Breath of fresh air? Oilers end skid, extend Flames' losing streak

Call the 2023 Heritage Classic a breath of fresh air for the Edmonton Oilers — literally and figuratively. It certainly was a breath of fresh air for Oilers fans to see Connor McDavid back in the lineup in Edmonton’s 5-2 win over the rival Calgary Flames.

Heading into the NHL’s latest outdoor game, both teams celebrated Halloween a bit early. On one side, you had Edmonton dressing up as if they were about to work on an oil rig.

Meanwhile, the floundering Flames donned cowboy gear that would make former head coach Darryl Sutter smile, if he did that sort of thing.

Oilers’ offense heats up in McDavid return, win against Flames

Zach Hyman spoke about representing “blue collar” workers with those outfits, so maybe it’s fitting that there were elements of “elbow grease” to Edmonton’s win. For a team that sometimes leans on a lethal power play, Edmonton instead scored four goals at even-strength and one into an empty net. Calgary, meanwhile, could only score on special teams, going 2-for-6 on Sunday.

In his return from a minor injury, McDavid didn’t exactly ease back into things, generating an assist while logging 23:26 time on ice. The Oilers rode their workhorses heavily in this one, with Leon Draisaitl collecting two assists in almost 25 minutes.

With the win, the Oilers snapped a four-game losing streak marred by poor scoring. They were shut out once during that skid and only generated six total goals.

Naturally, McDavid gave a big boost to Edmonton’s offense, and the big guns came out firing. Still, some of the most positive takeaways come on the fringe. Three different Oilers defensemen (Brett Kulak, Evan Bouchard and Vincent Desharnais) scored goals, providing some much needed secondary scoring touch.

Meanwhile, after grumbling about his ice-time last week, Evander Kane put together quite the evening in what could be a spark for the power forward. Kane scored an empty-net goal and added two assists in 20:32 TOI.

By just about any measure, Edmonton “earned” this one. According to Natural Stat Trick, the Oilers generated a 19-4 advantage in high-danger chances, and a 21-13 edge overall. Money Puck displays this dominance in a way that’s friendliest to the eyes.

Stars will be a bigger test for Oilers (and could make things even worse for the Flames)

Of course, someone less optimistic might reply “well, someone had to win this game.”

Both teams carried four-game losing streaks into Commonwealth Stadium in Edmonton, so the floundering Flames saw their skid extend to five games. Those positive vibes might subside if the Oilers flop in a Thursday home game against the 4-1-1 Dallas Stars, particularly since Dallas will be closing out a back-to-back set (they face the Flames in Calgary on Wednesday).

Either way, the Oilers improved to 2-5-1 on Sunday, while Calgary slipped to 2-6-1. The next “Battle of Alberta” takes place in Edmonton on Jan. 20.