Connor McDavid had a goal and three assists to lead the Edmonton Oilers to a 7-2 win over the Minnesota Wild Friday night at Rogers Place.
LISTEN BELOW: Connor McDavid
The Oilers scored three goals in a span of 4:28 to get the game going. Leon Draisaitl converted a pass from McDavid for his 14th of the season. Minnesota goaltender Devan Dubnyk mishandled a bouncing puck, allowing Ryan Nugent-Hopkins to poke in his eighth of the season. Just 58 seconds later, McDavid fired a long wrister for his 15th of the year.
Dubnyk was pulled after allowing three goals on six shots in the first 8:42 of the game. Alex Stalock took over. Marcus Foligno got one back for the Wild before the end of the first.
“I’ll take responsibility for that one,” Dubnyk said. “They’ve obviously got some guys that they can go, and they can fly, and you’ve got to be able to take control and settle it down if things are going that way. That’s my job.”
“To say you’re not concerned would be just sitting here and lying to you,” Wild head coach Bruce Boudreau said of Dubnyk. “We’re concerned, but I’m concerned about a lot of guys on this team right now. He’s not the only one.”
The Wild started to carry the play in the second period and earned two power play chances. However, Oilers goaltender Cam Talbot turned aside all 14 Wild shots in the frame.
Zack Kassian scored on a long-range wrist shot early in the third to put the Oilers up 4-1.
“A win is a win for us,” Kassian said. “We want to check for our chances. Obviously it’s nice to get on the scoresheet–scoring is a big part of the game–but when you’re winning games 2-1, that’s a positive sign for our group too.”
Nino Niederreiter was left alone in front and brought Wild back within two a few minutes later. However, the Oilers put it away with goals from Draisaitl, Alex Chiasson, and Darnell Nurse in the final 10 minutes.
“I think for me and for the players, scoring seven goals is more of a relief,” Oilers coach Ken Hitchcock said. “It makes you feel good for all the hard work you’re putting in. It becomes an easier sell for me now that the reward is worth all the work.”
LISTEN BELOW: Leon Draisaitl
Oilers forward Jujhar Khaira had two assists to extend his point streak to four games. Draisaitl had two goals and an assist. Talbot made 31 saves for his second-straight win.
“I felt good all night,” Talbot said. “I made some big saves when I need to in the second and kept it 3-1 and give us a chance to carry our momentum into the third.”
LISTEN BELOW: Cam Talbot
The Oilers (15-12-2) will host Calgary on Sunday.
–with files from Brenden Escott and Scott Johnston
Watch below: Some videos from Global News’ coverage of the Edmonton Oilers’ 2018-19 season.