Oilers find defensive footing in win over Kraken

EDMONTON – The Edmonton Oilers have proven they can get it done without running and gunning.

Connor McDavid had a goal and an assist to give him nine points through three games as the Oilers won their second game in a row, defeating the Seattle Kraken 3-1 on Saturday.

Owen Michaels and Leon Draisaitl also scored for the Oilers (2-0-1), who opened with a pair of high-scoring affairs against the Vancouver Canucks, losing the first 6-5 in OT before going up 8-2 in the rematch only to end up having to squeeze by with a 9-7 victory.

“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,” said Draisaitl, who scored his third of the season to put his team up 2-1 with just 2:27 left in the third.

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“That is certainly how we want to play. The last game got away from us a little bit and it was not the easiest situation, but you can certainly play better and tonight was a solid, solid effort.”

McDavid, with two goals and seven assists on the season, became the first player with seven or more assists through his team’s first three games of a season since Brad Marchand did it with Boston in 2018-19.

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Devon Levi made 19 stops to earn the win in the Oilers’ net, getting the start again despite allowing seven goals in his last appearance in Vancouver on Thursday.

“I personally walk away from that Vancouver game just with the win. That’s all I took from that game. Turn the page and get to work the next day,” said Levi, who spent the entire year in the AHL last season with the Buffalo organization. “It’s not easy, but I’ve definitely been through harder. Just the past few years, there’s definitely been some adversity that’s really taught me it’s one day, it’s one game. The ups, the downs? They come, they go.

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“Just knowing that the coaches trust me, the boys trust me, definitely improves confidence as a goalie, for sure. The support system here has been amazing so far. It definitely feels good.”

Oilers head coach Mike Babcock was certainly happy to see the goals against come down.

“We didn’t give up a touchdown!” he said. “We got good goaltending tonight. We made a mistake on that second penalty kill and they had a bell-ringer and he made the save.

“We turned the puck over on a reverse and they end up with a great chance. You have to give him credit because we haven’t had that. That was really positive tonight.”

Michaels, a 24-year-old Michigan native, went undrafted before helping Western Michigan win their first national championship in program history in 2025. He signed as a free agent with Edmonton and surprised many by making the team out of camp. He now has two goals in his first three pro games at the NHL level.

“It’s an unbelievable feeling, it hard to find the words,” he said. “I’m just happy to see them go in the net and it helps playing with some great linemates and everyone has been awesome so far.”

Edmonton now owns a 16-4-1 overall record against the Kraken and 9-1-0 all-time at home, with eight consecutive wins. The Oilers have four of the top five scorers all-time against Seattle, with Draisaitl first with 35 points in 16 games, McDavid second with 28 points, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins third and Zach Hyman fifth.

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Nugent-Hopkins and Hyman were among seven players already out with injuries for Edmonton.

It was the 126th time that Draisaitl and McDavid have both scored in the same game. Edmonton is 95-21-10 when that occurs.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 4, 2026.