GAME RECAP: Oilers 5, Flames 3

EDMONTON, AB - Play La Bamba, with a little extra volume.
Leon Draisaitl put in a tremendous performance, recording two goals and two assists, while Mikko Koskinen was monstrous in the Oilers crease with 44 saves as the Oilers snapped their seven-game losing streak with a 5-3 victory over the Calgary Flames on Hockey Night in Canada.
Defenceman Evan Bouchard factored into the Battle of Alberta by tallying two power-play goals, Connor McDavid had two assists on the man advantage, and Brendan Perlini notched his fourth goal of the season in the victory.

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FIRST BLOOD

Koskinen made the first stop on Elias Lindholm, who cut through the slot and forced the Finn into a quick right-pad save, but that didn't account for the second opportunity.
Matthew Tkachuk fought off Cody Ceci to the right post and got a stick to the rebound to put the opening goal into the open cage at 8:29 of the first period.

PLAY OF THE GAME

Call the Bomb Squad.
Bouchard's first of two power-play goals in the second period was an absolute bomb, with the 22-year-old defender stepping into a one-timer off the feed from Draisaitl and placing his shot perfectly into the top-left corner over Jacob Markstrom.
Draisaitl and McDavid tallied the assists, but the honourary helper goes to Jesse Puljujarvi for a great screen in front of the Flames crease.

SAVE OF THE GAME

With the Flames looking like they might take the lead on a 2-on-1 opportunity midway through the third period, Koskinen made his biggest save of the night and arguably the biggest save of his NHL career when he slid across the crease and sprawled out to deny Dillon Dube with an incredible game-defining glove save.

TURNING POINT

As time dwindled down with the score all square at 3-3, Draisaitl took a cross-ice feed from Duncan Keith in the neutral zone and broke into the Flames' end before dangling Flames defenceman Chris Tanev and lifting the game-winning goal over Markstrom with just over five-and-a-half minutes on the clock in regulation

TOP PERFORMER

Draisaitl took matters into his own hands with two power-play assists and two goals, including the game-winner and an empty-net tally that helped secure the Oilers their first win in seven games and first victory since December 18. Four points tonight ties the German with Alex Ovechkin for the league lead in points with 58, while his two tucks put him on 28 goals this season -- just one goal behind the aforementioned Ovechkin and Chris Kreider of the New York Rangers.

PARTING WORDS

Draisaitl on the relief of Saturday's come-from-behind victory and breaking a seven-game losing streak:
"It feels great. Losing is awful, it sucks, it's not fun, and it feels like there's always a cloud around you when you are losing. Obviously, we're not where we want to be yet, but this is the first step and you've got to start at some point. Koski was amazing and it was a full-team effort, so it was a good game for us."
Draisaitl on beating a provincial rival and divisional opponent to break the seven-game skid:
"It makes it extra special, of course, so it was fun beating our biggest rival in the league. But to be honest, it. doesn't really matter at this point in time. When you're that deep into a slump, into losing, you're just looking to get that first win out of the way and it doesn't really matter who it is. It is a little bit extra special, for sure."

Koskinen on a busy night from start-to-finish and his great overall 44-save performance:
"We were 2-0 down after the first, but we still kept talking that we believed that we were going to come back. That's exactly what happened and like Leon said, it was a full-team effort. I'm really proud of the team and all of [the players]."
Koskinen on the magnitude of his game-defining save in the third period on Dillon Dube that kept the score at 3-3:
"I think it's my top save in the NHL if you think about the situation and where we are. We really needed the win and we got the win, so we have to be happy for that."

Bouchard on getting his opportunity on the power play and scoring two goals:
"I think if you ask any player that question, they all want that position. You just have to work at it, and Tyson [Barrie] runs it great. I just got the opportunity when he was out, but like I said, I think any player would want to be on that power play."
"I think the big part of putting it through [traffic] is making sure it gets by the first guy, and luckily for me, Jesse was doing a great job at the net-front doing the dirty work in front. That's how goals come."
McDavid on what the win does for the confidence of the Oilers:
"When you're losing games, it's obviously a bad feeling. We're human and have feelings, and those losses pile up and weigh on you. It's just human nature, so it's nice to find a way to win and hopefully, we can build a little momentum here."

Tippett on the Oilers giving up the first goal before turning the tide over the final 40 minutes:
"We felt like we were playing alright. You feel like you're playing alright and we're down two, and all I could hear from the players coming off for the first period was: 'We're still in this. Let's go'. They came out and had a great second period. Our power play got going a little bit. Bouchard had a couple of really nice shots, Perlini a nice shot, and the guys worked hard. I'm happy for them. You could tell there was a relief, but it's happiness. You lose and people don't realize the toll it takes on you. You lose and it's hurting everybody, so it's great to see them feel good about it tonight. Hopefully, it's a night we can use to start building ourselves back up again."