Ryan Nugent-Hopkins made the difference when it mattered most, lifting the Edmonton Oilers to a 6-5 shootout win over the Carolina Hurricanes on Thursday night.
The veteran forward scored the deciding goal in the shootout, capping a wild night in Edmonton that featured big nights from the Oilers’ two superstars. Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid each finished with two goals and three assists, powering Edmonton to its third straight win and seventh victory in its last eight games. The Oilers improved to 8-1-1.
Nugent-Hopkins also had an assist and added a goal in regulation in his season debut after missing time with a lower-body injury suffered during training camp. The 33-year-old also moved into the franchise lead for most seasons played with the Oilers at 16.
Devon Levi made 22 saves for Edmonton.
Carolina got goals from Jackson Blake, Sebastian Aho, Seth Jarvis, Logan Stankhoven and Juuso Valimaki, but came up short in the end. Brandon Bussi stopped 16 shots for the Hurricanes, who fell to 8-2-2 and have lost two of their last three.
Jarvis scored in his first game of the season after returning from off-season shoulder surgery. The 24-year-old has scored more than 30 goals in each of the last three seasons.
The turning point came late in regulation, with Edmonton down a goal and its net empty. With 1:28 left, McDavid fired a shot toward the net that went off Jesperi Kotkaniemi’s skate and in for McDavid’s eighth goal of the season to force overtime.
McDavid’s points streak kept rolling too. He has recorded points in every game this season and now sits at 31, the league’s best total, in only 10 games. That puts him alongside Mario Lemieux, Mike Bossy and Wayne Gretzky as the only NHL players to hit 30 points in 10 games or fewer.
The Hurricanes finish a five-game road trip in St. Louis on Saturday. The Oilers stay home to face the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday.
In Other News...
Jalen Chatfields Future Is Becoming A Real Hurricanes Concern
Jalen Chatfields contract situation is starting to look like one of the more pressing item on Carolinas to-do list. The Hurricanes and the defenseman were unable to strike an extension, and while Chatfield has been a steady part of the blue line, the sides have not found common ground on a new deal.
Since the last attempt to negotiate through Chatfields agent, there have been no further talks, which only adds to the sense that this could be heading toward an open-market decision. For a Hurricanes defense that has come to rely on his consistency, the concern is less about what he has done and more about whether Carolina can keep him from reaching free agency at all. [Read more 🡒]
Hurricanes Let A Wild One Slip Away Against Edmonton
The Hurricanes were in the middle of a track meet in Edmonton, and for long stretches it looked like they had enough offense to turn it into a road win. Instead, Connor McDavid kept dragging the Oilers back into it, piling up five points and turning the game into a showcase for one of the leagues most dangerous players. Carolina had to live with a result that never really felt settled, even after both teams traded goals and the pace never let up.
Edmontons surge has now stretched to three straight wins and seven in its last eight, and the finishing touch came in a place Carolina could not match. The shootout tilted the Oilers way behind the return of Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, who was making his season debut after a lower-body injury. For the Hurricanes, it was the kind of loss that stings because it was there to be taken, then slipped just far enough out of reach. [Read more 🡒]
Zach Hyman's Viral Wink Sparked An Oilers Debate Fans Know Well
One of the more replayed moments from the Oilers-Hurricanes game came long after the whistle, when Zach Hyman drew a penalty and then flashed a wink that instantly split opinion online. The sequence started with Sean Walkers cross-check as Hyman was already going down, a call that put Edmonton on the power play and gave the clip the kind of fuel that social media debates thrive on.
For Hurricanes fans, it was the sort of sequence that can leave a bitter taste because the judgment call sat right at the center of it, and the reaction only added to the noise. Edmonton eventually had the last word anyway, finishing off a 6-5 shootout win to move to 8-1-1, but the wink was the kind of small, sticky detail that kept people talking after the result was settled. [Read more 🡒]