Viljami Marjala kept his preseason surge rolling Tuesday night, scoring 1:26 into overtime to give the Edmonton Oilers a 2-1 win over the host Winnipeg Jets at Canada Life Centre.
Atro Leppanen supplied Edmonton’s other goal, while Alex Iafallo scored Winnipeg’s lone marker. The game stayed tight from the opening period on, with both teams finding the net early and then spending most of the night locked in a low-event battle.
The Oilers got contributions from a number of players making their 2026 preseason debuts, and they did it without Connor McDavid, Leon Draisiaitl and Evan Bouvchard, who all sat out. Even so, Edmonton improved to 2-0 this preseason after also beating Winnipeg 5-2 at Rogers Place last Saturday (Sept. 19).
This one never really opened up. Chances were scarce, the pace was cautious, and neither side seemed interested in taking unnecessary risks.
That kind of game can be frustrating to watch, but for Edmonton it also showed something useful: discipline. The Oilers were often undone by their own mistakes last season, and there’s hope they can tighten things up in 2026-27 under new coach Mike Babcock.
Whether that was the reason for Tuesday’s style of play is debatable, though. More likely, it had plenty to do with a lineup full of players trying to make an impression without making a costly error.
Whatever the cause, Edmonton held Winnipeg to just 18 shots over 60-plus minutes and looked organized doing it.
Marjala was again one of the night’s standout names. The 23-year-old Finn had already made noise at the Next Gen Showcase on Sept. 14, when he helped lead the Oilers to a 6-1 win over the Calgary Flames with three assists.
Against Winnipeg, he showed the other side of his game. On the overtime winner, he took a clean feed from Zach Hyman, stepped into the shot on the fly and ripped it past Domenic DiVincentiis.
He finished with a plus-one rating, two shots on goal and one missed shot in 14:58 of ice time. Marjala piled up 60 points with the Bakersfield Condors in the AHL last season, and while he wasn’t expected to be in the mix for an opening-night roster spot, he’s making the conversation more interesting.
Devon Levi also had a strong first outing in an Oilers sweater. Acquired from the Buffalo Sabres on July 1, the 24-year-old handled his first game with Edmonton well, showing poise, quick side-to-side movement and comfort playing the puck.
Winnipeg’s goal wasn’t really on him. Nino Neiderreiter fired wide, the puck kicked off the back boards, and it landed on Iafallo’s stick for an easy finish at the side of the net.
Levi stopped 12 of 13 shots over the first two periods before Connor Ungar took over in the third period and overtime, allowing one goal on five shots.
DiVincentiis was beaten twice on 23 shots for Winnipeg.
With Frederik Anderson likely unavailable at the start of the regular season because of an undisclosed injury, the Oilers’ goaltending picture is suddenly very real. Levi and Tristan Jarry are the two names in the mix, and one of them will be in net when Edmonton opens its 2026-27 schedule next Tuesday (Sept. 29) against the Vancouver Canucks at Rogers Place. Before that, each is expected to get a start in the Oilers’ final two preseason games, Thursday (Sept. 24) at Rogers Arena against the Canucks and Saturday (Sept. 26) at home against the Flames.
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Now the Jets head to Colorado for their last preseason test before opening the regular season at home on Oct. 2, with the roster battle still hanging over the conversation. These games have been about much more than the scoreboard, but the way this one unfolded only sharpened the sense that decisions are coming fast, and some of the toughest ones are still unresolved. [Read more 🡒]