The Edmonton Oilers’ franchise-record winning streak reached 12 games with a 4-2 victory over the Seattle Kraken at Rogers Place on Thursday (Jan. 18). Warren Foegele scored twice while Leon Draisaitl and Zach Hyman each had a goal for the Oilers, who rallied after Eeli Tolvanen and Jared McCann had staked Seattle to a 2-0 first period lead.
Edmonton’s Stuart Skinner made 25 saves to pick up the win, while Kraken goaltender Joey Daccord stopped 32 shots in a losing effort. As they hit the exact midpoint of their 2023-24 schedule, having played 41 of 82 games, the Oilers now have a record of 25-15-1 for 51 points. They are 20-3-0 since U.S. Thanksgiving.
Oilers Stage Another Comeback
Trailing 2-0 after the first period, Edmonton stormed back to score four unanswered goals, including three in a span of 7:01 in the second period that put the Oilers ahead to stay. They also rallied to win 4-2 after falling behind 2-0 against the Toronto Maple Leafs at Rogers Place on Tuesday (Jan. 16).
Related: Oilers Win 11th Straight With 4-2 Victory Over Maple Leafs
The opposition has now scored first in five straight games against the Oilers, who have come from behind to win each time. Since changing coaches on Nov. 12, when Jay Woodcroft was fired and replaced by Kris Knoblauch, they are an incredible 11-3 when the opponent scores the first goal. They are also 11-3 when scoring first over that span.
Oilers Almost Unbeatable When Foegele Scores
Foegele notched Edmonton’s first goal, just 37 seconds into the second period. Then at 7:38, he scored what proved to be the winning goal after being sent in on a partial breakaway on a beautiful pass from Draisaitl, who had three assists in the game. Since acquiring Foegele from the Carolina Hurricanes prior to the 2021-22 season, Edmonton is 23-2-3 (a point percentage of .875) in games when the 27-year-old forward scores.
Foegele now has nine goals in 2023-24 and needs to score only five more times this season to set an NHL career high. He had 13 goals with the Oilers last season and in 2019-20 with the Hurricanes.
Skinner Keeps His Streaks Alive
Skinner is venturing into historic territory for the Oilers. The 6-foot-4 netminder has won his last nine starts, one short of the franchise record for consecutive wins by a goalie, shared by Grant Fuhr and Andy Moog. He also hasn’t allowed more than two goals in eight consecutive appearances, leaving him just one game from tying Nikolai Khabibulin and Tommy Salo for the longest streak by an Oilers goaltender conceding two goals or less.
After struggling mightily for the first month of the season, Skinner is 19-4-0 with a goals-against average (GAA) of 2.15 and a save percentage (SV%) of .921 over the last 10 weeks. His 19 wins since the start of November are tied for most in the NHL over that span.
Oilers Jump Ahead of Kings
Edmonton’s victory over the Kraken, coupled with a 2-1 loss by the Los Angeles Kings to the Nashville Predators at Crypto.com Arena on Thursday, moves the Oilers ahead of the Kings for third place in the Pacific Division. The Kings have 50 points from a record of 21-13-8.
This is the highest position in the standings Edmonton has held during the 2023-24 season, as their incredible ascension continues. On Nov. 25, the Oilers trailed Los Angeles by 16 points, with three teams between Edmonton and the Kings in the Pacific Division standings. Since then, they have racked up 38 points in 22 games, while Los Angeles has gone 8-10-5.
Now the Oilers have their sights set on the Vegas Golden Knights, who sit second in the Pacific with a record of 26-14-5 for 57 points. From trailing Vegas by 19 points on U.S. Thanksgiving, the Oilers have closed the gap to just six, and they have four games in hand on the Golden Knights.
The Oilers will go for their 13th consecutive win when they visit the Calgary Flames at Scotiabank Saddledome on Saturday (Jan. 20).
