Oilers tighten up defensively to beat Kraken 3-1 for second straight win

The Story

The Edmonton Oilers found defensive stability and beat the Seattle Kraken 3-1 on Saturday for their second consecutive victory.

Connor McDavid led Edmonton with a goal and an assist, finishing with nine points through three games as the Oilers improved to 2-0-1. Owen Michaels and Leon Draisaitl also scored for Edmonton.

Draisaitl’s goal came with just 2:27 left in the third period, putting the Oilers ahead 2-1. Devon Levi made 19 saves in goal to earn the win for Edmonton, starting again after allowing seven goals in his previous appearance against Vancouver on Thursday.

Edmonton opened the season with two high-scoring games against the Vancouver Canucks, losing the first 6-5 in overtime before winning the rematch 9-7. After that, the Oilers followed up with the win over Seattle.

Levi said he used the Vancouver game to move on quickly. “That’s all I took from that game. Turn the page and get to work the next day,” he said.

Draisaitl said Edmonton was able to stick with its defensive approach. “We defended well for the most part and were able to stick with it. Eventually you’ll find a bounce or a look at some point,” he said.

Edmonton’s head coach, Mike Babcock, highlighted the team’s defensive effort after the win, saying, “We didn’t give up a touchdown!”

Michaels, who went undrafted before helping Western Michigan win its first national championship in program history in 2025, signed with Edmonton as a free agent and made the team out of training camp. He has two goals in his first three NHL games.

With the win, Edmonton is 16-4-1 overall against the Kraken and 9-1-0 all-time at home, including eight straight home wins. The Oilers also have a strong record when both Draisaitl and McDavid score in the same game, going 95-21-10 in those situations, including 126 times they have both scored together.

Nugent-Hopkins and Hyman were among seven Edmonton players listed as unavailable due to injuries.