The Anaheim Ducks traveled to Edmonton Monday to face off against the Edmonton Oilers. The Ducks, sitting at third place in the Pacific Division, came into the game looking to extend a seven-game winning streak against one of the most talented teams in the NHL.
The Ducks have been a chaotic team this season, with great offensive play being contrasted with a struggling defense. Their seven-game winning streak came immediately after a nine-game losing streak.
Edmonton, meanwhile, has been winning enough to sit at second in the division, albeit with inconsistency. They hadn’t won more than two games in a row as of Monday’s game.
The game opened with a power play goal by Ducks centre Mikael Granland less than four minutes into the game. Goaltender Ville Husso blocked seven shots in the first period before Oilers right winger Zach Hyman tied the game with under three minutes to go.
36-year-old forward Alex Killorn scored less than a minute into the second period to give the Ducks a 2-1 lead. Husso then blocked a penalty shot from Oilers centre Connor McDavid, widely considered the best hockey player in the world.
However, the Oilers erupted with a barrage of goals, scoring four times in under four minutes to give Edmonton a 5-2 lead. The first came when a shot by defensemen Spencer Stastney ricocheted off the skate of Ducks defenseman Olen Zellweger to give Stastney his first goal with the Oilers. Defensemen Mattias Ekholm scored the second and fourth goals of the period, and Darnell Nurse scored the third.
Granlund scored again on a power play to cut the Oilers’ lead to 5-3 before the end of the second period. In the third period, Granlund would complete a hat trick and cut the Ducks’ deficit to one goal with six minutes left in the game.
The Ducks pulled Husso for an extra skater with two minutes left, and McDavid scored on an empty net to make it 6-4. The scoring concluded with 10 seconds left, when Ekholm achieved a hat trick of his own, scoring on an empty net from behind the goal line, sealing Edmonton’s 7-4 victory.
Following Evan Bouchard’s hat trick against the Washington Capitals two days earlier, Ekholm and Bouchard became the first defenseman in NHL history from the same team to score a hat trick in back-to-back games.
Husso finished the game with 30 shots against and 25 saves, while Jarry had 40 shots against and 36 saves. Hyman and McDavid each had an assist for Edmonton, while Draisaitl had four. Cutter Gauthier assisted Granlund’s first goal, extending his point streak to five games.
The loss dropped Anaheim to fourth place in the division.