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4 Takeaways From Oilers’ 4-0 Win Over Flames

Edmonton Oilers goaltender Tristan Jarry makes a save on Calgary Flames forward Michael Backlund (Perry Nelson-Imagn Images)

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4 Takeaways From Oilers’ 4-0 Win Over Flames

Originally posted on The Hockey Writers | By Matt Parks | Last updated Oct 29, 2026 9:05 AM ET

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The Edmonton Oilers (9-2-2) finished their five-game homestand with a 4-0 shutout win over the Calgary Flames (5-7-0) on Oct. 28, and were 3-1-1.

Connor McDavid set an NHL record for the longest season-opening assist streak with 13. That broke the previous record of 12 season-opening games held by Wayne Gretzky (1982-83), Ken Linseman (1985-86) and Sebastian Aho (2018-19). The Oilers’ captain is on another level.

The game started with a bang, as the Oilers’ Ty Emberson dropped the gloves with the Flames’ Brennan Othmann at 5:04 into the first period. Unfortunately, Othmann left the game after that tilt and didn’t return. Calgary got more terrible news as goaltender Devon Cooley was injured in the opening frame after forward Colton Dach collided with him in the blue paint. Cooley stopped eight of nine shots before being replaced by Dustin Wolf. Wolf stopped 20 of 23 shots in relief.

The Oilers snapped a two-game losing streak while snapping Calgary’s four-game winning streak. They are now 6-0-1 against the Pacific Division. Here are four takeaways from this victory.

Oilers Got More Secondary Scoring

The Oilers got much-needed secondary scoring, as they did against the Detroit Red Wings in their last contest. Mathieu Joseph opened the scoring with his third of the season on a beautiful McDavid-centered pass. Then, Kasperi Kapanen added a power-play marker early in the third period off another great McDavid pass. Just 25 seconds later, Alex Formenton scored his second of the season, ripping a shot past the netminder.

Jason Dickinson returned from a six-game injury absence and gave the bottom six a huge boost. His inclusion pushed Owen Michaels down the lineup. Michaels was the third-line centre and was a bit outmatched. This allowed the rookie forward to slide down as the fourth-line centre, where he should be. Dickinson centred Joseph and Formenton and had a solid game. The veteran recorded one assist, two shots, and four hits in 13:00 of ice time.

Jarry Was Perfect

Tristan Jarry was the only reason Edmonton got one point against Detroit last game, and he carried that over into this one. He was perfect, stopping all 24 shots he faced for his 24th career shutout. This was his second shutout with the Oilers, but his first at home. It was also his first shutout since Jan. 17, and first home win since April 2.

He didn’t have to make spectacular saves and didn’t face a ton of rubber, but he was up to the task and made some important saves, especially in the middle frame. He made a great sprawling save, denying Michael Backlund when the game was 2-0. If he scores, it’s 2-1, giving Calgary momentum. Jarry has lacked that “key” save, but not in this one.

The 31-year-old faced six high-danger shots and stopped them all. He looked calm and composed between the pipes and didn’t allow juicy rebounds as he has in previous games. The Flames had 2.20 expected goals, but Jarry shut the door. With Devon Levi out with an injury, the Oilers need Jarry to step up, and he has in the past two games.

Ice Time Was Spread Out

Head coach Mike Babcock rolled all four lines and didn’t overplay his star players. They were leading, and all lines were solid. Against the Red Wings, McDavid and Draisaitl played over 25 minutes, with Bouchard playing over 31. Thankfully, that was cut down.

“Instead of backing up, we kept our foot on the gas and went after them. In the end, you can roll everyone out the door. McDavid had his least ice time of the year, and I think so did Draisaitl. It looked much more reasonable and sets you up for long-term success if you can do that. Saying that, it’s way easier when you’re ahead than behind,” Babcock stated during his postgame presser.

No forward played over 20 minutes, with Draisaitl leading with 19:06. Likewise, no forward played under 10 minutes, with Isaac Howard playing the fewest at 10:21. Evan Bouchard led the team with 22:12 of ice time, and only three defencemen played over 20 minutes. Ryan Shea and Connor Murphy were the other two. The ice time deployment was excellent.

Oilers Locked It Down in the Third Period

The team played well in front of Jarry and allowed minimal second-chance opportunities. The Oilers scored two goals in the first 1:16 of the third period to take a 4-0 lead, and they didn’t look back. They played defensively sound, structured, and mistake-free hockey. Calgary didn’t generate a high-danger chance in the final frame, and had just five shots. These defensive efforts will result in sustained success.

Advanced stats courtesy of Natural Stat Trick.

This article first appeared on The Hockey Writers and was syndicated with permission.

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