Oilers Snap Senators’ 6-Game Winning Streak, Win 3-1

Two of the hottest teams in the NHL played each other on Sunday evening (Dec. 22) when the Edmonton Oilers hosted the Ottawa Senators. Coming into this contest, the Senators were 8-1-1 in their last 10 games while the Oilers were 8-2-0 in their last 10. Despite that, this was a sloppy game for large stretches. Players were losing edges, and there were a lot of turnovers in the neutral zone by both teams. At the end of the day, the Oilers came out on top with a 3-1 victory, snapping the Senators’ six-game winning streak. Here’s your game recap.

Game Recap

Viktor Arvidsson opened the scoring for Edmonton 14:26 into the first period for his third goal of the season. A strong forecheck led to Connor McDavid winning a puck battle and finding a wide-open Arvidsson in front of the net for the tap-in, past Linus Ullmark in Ottawa’s net. Unfortunately, Ullmark left the game after the opening period and didn’t return.

The Senators tied the game just 25 seconds into the second period on Nick Cousins‘ fifth of the season. Cousins stripped the puck from defenceman Evan Bouchard at the Oilers’ blue line and went in on a breakaway, beating goaltender Stuart Skinner over the blocker for an unassisted marker.

Zach Hyman’s heater continued, as he restored the Oilers’ lead for his 13th goal of the season on the power play. Leon Draisaitl threw the puck on net, and Arvidsson found the loose rubber and fed Hyman who made no mistake. A few minutes later, Leevi Merilainen who replaced Ulmark in the Senators net, absolutely robbed Jeff Skinner with a great glove save to keep the score within one. Therefore, Edmonton took a 2-1 lead into the second intermission.

Zach Hyman Edmonton Oilers — Zach Hyman of the Edmonton Oilers celebrates his first-period goal against the Los Angeles Kings in Game One of the First Round of the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Rogers Place (Photo by Andy Devlin/NHLI via Getty Images)

Adam Henrique extended the Oilers lead to 3-1 just 1:38 into the third period. Another strong forecheck led to Mattias Janmark getting the puck and feeding Henrique in the slot, and he went over the blocker of Ottawa’s netminder for his third of the season. After that goal, Edmonton locked it down defensively, and secured the 3-1 victory. Both teams had 21 shots on goal.

The Senators continue their lengthy nine-game road trip after the holiday break against the Winnipeg Jets on Saturday (Dec. 28). Meanwhile, the Oilers return to action the same day, when they travel to Los Angeles to play the Kings.