The Edmonton Oilers (12-11-5) hosted the Seattle Kraken (11-8-6) on Thursday night (Dec. 4). This was their third meeting of the season, with Seattle defeating Edmonton 3-2 on Oct. 25, and the Oilers returning the favour with a 4-0 victory on Nov. 29, with both of those games in Seattle. This game saw the Oilers dominate en route to a commanding 9-4 win. Here’s your game recap.
Game Recap
The Oilers opened the scoring 7:17 into the first period courtesy of Connor McDavid’s 12th of the season. Edmonton forced a turnover in the offensive zone, and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins found McDavid, who walked in and ripped a shot upstairs, blocker-side over goaltender Joey Daccord. Just 17 seconds later, the home team made it 2-0. Leon Draisaitl found Vasily Podkolzin near the right faceoff circle, and his one-timer squeaked through Daccord, barely crossing the goal line.
Then, the Oilers added another as Draisaitl made it 3-0 with a power-play marker 11:27 into the period. Nugent-Hopkins passed to McDavid down low, and the Oilers’ captain found Draisaitl with a cross-crease pass, and he buried the one-timer in tight.
Seattle fought back and got on the board 16:07 into the opening frame. Brandon Montour’s shot was blocked, but the puck bounced to Eeli Tolvanen, and he ripped the shot past goaltender Calvin Pickard. Then, Frederick Gaudreau stole the puck from Draisaitl, and he went to the backhand for his first of the season with just 27 seconds remaining to bring the score within one. That wild first period concluded with five goals scored, and the Kraken holding a slim 11-10 shot advantage.
The Oilers made it 4-2 with a shorthanded marker 2:28 into the second period. Evan Bouchard found Matt Savoie with a breakaway pass, and he went to the backhand, beating Seattle’s netminder. Then, the Oilers extended their lead with another power-play goal. McDavid’s shot fooled Daccord through the five-hole, leading to a goalie change. The Oilers weren’t done there, as they made it 6-2 courtesy of Zach Hyman’s second of the season. The Oilers forward drove hard to the net and beat the new goaltender Philipp Grubauer with the backhand.