Connor McDavid and Devon Levi Power Oilers Past Kings
Connor McDavid recorded a goal and two assists in a dynamic first period on Tuesday night, propelling the Edmonton Oilers to a 4-1 victory over the winless Los Angeles Kings at Crypto.com Arena. The win capped a three-game California road trip and improved Edmonton’s record to 5-0-1, making them the only team in the National Hockey League without a regulation loss to begin the season, according to TSN.
Vasily Podkolzin scored twice for the Oilers, while Leon Draisaitl added a goal and an assist. Goaltender Devon Levi stopped 39 of 40 shots to earn his fourth victory. Brandt Clarke scored the lone goal for Los Angeles, which dropped to 0-3-2 under new head coach Peter Laviolette.
Edmonton Builds Early Three-Goal Lead
The Oilers established control early by capitalizing on defensive lapses by the Kings during the opening frame. McDavid opened the scoring at 7:16 of the first period by freezing defenseman Cody Ceci and feeding a low pass to Draisaitl, who finished with a sharp-angle shot from the bottom of the left face-off circle. Exactly one minute later at 8:16, Podkolzin capitalized on a power play to make it 2-0. McDavid extended the lead to 3-0 before the intermission, accepting a pass from Ty Emberson at the blue line on a breakaway and executing a forehand-to-backhand deke past Kuemper. The early deficit prompted Los Angeles to pull Kuemper at the start of the second period. Kuemper stopped four of seven shots, while replacement Anton Forsberg stopped nine of nine the rest of the way.
McDavid scored four points in his 800th NHL game, while Levi made a career-high 38 saves as the #Oilers completed the perfect California road trip with a 4-1 win over the Kings to extend their win streak to five. https://t.co/TZacgbendV
Los Angeles Struggles to Generate Offense
Despite outshooting Edmonton 40-16 overall, the Kings dropped their fifth straight game and were held to one goal for the third outing. Clarke broke the shutout late in the second period with a long shot through traffic, marking his first goal since signing a five-year, $37 million contract extension last June.
Los Angeles and Philadelphia remain the league’s only winless teams as the Kings adjust to an aggressive system under Laviolette. Forward Trevor Moore addressed the team’s slow start after the loss, noting the group must correct its mistakes quickly.
“Concern, it’s a tough word because I believe in our group, but it’s not good enough right now, and we got to figure it out fast,” Moore told reporters.
Edmonton Relies on Defensive Backbone
While Edmonton has historically relied on high-scoring offensive outbursts, the team leaned on a disciplined defensive structure in the final 40 minutes to protect the lead. Levi faced sustained pressure as the Kings outshot the Oilers 29-10 over the final two periods.
“Honestly, like it’s pretty impressive how we’re able to score ballistically and also play like a really solid defensive game,” Levi said. “The message that Coach Mike Babcock sent is that we have better. I mean, if that’s our bad game, that’s a great game. That’s a great bad game.”
McDavid added his second empty-net assist to Podkolzin in the final minutes to seal the 4-1 scoreline, capping a four-point night in his 800th NHL career game.
Upcoming Schedule for Oilers and Kings
The Oilers return home to host the Utah Mammoth on Thursday night at Rogers Place. The Kings remain at home to host the Boston Bruins on Saturday as they continue their search for their first victory of the regular season.
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