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Connor McDavid opened his scoring account for the season in dramatic fashion on Thursday, tallying a goal and four assists as the Edmonton Oilers defeated the Vancouver Canucks 9-7 in a chaotic, high-scoring clash. The result gave Edmonton a hard-fought win in what became one of the most entertaining games of the young NHL season.
Bouchard Makes NHL History
Defenceman Evan Bouchard delivered another standout performance, recording a goal and two assists for a three-point night. In doing so, he became the first defenceman in NHL history to post eight points through his team’s first two games of a season. Bouchard now has four goals and four assists across those two outings.
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Leon Draisaitl also contributed heavily for the Oilers, finishing with two goals and an assist. Vasily Podkolzin and Kasperi Kapanen each added a goal and an assist. Meanwhile, Owen Michaels scored his first career NHL goal, and Ryan Shea netted his first as an Oiler.
Edmonton managed all of this without top-six forwards Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Zach Hyman, both of whom missed the game. Despite those absences, the Oilers scored at will early. Michaels and Bouchard struck just 16 seconds apart during the first period.
Canucks Stage Late Push but Fall Short
Vancouver struggled to generate offence through the first two periods. The Canucks did not register their first shot on goal until the 11:58 mark of the first period, when Linus Karlsson fired a wrist shot from the bottom of the faceoff circle. However, they surged in the third period, with Marco Rossi scoring twice and Elias Pettersson adding one more over a span of five minutes and 44 seconds.
Rossi finished with two goals and an assist, while Pettersson contributed a goal and two helpers. Paul Cotter, Brock Boeser, Arshdeep Bains, and Jamie Oleksiak each recorded a goal and an assist for Vancouver.
In goal, Kevin Lankinen stopped 12 of 20 shots before the Canucks pulled him midway through the second period. Leevi Merilainen — claimed off waivers from Ottawa just days earlier and still wearing a Senators helmet — came on in relief and stopped 10 of 11 shots. Devon Levi started for Edmonton, making his first NHL appearance since January 20, 2025, when he played for the Buffalo Sabres. He stopped 15 of 22 shots.
Key Moment Swings the Game
The decisive shift came midway through the second period. With the Canucks on a power play, McDavid and Kapanen scored short-handed breakaway goals just 34 seconds apart. That sequence pushed Edmonton’s lead to 8-2 and effectively ended the contest as a competitive game.
Thursday’s result also carried a notable statistical oddity. Vancouver finished with 27 hits but only 20 shots on goal — meaning the Canucks hit opposing players more often than they tested the Edmonton goaltender.
Second High-Scoring Meeting This Week
This was the second time in four days that these two teams combined for double-digit goals. Earlier in the week, Vancouver edged Edmonton 6-5 in overtime in the season opener for both clubs. Both teams return to action on Saturday. The Canucks host the Calgary Flames, while the Oilers welcome the Seattle Kraken.
