made two saves in relief.
- Leon Draisaitl
- 4 assists
- Connor McDavid
- 2 assists
- Evan Bouchard
- 1 assists
Oilers head coach Mike Babcock was blunt about the start, saying the team was not good in the first period and that the response was what he liked.
We were not good. And so let's not kid ourselves with how everything went, but what I do like is our response was very good. And we have some competitive people in our room, and that was obvious.
Elsewhere on the night
Winnipeg beat Colorado 3-2, with Kyle Connor scoring twice, including the winner with a minute left in regulation. Stuart Skinner stopped 32 shots for the Jets, who have won three straight. Washington beat visiting Pittsburgh 5-3, with Tom Wilson scoring a goal and adding two assists. Alex Ovechkin, 41, who announced on Monday that this would be his final season, played his first game since that announcement, and he and Sidney Crosby, 39, did not figure in the scoring. Their meeting was the 76th regular-season matchup and the 101st overall. In Anaheim, Ducks winger Nikita Klepov, the No. 15 pick in the 2026 draft, made his NHL debut and became the youngest player in franchise history at 18 years, 102 days old.
What comes next
Edmonton plays at San Jose on Saturday, and the Kings are at Winnipeg on Friday night. The Oilers' 3-0-1 record is tied for the top of the Western Conference, and they have not allowed an even-strength goal in their past two games. After two Stanley Cup Final losses in the past three years, the team wants to win the Cup this season and counts among the league's contenders.
