GAME RECAP: Oilers 5, Predators 1

NASHVILLE, TN – Feelin' good on Broadway.

Leon Draisaitl continued his dominance of the Nashville Predators with two goals and an assist, while centre Noah Philp recorded his first NHL point and Zach Hyman scored his first goal of the season on Thursday night in a 5-1 victory for the Edmonton Oilers at Bridgestone Arena.

Forward Viktor Arvidsson secured his first Oilers goal only 37 seconds into the first period before Philp got on the scoresheet with his first NHL assist by helping set up Corey Perry's go-ahead goal later in the period that made it 2-1 for the Blue & Orange.

"It was an amazing game, and I thought the energy from all the guys was so much fun to be a part of," Philp said post-game. "Having my family here was incredible."

After Draisaitl assisted on Arvidsson's opening goal, the German scored twice over the second and third periods to increase his incredible career numbers against the Predators to 46 points in 28 career games, including 27 goals.

In his last 16 games against Nashville, he's managed to record 41 points and has now produced 17 goals on his last nine visits to Bridgestone Arena.

"He did it right from the start and you knew with Connor not being here that we needed somebody stepping up," Knoblauch said. "Everyone needed to, but probably the biggest one is your best player and Leon definitely is our best player. And tonight, he didn't disappoint. Everything he did tonight, whether it's key face-offs or goals at the big times, you could tell he was ready to play."

Later in the third period, Zach Hyman roofed his first goal of the season on a breakaway over goaltender Juuse Saros with 7:14 left in regulation, ending his goalless drought at ten games and rounding out the scoring on a feel-good win for the Blue & Orange over the Predators.

The Oilers will look to carry momentum into the Battle of Alberta on Sunday night at Scotiabank Arena in Calgary with a 5-5-1 overall record.

FIRST PERIOD

The Oilers top line of Vasily Podkolzin, Leon Draisaitl and Viktor Arvidsson opened the game with a dominating first shift that ended with each forward touching the puck on the Swede's first goal in Blue & Orange that came only 37 seconds into the contest.

At the end of a heroic opening shift, Podkolzin closed down Alexandre Carrier along the boards as the defenceman looked to clear the puck before it was turned loose by the Russian, leading to Draisaitl getting the pass from his linemate and moving it to Arvidsson at the far post to score his first goal with the Oilers early in the game.

"They came out strong, and Leo's line was definitely the best three forwards all game," Head Coach Kris Knoblauch said. "I thought they had a lot of pace, a lot of execution, scoring chances, and we needed everyone to pick it up a little bit tonight and I thought they did."

Arvidsson's first goal was also his first against the Predators, the team that drafted him in 2014 and where he spent the first 385 games of his career before he joined Los Angeles three seasons ago. The Swede had ten total shot attempts in the first period and found the net with four of them, creating some strong early chemistry with his linemates to help set the early tone.

"I think, with the exception of the last game, the last four games have been really good," Draisaitl said of his line with Arvidsson and Podkolzin. "I think we're connecting and creating a lot of looks. I think all three of us would like to finish a little bit better. I think there's a lot of looks that can be put away, but I think we're finding each other, we're reading off each other and I've really enjoyed playing with them."

After the Oilers failed to score on their first power play, the Predators caught a break on their own man advantage, seeing Brett Kulak's clearance hit Filip Forberg before the forward settled the puck between the hash marks and beat Calvin Pickard with a quick shot at 14:55 of the first period.

But the Oilers continued to win battles in the offensive zone, having their fourth line cycle the puck down low on a shift minutes later that led to Noah Philp setting up Drake Caggiula in front for a chance that led to the NHL debutant picking up his first career point.

The 26-year-old centre found his fellow Bakersfield Condors' call-up Caggiula from below the goal line for a quick one-timer out front that Juuse Saros stopped, but the puck found Corey Perry, who slid home his second goal of the season on the rebound to restore Edmonton's lead at 2-1 just before the period's midway mark.

"I thought it was great. I've been playing with Drake in Bakersfield, and he's so much fun," Philp said. "He talks really well, and he just does a lot of things well and he's a pleasure to play with. And then Corey, he's been around forever, and I'm just honoured to be out there with him."

Philp picked up his first NHL point in his first NHL game after returning to the Oilers organization this summer after taking a year away from hockey. With his family in the stands – including his mom, dad and wife – it was another amazing moment in the story of the Canmore, AB product.

"I mean, what can you say? That's pretty special," Draisaitl said. "Obviously, he's been through a lot, and to play in the NHL a couple of months after having been off for a full year, that seems nearly impossible. He's just inching closer and closer to making a career out of this, so I'm very impressed with the way he handles himself and the way he plays the game. I think he's got a bright future ahead."

Drake Caggiula, playing in his first game with the Oilers since Dec. 29, 2018 – a span of 2,133 days – notched the secondary assist for his 50th career point as an Oiler.

"I was saying before the game, I think it's been nine or 10 years or something like that," Draisaitl said of being teammates again with Caggiula. "It's amazing. I've seen him wear three different numbers on this team too, which is crazy. But he's another great story. I always liked him as a player. He brings a lot of energy and is a really smart hockey player."

Before the intermission arrived, another NHL first was reached when Ty Emberson dropped the gloves with Cole Emberson for his first career fighting major.

SECOND PERIOD

It's always Leon's show on Broadway.

There's nobody who quite knows how to score goals in Nashville like Leon Draisaitl, who took advantage of a gift from Michael McCarron falling at the blueline to get the chance to skate in on a breakaway and notch his 26th career goal in 28 games against the Predators.

With nine minutes gone in the second period, the Nashville forward tripped and coughed up the puck to the German, who barrelled in uncontested on Saros and sniped his seventh goal of the season past the netminder for the 3-1 Oilers lead, notching his first of two goals over what would become another masterclass from No. 29 against Nashville.

Along with loving to play against the Predators, Draisaitl said it was important for him and his teammates to raise their game in the absence of McDavid.

"Obviously, we have different leaders in this group, and we're all looking to contribute in our own way," he said. "When he's out, it puts a little bit more pressure on me, but I love those situations, and I think I've always been good at stepping up in those moments. There's no doubt you can't replace him, but now we've got to figure it out together as a group."

The Oilers only had five shots in the second period, but received another steady period in between the pipes from Calvin Pickard, who had 19 saves on 20 shots through 40 minutes after making ten more important saves in the middle frame.

Pickard's win on Thursday was his third straight win and the 50th of his career.

THIRD PERIOD

While the Draisaitl dominance was set to continue, It was high time for Zach Hyman to get himself off the schneid.

Off a neutral-zone feed from Mattias Ekholm, who picked up an assist to stretch his point streak to five games (2G, 4A), Draisaitl used his body to shield the puck down the right side against Brady Skjei, shrugging off the defenceman and cutting to the inside before sneaking his second goal of the night under the left arm of Saros with his shot for the 4-1 lead just 1:48 into the final frame.

With two goals and an assist, Draisaitl has 27 goals and 19 assists in 28 career games against the Predators, along with 11 goals and 13 assists in his last nine visits to the Bridgestone Arena. The German has 41 points (25G, 16A) in his last 16 games overall versus Nashville.

The Oilers were 4-0 this season in games where they recorded a fighting major, and Thursday would be no different after Emberson dropped the gloves in the opening period before Podkolzin buried Predators' big defenceman Jeremy Lauzon with a hard left hook later in the third period during a scrap.

To keep the good times rolling for the Oilers, Zach Hyman broke through for a breakaway later in the period to score his first goal in 11 games and lift a big weight off his shoulders.

Darnell Nurse found the winger streaking through the neutral zone for a breakaway that the 32-year-old roofed with over six minutes left in regulation to make it 5-1 for the Oilers, completing the scoring on another terrific night for the Oilers on Broadway.

"We just had an analytics meeting with a company who were telling us that when a player hits five to six goals expected, they are guaranteed to score right away," Knoblauch said. "And Zach was sitting at about five and a half. Sure enough, tonight, he got his goal, and it was just a matter of time. It's not like he forgot how to score."

The Oilers get back to a .500 win percentage (5-5-1) heading into Sunday's Battle of Alberta at Scotiabank Saddledome against the Calgary Flames – the first of back-to-back games for Edmonton that will wrap up Monday when the New Jersey Devils visit Rogers Place.