Edmonton Oilers dominate the NHL's best defensive team with 7-1 laughter

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The Edmonton Oilers snapped a nearly five-year losing skid against one of the NHL's elite clubs on Thursday with an impressive 7-1 victory over the Minnesota Wild.

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The Oilers last won in Minnesota on February 7^e2019. But a combination of superior special teams (PP 2-4, PK 1-3) and a world-class performance from Leon Draisaitl convincingly ended that dry spell.

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Draisaitl's 27th 4-point night also put the great Mark Messier in the Oilers all-time record book. And helped put one of the best goalkeepers out of the league after forty minutes.

The Oilers have now won four straight, the last two coming against top NHL teams.

Here's the story of the game tape

CALVIN PICKARD. 8. Great save by Kaprizov on a giveaway in the Oilers D-zone. Back-to-back saves first on Foligno and then a push to the other post to fill Pickard's Hartmangreat run. I didn't see the 2-1 tip through a triple screen and tip. I got small pieces of puck fired by Kaprizov and Rossi to keep the game at 2-1. Kept the game at 5-1 with two short-handed saves at the buzzer, one with a jab on the right pad, the other with a 9-iron chip off a rebound. Enjoyed a two post service halfway through the third. But one shift later, Kaprizov quit outright. Stopped 29 of 30. This game was never really in doubt, but Pickard was quality again. His last two losses were shut-outs.

CONNOR McDAVID. 7. Slippery seam to Draisaitl for the 1-0. He and Ekholm had a miscommunication that led to a Kaprizov opportunity in the first inning. Part of a cycle that produced a power play with a puck thrown over the glass. Secondary assist on the 6-1. Very good, but not the biggest star of this one.

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RYAN NUGENT-HOPKINS. 7. Helped in the face-off win in the 1-0 PP goal. Scored it 4-1 on another power play, kicking a Draisaitl rebound from skate to stick, where he handed the ball back home. Beautiful game net side.

ZACH HYMAN. 7. He drew a first period PP on which he and his mates converted, with Hyman tipping home a Draisaitl shot for the 1-0. Takeaway in the D zone. Towards the end of the second he pulled another PP with a hard reward along the wall. In the goalkeepers face all night.

EVAN BOUCHARD. 7. No assist, but his pass to McDavid set up the sequence that led to the 1-0 score. A very good defensive play on Kaprizov on his own blueline midway through the first. He was awarded a deserved stick-holding penalty early in the second, but his mates scored short-handed. Secondary assist on the 4-1. Another helper earned on Draisaitls 5-1. Towards the end of the evening he left the match feeling uneasy and favoring what appeared to be his leg.

MATTIAS EKHOLM. 5. A drive to Minnesota early in the first game, beating three defensemen. A mix-up between him and McDavid led to a chance for Kaprizov. Four blocks but also four competitions.

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LEON DRAISAITL. 10. An absolute force. Won the face-off on the opening power play and his shot hit Hyman's stick and in for the 1-0. Hartman had his helmet off, but no call from the Zebras, leaving the Oilers short-handed in their own zone. A powerful display of the 2-0 as Draisaitl skated three-quarters of the way into the Minnesota zone with multiple Wild players hanging on him before making a perfect pass to Kapanen for the 2-0. A great defensive stick for the next shift. Then pull a PP with another strong clearance along the wall. Strong backcheck in the second period. On a stacked line that dead cycled the Wild and earned a Power Play. Primary assist on the 4-1 with a shot that created the rebound. Nugent-Hopkins shot towards the goal. Scored the 5-1 on a 1-timer that clipped over the Wild goalie and went in. Led a grueling run in the Wild zone in the third that lasted nearly 90 seconds. Beat his man 1-on-1 and hit a post in the third. 5 shots led the team. 58% on draws. Great at both ends of the ice. Dominant performance.

VASILY PODKOLZI. 7. Secondary assist for the 2-0. Earned another one moments later. He blocked a hard shot with a 7-1 lead late in the third. Seems to have only one gear: Hard.

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KASPERI KAPANEN. 7. Lobbed a pass to Draistaitl in the slot, but Leon couldn't get a hold of it. He whipped in a pass from Draisaitl's glove side for the 2-0 after a great power forward play from Len to get the game going. Takeaway meals second period. Looks like a wonderful waiver.

DARNELL NURSE. 7. Part of the screen for Pickard for the 2-0. Primary assist on the 6-1 for his 200^e career help. Earned another appeal with the point shot that Ryan tapped home to make it 7-1. Ended the night +3. HDSCs 5v5 3-3. Playing his best hockey in 18 months.

TROY STEKER. 6. Hard shot from a Janmark feed. Heady PK plays to get his man and then puts the ice out in the third. Eye shots through traffic for the 6-1. He doesn't seem ready to hand over his spot on the roster to the new signing.

ADAM HENRIQUE. 5. Nice pass from behind the net to Janmark who just missed. Great feed to Skinner for a second period opportunity.

MATTIAS JANMARK. 6. Fed Stecher for a first period shot. Couldn't bury a great pass from Henrique in the first. Took a bit of a strange path to his point man on the 2-1, forcing the shot through a screen. Earned an assist on the 3-1 as an intermediary of sorts, tipping the puck to Brown while subtly lifting the Wild defenseman's stick.

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JEFF SKINNER. 5. A good cross created a chance for Janmark in the first inning. Faceoff win and a chance at a second period PP. A glorious chance up front, a shift later on a Henrique pass. Third period shot block.

BRETT KULAK. 7. Part of the screen in the way of the pucks on the 2-1. 3 shots, 2 blocks, 2 hits, 2 takeaways in 24:20. That's the first time in my memory that someone other than Bouchard, Ekholm or Nurse has led the Oilers D-corps in TOI. HDSCs 5v5 9-4.

TY EMBERSON. 8. His best game as an oiler. A spicy tilt with Lauko in the first one who would end up in some Rock-em, Sock-em roles back in the day. Well-deserved assist on Brown's 3-1 shorty that put him within a Gordie Howe goal. High Dangers 5-0 5v5, perfect on the PK.

DERK RIAN. 6. A nice deflection in front made it 7-1 and ended his forty-six match drought. I didn't lose a faceoff all night. A solid, professional evening of work.

CONNOR BROWN. 7. Hit the post with a target mouth in the first inning. Wandered home a hard shot for the 3-1 short-handed. Secondary assist on the 7-1.

COREY PERRY. 5. Premature deflection stopped. First period blocked shot. Part of a devastating Oilers cycle that produced a PP and led to the 4-1 score.

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The Oilers season record goes to 17-10-2, 36 points, third in the Pacific, one behind LA, five behind Vegas, who takes Edmonton on Saturday.

Now on Bluesky @kurtleavins.bsky.social. You can also find me on Threads @kleavins, Twitter @KurtLeavins, Instagram at LeavinsOnHockey and Mastodon at [email protected]. This article is not AI-generated.

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