Draisaitl scores in OT as Oilers beat Flames 3-2 – Edmonton

Leon Draisaitl made a triumphant return from injury, scoring twice – including the game-winning goal in overtime – and adding an assist to lead the Edmonton Oilers to a 3-2 victory over the Calgary Flames, ending their two-game losing streak.

“The tight games are always a little bit more special, a little bit more fun to be in,” Draisaitl commented after the win. “I thought we played well, for the most part – hung in – and obviously you have to win those games as well.”

“Some pretty nice plays at key moments, and probably the biggest one was the tying goal; coming down the wing and sniping that,” Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch praised Draisaitl’s performance.

“I’m sure he garnered a few votes for some hardware after the season, I would imagine.”

Jeff Skinner set up Draisaitl for the winning goal in overtime, securing his league-leading 51st goal of the season against Calgary goalie Dustin Wolf.

Viktor Arvidsson also scored, and Darnell Nurse had two assists for the Oilers, who are currently without Connor McDavid, Mattias Ekholm, and Stuart Skinner. The win moves Edmonton into a tie for second place in the Pacific Division with the Los Angeles Kings.

Yegor Sharangovich and Brayden Pachal scored for the Flames, who have lost two consecutive games and are now seven points behind the St. Louis Blues and Minnesota Wild in the wild-card playoff race. Calvin Pickard made 26 saves for the Oilers, while Wolf recorded 26 saves for the Flames in the losing effort.

Flames forward Nazem Kadri reached a milestone with his 700th career NHL point and extended his points streak to six games. Oilers’ Draisaitl returned from a lower-body injury and now has 63 points in 48 career games against the Flames.

The Oilers tied the game late in the third period with Draisaitl’s 50th goal of the season, marking his fourth 50-goal season and tying Jari Kurri for second most in Edmonton franchise history behind Wayne Gretzky.

Dallas Stars’ Mikko Rantanen was involved in incidents that resulted in injuries to players from both Alberta teams, including goaltender Stuart Skinner and Flames forward Connor Zary.

Entering the game, the Oilers had outscored the Flames 1,016 to 1,012 in their history of clashes, including playoffs.

Up next, the Flames will face the Colorado Avalanche, while the Oilers will take on the Vegas Golden Knights.

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