Oilers Survive 9–7 Chaos as Bouchard Sets an NHL Record

The Edmonton Oilers put nine goals on the board Thursday night and still spent the third period trying to keep the game from slipping away. Edmonton beat the Vancouver Canucks 9–7 at Rogers Arena after turning an 8–2 advantage into an 8–6 game.

Connor McDavid drove the win with one goal and four assists. Leon Draisaitl added two goals and an assist, including the power-play goal that gave Edmonton breathing room after Vancouver’s four-goal push. The Oilers split the season-opening home-and-home series after losing 6–5 in overtime Tuesday.

Bouchard’s start now stands alone

Evan Bouchard finished with a goal and two assists, giving him eight points through Edmonton’s first two games. According to Reuters, that is the most ever by an NHL defenseman through the first two games of a season, passing Harry Cameron’s seven points for the 1917–18 Toronto Arenas.

Bouchard’s record did not come from one isolated hot night. He opened the season with a hat trick and two assists, then followed with three more points in Vancouver. That is eight points before most players around the league have settled into their second line combination.

Edmonton’s best and worst showed up together

The Oilers scored four in the first period and stretched the lead to 8–2 in the second. McDavid and Kasperi Kapanen scored short-handed goals 34 seconds apart, and Owen Michaels recorded his first NHL goal.

Then Vancouver made the game uncomfortable. Arshdeep Bains scored with one-tenth of a second left in the second period, Marco Rossi scored twice early in the third, and Elias Pettersson’s power-play goal cut the margin to two. Draisaitl answered less than two minutes later to stop the comeback from getting any closer.

Kris’s Take

Edmonton’s offense is terrifying when McDavid, Draisaitl, and Bouchard are all driving play. But an 8–2 lead should never become an 8–6 emergency. The Oilers can celebrate the record and the two points while still being honest about the warning: this kind of chaos is fun in October and dangerous in the playoffs. Bouchard’s historic start is real. So is the defensive work Edmonton still has to clean up.

Sources

Score, game sequence, player totals, and current team information: NHL official game recap. Bouchard’s NHL record and additional game detail: Reuters, October 2, 2026. Photo source and verified license: Wikimedia Commons.