Edmonton Oilers' Leon Draisaitl (29) celebrates a goal against the Columbus Blue Jackets during third period NHL action in Edmonton on Thursday, December 5, 2024. (Jason Franson/The Canadian Press via AP)
EDMONTON, Alberta (AP) — Leon Draisaitl and Zach Hyman each scored twice and Connor McDavid had four assists as the Edmonton Oilers rolled to a 6-3 victory over the Columbus Blue Jackets on Thursday night.
Mattias Ekholm and Jeff Skinner also scored for the Oilers, who have won four of five. Draisaitl moved into a tie for the NHL lead with 19 goals, while McDavid became the third player in Edmonton history with 10 career four-assist games, joining Wayne Gretzky (51) and Jari Kurri (10).
McDavid was honored before the game for becoming the 99th player in NHL history with 1,000 career points. He was presented with a Rolex watch from his teammates and a golden stick from the Oilers organization.
Kevin Lablanc, Damon Severson and Cole Sillinger scored for the Blue Jackets, who have lost two straight following a 6-1-1 stretch.
Calvin Pickard made 19 saves for the Oilers, while Daniil Tarasov stopped 31 sots for Columbus.
Takeaways
Blue Jackets: Zach Werenski’s eight-game point streak ended Tuesday, but the defenseman picked up an assist on Columbus’ first goal Thursday night to give him 17 points in his last 10 games. Werenski is averaging more than 26 minutes of ice time, most in the NHL, and has 27 points in 25 games this season.
Oilers: Hyman made a big impact after missing the previous five games with an injury. A 54-goal scorer last season, he’s off to a slow start this time with five goals. It was his 21st multi-goal game since joining the Oilers.
Key moment
Not long after McDavid had a shot at an open net tipped away by Severson, the Oilers captain made up for it. He circled behind the net before passing in front to Draisaitl, who calmly put a backhand past Tarasov to give Edmonton a 2-1 lead early in the second period. Columbus challenged for goaltender interference but it was unsuccessful.
Key stat
The Oilers, who improved to 6-6-1 at home, will play seven of their next eight at Rogers Place.
Up next
Blue Jackets: Visit the Vancouver Canucks on Friday.
Oilers: Host the St. Louis Blues on Saturday.
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