GAME RECAP: Oilers 2, Islanders 1 (OT)

ELMONT, NY – What an overtime period.

What a pass from Calvin Pickard.

What a way to reach 100 points, Leon Draisaitl.

Leon Draisaitl scored twice to reach 100 points on the season in incredible fashion on Friday night on Long Island, finishing off an amazing sequence in overtime that saw goaltender Calvin Pickard record an assist to give the Edmonton Oilers a 2-1 victory over the New York Islanders at UBS Arena.

"It's a nice individual milestone, but the two points are much bigger than any other personal record,"he said.

The German forward extended his career-best point streak to 17 games by scoring his 48th and 49th goals of the campaign, including the sudden-death winner that began on the tape of Pickard, who found the puck and moved it to Connor McDavid to suppy the pass that sent Draisaitl in alone to put an end to Edmonton's two-game losing streak.

"I've only been here since last year, but there's always a ton of adversity. We're no strangers to it," Pickard said. "We've been putting together some good efforts but we just haven't been able to score and have run into some hot goalies. We did that again tonight and it took almost 65 minutes to score two goals, so credit to our team. We defended really well, played the right way and we got the reward we deserved."

Draisaitl reached 100 points for the sixth time in his career, and for the fourth consecutive season, to get the Oilers back to winning ways following two losses as part of their four-game road trip through the states of New York and New Jersey.

"I love being an Oiler. It means the world to me," Draisaitl said. "Obviously, having teammates that understand the way I am and as a person. Sometimes, it's not always easy, but I love these guys and without them, none of this is possible. These are all nice efforts and accomplishements for me personal self, but none of this works without your teammates."

In addition to his vital helper in overtime, Pickard made 25 saves in the victory, which improved the Oilers record to 38-24-4 this season that regains second place in the Pacific Division for the Blue & Orange.

"He gives us a chance every time he's in the net," Draisaitl said. "You can't ask for more than that. We love playing for him, I think that's very obvious, and he's our heart and soul guy."

The Oilers will wrap up their four-game road trip on Sunday night at Madison Square Garden against the New York Rangers.

FIRST PERIOD

It was an all-too-familiar opening frame from goaltender Ilya Sorokin after he stonewalled the Oilers for all 17 saves in a first period that was well and truly dominated by the visitors in the 'Battle of Blue & Orange' at UBS Arena.

"We were really good in the first," Draisaitl said. "Their goalie made some really good saves and I think it kickstarted out night a little bit."

Those who recall Edmonton's defeat here over three years ago will remember the Russian netminder making a career-high 49 saves in a 3-0 victory that also saw Jean-Gabriel Pageau pick up a pair of goals to drop them to 10-10-0 early in the 2022-23 season.

With some new line combinations to try out on Friday, the Oilers had the start they wanted to make sure that didn't happen again, but lacked the opening goal they deserved at the end of a scoreless opening 20 minutes that saw one-way traffic off the Hempstead Turnpike on Long Island.

Sorokin's first brilliant save came on a great look for Corey Perry in the first two minutes before Leon Draisaitl was given a free look from the slot off an Islanders turnover minutes later that was blockered aside by the shot-stopper. Playing next to Corey Perry and Connor Brown on the second line on Friday, Draisaitl had another Grade-A look from inside the left circle that he tried to go short side with before it was pushed away by Sorokin.

Vasily Podkolzin would be denied next when a rebound popped loose to him around the crease before Sorokin was able to get his right toe to his countryman's second effort to keep it level with just under six minutes left in the opening frame. Head Coach Kris Knoblauch's shuffling of the lines was having the response he wanted on his group, but the results just hadn't surfaced yet in this one.

Arguably Edmonton's best chance of the first period came while shorthanded with Connor McDavid in the box for cross-checking in the final five minutes, where Connor Brown had a partial breakaway but was thwarted by the glove of Sorokin, who was the only reason it wasn't a multi-goal Oilers lead.

"I thought we created a lot more," Draisaitl said. "Somestimes, they don't fall and aren't going in, but sometimes you need a game like that just to grind one out and get going."

SECOND PERIOD

Don't worry, Draisaitl wouldn't be denied for long; nor does it look like his career-best point streak is ever going to end.

On only Edmonton's second shot of the middle frame after pounding the Islanders 17-8 in the opening period, Draisaitl would wind up a clapper from the top of the left circle that Sorokin could only get the slightest of touches on before it found the back of the net to give the Oilers their 1-0 lead, extending the German's point streak to an impressive 17 games and putting him on 99 points this season – one away from his sixth career 100-point campaign.

Evan Bouchard poked the puck off captain Anders Lee in the neutral zone after the Isles exited their own end before it fell to Connor Brown, who fired it across to Draisaitl to walk over the blueline and level his shot past a resilient Sorokin in between the pipes.

Another 100-point season for No. 29 would be the sixth of his career and tie him with Connor McDavid for the third-longest streak in franchise history, while tying Jari Kurri for the third-most overall 100-point seasons behind Gretzky (9) and McDavid (7).

His 17-game point streak ties David Pastrnak for the longest point streak in the NHL this season.

Goaltender Calvin Pickard wasn't troubled much through 40 minutes but had to make a smart save against Alexander Romanov on a two-on-one with under four minutes to go in the period when Troy Stecher had a cross-ice pass broken up along the Islanders blueline.

The Oilers led 1-0 on the scoreboard and 25-18 in shots entering the final frame looking to hold off the Islanders and pick up two much-needed points.

THIRD PERIOD

Ryan Nugent-Hopkins will be the first to admit that was a shot he shouldn't have tried to force through, because it wound up leading to the Islanders tying the game less than two minutes into the third period.

With the puck on his stick at the top of the Islanders zone, Nugent-Hopkins attempted a shot on goal through Bo Horvat that was blocked by the Isles centre to create a two-on-one the other way with Anthony Duclair, where Horvat tucked his shot away far side on Calvin Pickard to make it 1-1 on an unassisted marker.

That mistake gave the Islanders life, and the hosts nearly took the lead off the ensuing faceoff at centre ice when Duclair was put through for a breakaway by Horvat before losing control of the puck at the last second. It was a major chance for the Islanders and near miss for the Oilers that kept the game tied before Edmonton's penalty kill had to come up with a crucial stop a few mintues later when Corey Perry was called for high-sticking Tony DeAngelo.

The game became stretched out end-to-end for the remainder of regulation, with winger Connor Brown having the golden opportunity to give the Oilers a late victory when the puck was put off his skate inside the Islanders crease before it went out the other side, somehow not finding its way into the net.

After absorbing late pressure from the Islanders, this game was heading to overtime.

OVERTIME

Draisaitl referred to Pickard as the 'heart and soul' of the Oilers post-game, and that's only partly because of the exceptional play he made in overtime that led to the German forward securing the extra point for their team.

"Huge compliment from a superstar," said Pickard. "You guys see him on the ice, but he's an even better friend."

Draisaitl ended the game with 1:07 left in overtime by reaching 100 points in emphatic fashion after Pickard kept the play going in the Oilers zone by moving a loose puck in front of the blue paint to Connor McDavid, who sent it into the neutral zone for a streaking Draisaitl to tuck home the game winner and reach the century mark for the fourth consecutive season with goal No. 49 on the season.

Somehow, the Oilers didn't end this one with the puck in their possession for over two minutes and the Islanders having only two players with intact twigs for more than half of that shift. Pierre Engvall had his stick broken in half early in sudden death, leading to a lengthy offensive-zone shift for Edmonton that felt like a power play at three-on-three where they couldn't end the game.

Defenceman Adam Pelech made a critical block and was on one foot for the final 30 seconds of the shift before Bouchard had a wide-open look from the top of the circles gloves down by Soroking to allow the Islanders to escape danger.

With over a minute remaining, DeAngelo tried to force it into the middle to Simon Holmstrom on the far side, but Pickard intercepted the puck in front of his crease and moved it to McDavid, who delivered it onto the tape of Draisaitl inside the centre circle with the game on his stick to win it.

"I saw the guy kind of hanging around the high slot there. Those pucks usually squirt out somehow, so I tried to get up and be a bit assertive and it came closer to me," Pickard said. "Then I saw both Leo and Connor go, so Connor kind of intercepted it and just sent it to Leon's tape."

The German snapped home the winner glove side on Sorokin for his second goal of the game, 49th tally and 100th point before pointing down to his netminder for the incredible play he made to make the sequence happen.

"His effort, his performance and his pass," Draisaitl said for the reasons for his point 200 feet down the ice. "He started the whole play. It's great hockey sense. It goes unnoticed by a lot of people probably, but that's elite hockey sense right there. He was amazing all night."