Leon Draisaitl scores with 2:27 left as Edmonton Oilers beat Seattle Kraken 3-1 at Rogers Place

By Vancouver Television Sports Desk

EDMONTON — Leon Draisaitl broke a 1-1 tie late in the third period, scoring with 2:27 remaining to lift the Edmonton Oilers to a 3-1 win over the Seattle Kraken at Rogers Place on Saturday. Edmonton added insurance late, with Connor McDavid scoring into an empty net at 18:55 to secure the final score.

The winning goal developed when Ryan Shea sent the puck along the left boards. It bounced off Connor McDavid’s knee and slid through the slot, where Draisaitl chipped it past a lunging Philipp Grubauer from in front. McDavid finished with a goal and an assist, and Owen Michaels also scored for the Oilers, who improved to 2-0-1.

Owen Michaels gave Edmonton the first lead at 2:51 of the opening period. He received a short pass along the boards from Alex Formenton, skated in past the left face-off dot, and fired a wrist shot near the side into the top corner.

Michaels’ strike marked his second goal in as many games, after he scored the first of his NHL career in a 9-7 win at the Vancouver Canucks on Thursday. For Edmonton, the early 1-0 advantage held until Seattle’s power play goal in the second.

Seattle evened the score at 9:06 of the second period, when Bobby McMann scored on the power play. McMann took a Jordan Eberle pass from below the goal line and lifted the puck past Devon Levi’s blocker from the left circle to make it 1-1.

After that tie, Edmonton’s goaltending and late-game finishing played key roles in determining the outcome. Devon Levi made 19 saves for the Oilers, while Grubauer stopped 22 shots for Seattle in the losing effort.

The third period included a critical defensive moment involving Levi. At 7:38, Levi appeared to stop a point-blank shot by Eberle, which went to review. The review confirmed the puck did not cross the goal line, and Seattle remained tied with Edmonton at that point in the period.

With the game still within one goal late, Edmonton took control on Draisaitl’s go-ahead marker. Draisaitl’s goal created a two-goal cushion situation shortly before McDavid added the empty-net goal to finish the scoring, sending Edmonton to the 3-1 victory over Seattle.

Following the result, the Kraken will turn their attention to their next game against the Calgary Flames at Climate Pledge Arena on Sunday, which is the second contest in a back-to-back set after Saturday’s matchup in Edmonton.