The Toronto Maple Leafs once again got the best of the Edmonton Oilers in the battle of the first overall picks.
This time, it was the first-overall tandem of Auston Matthews and Gavin McKenna that got the best of Edmonton's pairing of Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Connor McDavid.
And it wasn't even close, as the Leafs defeated the Oilers by a 7-2 scoreline. What's even more stunning here is that Toronto's lead was only 3-1 after the first two periods.
The loss was just the second regulation defeat for Edmonton on the season; their record through 11 games now stands at 8-2-1. It also represented just the second occasion all season where the Oilers failed to score at least three goals in a game.
Edmonton weathers early storm ... but does nothing with the resulting momentum
The first four minutes of the hockey game were essentially dominated by Toronto.
The Leafs did well to get the puck into the Oilers' end quickly, move the puck towards the net, and then get it back to Oilers goaltender Tristan Jarry. Give or take a lot of defensive zone clearances, that was essentially what Toronto was able to do all game against the Oilers.
That said, Edmonton managed to survive the storm and earned a power play opportunity as a result of a dangerous-looking hit from one-time-Oiler Jack Roslovic on Vasily Podkolzin.
But what exactly was that first power play?
Twice did an Oilers player have an open opportunity to shoot from just beyond the blue line, and both times saw said Oiler pass the puck. And both occasions ended with a clearance on the part of the Leafs.
And that power play led to more offensive-zone domination by the Leafs, some of which was steered by a relatively-effective fourth line. The pressure applied by Toronto led to Roslovic finding the first goal of the hockey game off an awkward pass that ended up being deflected by Jake Walman into the back of the net.
When the Oilers complete defensive stands, they absolutely have to get the puck going on the other side of the ice. Their inability to do so allowed Toronto to remain fresh defensively and pull ahead on the scoreboard without much of a response.
Raise the banner! We've got scoring chances (kind of)!
One of the few positives that came from Saturday's game saw the Oilers once again figure out how to put the puck on net.
After the Leafs opened the scoring, the Oilers were able to put together a determined response in the Toronto zone. They also came quite close to levelling the score a few times, though Leafs goaltender Anthony Stolarz had the answers to whatever Edmonton threw his way.
In total, the Oilers recorded 13 scoring chances during the first period. One would have to think that's some kind of an improvement on the past few games, right?
WRONG! Though to some extent.
The Oilers recorded just four shots on goal through the opening 14 minutes of the second period. That said, Edmonton pieced together another five shots on goal by the end of the second period, which included Leon Draisaitl's 11th goal of the season.
The start of the third period was no better, though the Oilers would end up putting 10 shots on target during that 20 minute time frame.
Conversely, the Leafs played the scoring chance game just as well, if not better. They looked particularly dangerous on the rush, which was an area that has hurt the Oilers in games past (look no further than the home games against the Vancouver Canucks and the Utah Mammoth). That was proven both in the second period by former Oiler Troy Stetcher (why does this feel like a recurring theme) and in the third frame by Zack MacEwen, who scored a strange goal of his own that (conveniently) came partially as a result of Walman.
The Oilers have started to find some form in terms of creating scoring chances. But they need to limit the easy ones that get created by their opponents.
The Oilers only just found success on the special teams side of the game. Then they ran into the Leafs
The Leafs had killed off 30 straight power plays heading into the final few minutes of this contest. The Oilers were on the receiving end of the last two conversions.
Edmonton also conceded a power play goal in the third period, which saw William Nylander restore the Leafs' three-goal advantage and pull within one goal of 300 in his career. He ultimately reached that milestone.
The good news in this regard is that the Oilers were able to get one power play goal at the end of the hockey game. But the contest nonetheless marked the end of what was a promising trend for the Oilers' special teams play; prior to the contest, Edmonton had scored three power play goals in consecuctive contests, which saw the team take on the Minnesota Wild and the Carolina Hurricanes.
It's hard to argue that the week wasn't a positive one for Edmonton's special teams units. But Saturday still represented a setback.
Is Leon Draisaitl an early Rocket Richard contender?
The Oilers have won the Rocket Richard, which is awarded to the league's top goalscorer, in two of the last four seasons.
At the rate things are going, it could be three of the last five.
With two goals against the Leafs, Draisaitl brought his goalscoring tally on the season to 12. That keeps him among the top goalscorers in the NHL; Minnesota Wild forward Kirill Kapirzov is his direct rival at this moment in the Rocket Richard race.
While the Oilers could not match the Leafs' scoring output, Draisaitl proved that it's going to be very hard to keep himself and his teammates off the scoresheet for a full 60 minutes. If he keeps doing that, he should be able to remain in the Rocket Richard conversation for the duration of the 2026-27 campaign.
What's next?
The Oilers' homestand will continue into next week, with a pair of home games consisting of the majority of Edmonton's fifth week of action. The first of those two games will see the Oilers take on the Detroit Red Wings; that game will take place on Monday, October 26, with puck drop scheduled for 9:30 p.m. Eastern Time.
Add us as a preferred source on Google