Edmonton has the two most dangerous offensive players in hockey, and that is becoming a problem. In Toronto’s 7-2 win over the Oilers on Saturday at Rogers Place, Leon Draisaitl scored both Edmonton goals, Connor McDavid assisted on each, and no other Oilers player recorded a point. Through 11 games, McDavid had accumulated 33 points, including eight goals and 25 assists, while Draisaitl’s two goal performance extended his scoring streak to six games, during which he recorded nine goals. When two players produce everything, a team is one bad night away from nothing.
Toronto exposed that fragility with a complete performance. Jack Roslovic opened the scoring at 14:16 of the first period, Auston Matthews doubled the lead at 5:29 of the second, and Troy Stecher made it 3-0 just 54 seconds later. Draisaitl cut the deficit to 3-1 late in the second, but Toronto scored four times in the third period, including William Nylander’s 300th NHL goal, to turn a solid road performance into a rout. Anthony Stolarz made 30 saves on 32 shots for Toronto, while Tristan Jarry stopped 25 of 30 for Edmonton. Toronto improved to 7-4-2 with its fourth straight victory, its first four game winning streak since January, while Edmonton fell to 8-2-1 with its three game winning streak ending.
Draisaitl is honest about the pressure
Draisaitl, named the NHL’s first star of the week, has been unusually open about what his streak feels like from the inside. After practice on Monday, he said he gets paid to score goals, and when he is not scoring goals, it rattles him and frustrates him. He also said he understands that scoring stretches do not last, and that he will take them as they come and battle through the tough times when they arrive. That honesty is refreshing, but it also underlines the risk: a player who feels the pressure of carrying a team is a player who knows his team needs him to carry it every night.
His line, which also includes McDavid and Vasily Podkolzin, has been dominant to start the season, and coach Mike Babcock has kept McDavid and Draisaitl together for now. But Babcock acknowledged the need for additional contributions after the Toronto loss, saying the team needs more, for sure. Toronto defenseman Darren Raddysh, who helped hold McDavid and Draisaitl scoreless at five on five in eight minutes head to head, with Toronto outscoring them 2-0 in that span, showed what playoff style opponents will do: take away the top line, and dare the rest of the roster to beat them.
The Tarasenko question
One suggestion gaining attention is veteran winger Vladimir Tarasenko, still available in free agency, as a way to add secondary scoring without surrendering draft picks or prospects in a trade. That is speculation, not a signing, and it should be read as such. But the fact that it is being discussed at all, after only 11 games, shows how quickly Edmonton’s depth question has moved from a talking point to a roster question. Reports of Draisaitl’s comments framed his streak as a heater, and VIP News Hub’s account of record performances is a reminder that streaks end. Edmonton must find scoring beyond its two stars before an opponent makes that point for them in a game that matters more than a Saturday in October.
