The Edmonton Oilers beat the Vancouver Canucks 2-1 in preseason play Thursday night at Rogers Arena, improving to 3-0-0 in exhibition games behind a lineup built mostly around prospects and Bakersfield Condors call-ups.
Isaac Howard opened the scoring 3:58 into the first period on a feed from Tomas Cibulka, according to the Oilers’ official game recap posted to NHL.com. Quinn Hutson made it 2-0 at 4:28 of the second period, with Howard and Viljami Marjala picking up the assists. It was Hutson’s first goal of the preseason; he led all AHL rookies with 30 goals last season for Bakersfield, the Oilers noted in their recap.
Final: Oilers 2, Canucks 1. Tristan Jarry made 25 saves in net for Edmonton.
Vancouver answered on the power play at 5:59 of the second period, when Linus Karlsson scored with an assist from rookie defenceman Zeev Buium, according to CanucksArmy’s game coverage. The Canucks could not find an equalizer despite pressing in the third.
Jarry credited the young lineup in front of him for the win. “I thought the kids played great in front of me,” he said, according to the Oilers’ recap. “They worked their butts off in both zones.”
Edmonton iced a roster weighted heavily toward prospects and depth players for the game, while Vancouver dressed a group closer to what it will use in the regular season, both CanucksArmy and Oilersnation reported in their coverage of the game. Connor Clattenburg made his preseason debut for the Oilers and played a physical game while working his way back from injury, according to the Oilers’ recap.
Howard, 21, is in his first full season in the Oilers organization after Edmonton acquired him from the Tampa Bay Lightning in July 2025 in exchange for forward Sam O’Reilly, according to the Oilers’ own release announcing the trade. The Hudson, Wis., native won the Hobey Baker Award as U.S. college hockey’s top player last season at Michigan State and has won gold with Team USA at both the 2025 World Championship and the 2024 World Junior Championship.
Hutson, 24, signed with Edmonton as an undrafted free agent out of Boston University and inked a two-year contract extension with the Oilers in January, the team announced at the time. He has already appeared in six NHL games over the past two seasons, including a Dec. 18 outing in which he scored his first NHL goal, the game-winner in a 3-1 win over Boston. In Bakersfield this past season, he led all AHL rookies in scoring.
Vancouver forward Filip Chytil did not return after colliding with referee Riley Brace in the first period, CanucksArmy reported. Neither team’s coaching staff provided an immediate update on his status.
Vancouver split goaltending duties between Nikita Tolopilo, who started and played the first two periods, and Chris Driedger, who finished the game in the third, according to CanucksArmy’s coverage. The Canucks struggled with zone exits and defensive coverage for much of the night against Edmonton’s younger group, the outlet reported.
For the players in Edmonton’s lineup Thursday, the game doubled as a case for a spot on the opening-night roster. The Oilers trimmed their training camp group to 49 players earlier in the week, loaning five prospects to Bakersfield, and are set to make further cuts before the regular season begins.
The Oilers have now won all three of their preseason games, following a 5-2 win over Winnipeg on Sept. 19 and a 2-1 overtime win at Winnipeg on Sept. 22. Edmonton is scheduled to play its preseason finale Saturday at home against the Calgary Flames at Rogers Place.
Thursday’s game was a preview of sorts for the regular season: the Oilers and Canucks open the 2026-27 campaign against each other in a home-and-home series, with Edmonton hosting the opener Sept. 29 at Rogers Place before the teams meet again Oct. 1 in Vancouver.
