Leon Draisaitl scored 37 seconds into overtime to give the Edmonton Oilers a 3-2 win over the Boston Bruins Thursday night at Rogers Place.
LISTEN BELOW: Leon Draisaitl
It was the Oilers’ home opener after going 2-2 on a road trip to start the season. The Oilers are 3-2 and have won three straight.
The Bruins dominated the first period, outshooting the Oilers 11-5. Boston’s Brad Marchand nearly broke the ice in the dying seconds of the frame. His first shot was stopped by Cam Talbot. He recovered the rebound and tried to tuck the puck in, but Darnell Nurse came back to knock the puck off the goal line.
David Krejci opened the scoring with 8:43 left in the second, but the Oilers came back 2:07 later. Kailer Yamamoto took a long pass from Adam Larsson and cut in from the left wing. His wrist shot beat Jaroslav Halak glove side for his first NHL goal.
“It was an unbelievable pass by Larsson,” Yamamoto said after the game. “I just tried to spin off and got free and tried to go upstairs — luckily it worked.”
“Words can’t really describe how it felt, but it was an unbelievable feeling,” he said of his first NHL goal.
“Pretty much all of us have gone through that — their first NHL goal — and we all know what it feels like,” Draisaitl said. “We’re all very happy for him. He deserves it.”
The Oilers went ahead on a power play with 12:27 left. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins took a bounce off the back boards and snapped it home.
“That was a lucky play,” Halak said. “I don’t think that was a set play.”
David Pastrnak wired home his eighth of the season to make it 2-2 with 8:34 to go.
In overtime, Connor McDavid intercepted a long pass and turned into the Boston zone. Draisaitl snapped the pass from McDavid past Halak’s blocker.
LISTEN BELOW: Connor McDavid
“You never know with Connor if he was baiting the pass, knowing he could pick it off,” Oilers head coach Todd McLellan said.
“I tried to throw sauce on it, saw Bergy going,” Bruins forward Brad Marchand said. “Obviously I should have threw it a little harder.
“I saw Bergy, I didn’t know how close McDavid was, I was trying to get it up there but obviously it didn’t work out.”
Defenceman Matt Benning and forward Ty Rattie exited the game early. McLellan could only speculate on whether they may miss some time.
“Based on the injuries and what I was told, I would say they are doubtful for Saturday,” he said.
The Oilers will host Nashville Saturday night.
READ MORE: Edmonton Oilers finally make home debut against Bruins
Watch below: Some recent videos from Global News’ coverage of the Edmonton Oilers.
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Connor McDavid and the Oilers ready for 2018-19 season home opener -
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Oilers organization hopes to please fans on and off the ice in 2018-19 -
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Edmonton Oilers finally take to ice for home opener -
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Edmonton Oilers prepare for 2018 home opener -
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Rogers Place gets ready to open new restaurant at Oilers home opener -
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Edmonton Oilers’ Leon Draisaitl makes 8-year donation to We Day & local hockey programs -
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Edmonton Oilers prospect hitting the right notes, both on and off the ice -
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Edmonton Oilers training camp underway but without Darnell Nurse -
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Edmonton Oilers seek fresh start to move past disappointing season -
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Oilers defenceman’s injury has Edmontonians talking
–With files from Brenden Escott and Scott Johnston
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