Comeback Kads!

EDMONTON — Matvei Gridin probably didn't expect to kickstart a comeback in his NHL debut.

But that's exactly what the 19-year-old forward did, scoring his first NHL goal on a fortuitous bounce to help his Flames mount a comeback to clip the Oilers 4-3 in a shootout at Rogers Place.

"A couple years ago, I played on PS," he smiled after the game. "Now I'm in there, so it feels nice."

Connor Zary and Blake Coleman added regulation-time markers, before Nazem Kadri ended proceedings in the eighth round of the shootout - the longest-such event in a season-opening game in NHL history.

"I like the way we stuck with it," head coach Ryan Huska commented post-game. "We found ourselves behind the eight-ball early, but I thought we got better as the night went on."

The Oilers took a 2-0 lead into the first intermission, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins opened the scoring on a powerplay just shy of the midpoint before Andrew Mangiapane extended the advantage with 3:49 left in the frame.

After the hosts made it 3-0 on a powerplay marker by Leon Draisaitl, the Flames started to find their footing, even if it was an opposing foot that helped swing the momentum.

After being sent in down the right wing, Gridin carried the puck to the circle, spun, and fired a hard pass toward Matt Coronato at the back post. But to everyone's surprise, the puck caromed off an Edmonton skate in the slot and skipped past Stuart Skinner.

Just over two minutes later, Connor Zary found the back of the net on a Calgary powerplay, redirecting a floating puck past Skinner from just outside the crease to cut the deficit to 3-2.

Dustin Wolf did his part to keep the game tight, stopping Connor McDavid and Draisaitl with a pair of high-danger shoulder stops as the Oilers held their 3-2 lead after 40 minutes.

But that didn't last long.

And the Flames had another wild bounce to thank.

Off a dump-in, the puck spilled in front of Skinner just long enough for Coleman to stab at it, and the veteran winger got just enough of the disc to knife it through the Edmonton goaltender's legs and into the net, just 40 seconds into period three.

Then, it was Wolf's time to shine. The Calgary puck-stopper turned aside all 13 shots he faced in the third period and overtime, including a quick reaction stop off Draisaitl with three minutes left.

Then, he stopped all four shots he faced in overtime, the last 89 seconds spent in the Flames zone as the Oilers tried to seal the game on a powerplay.

Which led to the shootout, Wolf stymying the likes of Connor McDavid, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Evan Bouchard before finally, opportunity fell to Kadri in the eighth round of the skill session.

And he made no mistake, lifting the puck past Skinner via the backhand to complete the comeback.

The victory marked Calgary's fourth consecutive season-opening triumph, and second in as many years to take place away from home.

The Lineup:

FORWARDS

Joel Farabee - Nazem Kadri - Adam Klapka

Matvei Gridin - Morgan Frost - Matt Coronato

Connor Zary - Mikael Backlund - Blake Coleman

Ryan Lomberg - Justin Kirkland - Yegor Sharangovich

DEFENCE

Joel Hanley - MacKenzie Weegar

Kevin Bahl - Rasmus Andersson

Jake Bean - Brayden Pachal

GOALTENDERS

Dustin Wolf

Devin Cooley

They Said It:

The Numbers Game:

Shots: CGY 22, EDM 35

Powerplay: CGY 1-4, EDM 2-4

Faceoffs: CGY 51.7%, EDM 48.3%

Hits: CGY 35, EDM 23

Blocked shots: CGY 17, EDM 18

5-on-5 Scoring Chances: CGY 10, EDM 18

5-on-5 High-Danger Scoring Chances: CGY 4, EDM 7

Up Next:

The Flames will travel to the West Coast for a duel with the Canucks Thursday evening at 8 p.m. MT on Sportsnet West. The home opener is set for Saturday, Oct. 11 when Calgary hosts St. Louis at 2 p.m. MT CLICK FOR TICKETS