Leon Draisaitl scored with 1:35 left in the third period to help the Edmonton Oilers secure a 3-2 win over the Anaheim Ducks at Rogers Place on Friday. This goal extended his point streak to 13 games. Draisaitl banked the puck off the post, beating Ducks goalie Lukas Dostal after Zach Hyman redirected a pass from Darnell Nurse to him in the right face-off circle.
Draisaitl now has 25 points during his streak (11 goals, 14 assists) and leads the NHL with 28 goals, 21 even-strength goals, and nine game-winning goals.
“I take big pride in stepping up when it is needed most,” Draisaitl said. “It is always something that is really important to me and that I pride myself in.”
Nurse added a goal and an assist, while Ryan Nugent-Hopkins scored as well. Goaltender Stuart Skinner made 27 saves for the Oilers (23-12-3), who have won their last two games. Oilers captain Connor McDavid’s 12-game point streak was broken (23 points; three goals, 20 assists).
“A much better team effort,” Nurse said, referring to a 5-3 loss in Anaheim on Dec. 28. “It wasn’t perfect by any means, but when we were challenged at the end, we found a way to get that final blow.”
Brett Leason and Jackson LaCombe scored for the Ducks (16-18-4), who had won three games in a row before this loss. Dostal made 23 saves.
“I thought we played well. It’s a great team we played against, and the second of a back-to-back is tough, especially against Winnipeg in the first game,” LaCombe said. “I thought our team did a great job battling all night.”
Nugent-Hopkins opened the scoring for the Oilers at 16:54 of the first period, with a sharp-angle shot that deflected off LaCombe’s stick. Nurse made it 2-0 at 7:57 of the second period with a wrist shot from the high slot.
Leason made it 2-1 at 18:32 of the second period, scoring on a breakaway after a pass from Evan Bouchard bounced off his stick.
“It’s disappointing. We played a heck of a period, and unfortunately, we gave up that breakaway goal at the end of the second period with a minute-and-a-half left,” Oilers coach Kris Knoblauch said. “We were pushing, but a mistake gave them life and put them back in the game.”
LaCombe tied the game 2-2 on a power play at 6:53 of the third, scoring with a wrist shot from the point after receiving a pass from Ryan Strome.
“It’s a long season, and we’re always taking the view that it’s a process. We have to keep staying in the process and trust each other,” Ducks coach Greg Cronin said. “I think we got out of our structure in the second period and lost the momentum, but we got it back in the third. If we just play that way every night, we give ourselves the best chance to win.”
