- Macklin Celebrini scored his first goal of the season in his return from injury
- Connor McDavid took the NHL points lead as the Oilers beat the Sharks 3-1
- Read below for the goal video and what Edmonton’s fourth straight win looked like
Macklin Celebrini is back, and he scored in his first game.
The Sharks captain returned Saturday after missing two games with a lower-body injury and cut Edmonton’s lead to 3-1 at 11:19 of the third period. Michael Misa fed him a backhand pass off the boards, and Celebrini snapped a wrist shot from the left circle for his first goal of the season.
Watch the Sharks’ video of the goal:
Celebrini played a team-high 21:59 and put three shots on goal. He also rang one off the post with five seconds left in the second period. The Sharks never got the tying goal, and the Oilers held on for the win at SAP Center.
Mattias Ekholm opened the scoring at 12:37 of the first with a slap shot through a Trent Frederic screen. Vasily Podkolzin made it 2-0 at 3:13 of the third after Connor McDavid sent him a backward pass, and Alex Formenton added a backhand on the rush two minutes later.
McDavid’s assist gave him 13 points through five games, which moved him past Jack Eichel for the league lead in points and assists. Edmonton’s top three scorers look like this:
| Oilers skater | GP | G | A | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Connor McDavid | 5 | 3 | 10 | 13 |
| Evan Bouchard | 5 | 6 | 6 | 12 |
| Vasily Podkolzin | 5 | 5 | 2 | 7 |
Bouchard’s 12 points match Morgan Rielly’s record for the most by a defenseman through five games, and the Oilers blueliner leads the NHL with six goals. The Oilers are 4-0-1, their best start since the 2021-22 team opened 5-0-0.
Tristan Jarry made 19 saves in his first start since opening night. He talked about how Edmonton handled San Jose clogging the middle of the ice.
“I think when things weren’t going our way, or they were kind of clogging up the middle, we weren’t getting frustrated with it. We stuck to our game plan and did what we needed to,” Jarry said.
Both teams are back in action Tuesday. The Oilers visit the Kings, and the Sharks (3-2-0) host the Bruins.
