Oilers blank Flames 4-0 as McDavid extends streak to 13

EDMONTON: Tristan Jarry made 24 saves for his first shutout of the season and Connor McDavid had two assists as the Edmonton Oilers beat the Calgary Flames 4-0 on Wednesday night at Rogers Place, according to NHL.com.

Mathieu Joseph, Mattias Ekholm, Kasperi Kapanen and Alex Formenton scored for Edmonton (9-2-2), which had lost consecutive games for the first time this season (0-1-1) before the Battle of Alberta win. Calgary (5-7-0) had won four in a row and five of its previous six.

McDavid’s two assists, on the goals by Joseph and Kapanen, pushed his season-opening streak to 13 games. NHL.com reports that sets an NHL record for the longest season-opening assist streak, passing the 12-game marks shared by Sebastian Aho (2018-19), Ken Linseman (1985-86) and Wayne Gretzky (1982-83). The Oilers’ own game coverage describes it as a 13-game season-opening point streak. McDavid leads the NHL with 36 points (eight goals, 28 assists), NHL.com reports.

Joseph opened the scoring on the first shot of the game, finishing a cross-slot pass from McDavid at 7:46 of the first period, per NHL.com. The Oilers’ live game page credits Evan Bouchard with a second assist on the goal.

Ekholm made it 2-0 in the second period with a wrist shot from the point that went over Calgary goaltender Dustin Wolf’s left shoulder, off the crossbar and in. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins was credited with the assist on the Oilers’ live page. Ekholm was back in the lineup after missing two games with a concussion, NHL.com reports.

Kapanen scored on the power play, lifting a McDavid pass across the crease over Wolf’s left pad. Formenton then scored on a centring pass from Jason Dickinson, who knocked Jake Middleton off the puck along the right boards. Dickinson was playing for the first time after missing six games with an undisclosed injury, according to NHL.com.

Jarry stopped all 24 shots he faced, NHL.com reports, for the first shutout of his season.

Calgary starter Devin Cooley stopped eight of nine shots before leaving with a lower-body injury, NHL.com reports. He was hurt in a collision in the crease with Oilers forward Colton Dach with 12 seconds left in the first period, and Dach was assessed a goalkeeper interference penalty. Wolf stopped 20 of 23 shots in relief. There was no update on Cooley’s status immediately after the game, according to NHL.com.

Calgary also lost forward Brennan Othmann to an upper-body injury at 5:04 of the first period, NHL.com reports. Earlier in the period, Edmonton defenceman Ty Emberson and Othmann fought, according to the Oilers’ live game page.

The Oilers also announced a roster move on game day, placing forward Zach Hyman on injured reserve and activating Dickinson, according to the team’s website. The site’s headline said Hyman is out with a neck injury. No timeline was given in the material reviewed.

Edmonton hosts the Seattle Kraken on Saturday at Rogers Place, according to the Oilers’ live game page.

For more on the Oilers’ recent run, read our recaps of the 4-3 shootout loss to Detroit and the 7-2 loss to Toronto, and the shootout win in which McDavid and Leon Draisaitl had five points each.