GAME RECAP: Oilers 6, Predators 3

NASHVILLE, TN - The Oilers top line serenaded the Predators with goal horns, propelling Edmonton to a 6-3 victory on Tuesday night.
Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid continued their recent trend of dominance against the Nashville Predators, combining for three goals and nine points on the night.
"Just seems to go my way," Draisaitl said about playing the Predators. "There's other teams that sometimes you struggle against a little bit, and every player has their team, but big two points for us, which is a lot more important."
The pair has combined for an eye-popping 55 points against the Predators since the start of the 2018 season, with those totals coming in only 11 games. Their linemate Zach Hyman got in on the action as well tonight with a hat trick and an assist of his own as the top line accounted for all six Oilers tallies.
Jack Campbell made his first start since Dec. 1 and notched his eighth win of the season with a 29-save performance.
The Oilers head back home to Rogers Place for games against the St. Louis Blues and Anaheim Ducks before returning to Nashville on Dec. 19.

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FIRST BLOOD

Tuesday night in Nashville definitely didn't have the start the Oilers were looking for.
What started as an innocuous play at first ended up in the back of the Oilers net. Just 1:15 into the contest, Cody Glass lofted a dipping shot towards the Oilers net. The puck found its way through the traffic in front and in behind Jack Campbell to give the Predators a 1-0 lead.
The marker was the former sixth-overall pick's second of the season, and just the 11th of his National Hockey League career.

HAT TRICK HYMAN

It took a while for Zach Hyman to bury his 10th goal of the season, but he certainly wasted no time getting back on the score sheet.
With the Oilers trailing by a goal, Evan Bouchard fired a slap pass intentionally wide of Nashville starter Kevin Lankinen and directly on the tape of Hyman, who redirected the shot into the Predators net. Hyman's 11th of the season tied the game at 1-1 with 11:41 left in the first.
Hyman would add to his goal total six minutes later by doing the dirty work for McDavid and Draisaitl. After a shot by the German sniper, Hyman crashed the Nashville crease and shoveled his second of the game by Lankinen.
Hyman completed his first-career hat trick late in the game by burying the empty-netter with 2:37 remaining in the contest.
Prior to the Oilers brief two-game road trip, the 30-year-old had gone nine games without a goal that counted, with two waved off over that stretch. Despite not finding the back of the net, Hyman had been helping his teammates tickle the twine. The forward now has an eight-game point streak with 14 points (4G, 10A) during the heater.

GUESS WHO FROM GUESS WHERE

You just knew he would score and you could probably guess where he would do it from.
Leon Draisaitl, who had scored 18 goals and had 25 points in his last 10 games against the Predators, notched his 20th goal of the season with 4.9 seconds remaining in the first period.
The snipe came on an Oilers power play and off a one-timer from the right faceoff circle like so many Draisaitl goals that have come before.
The German would not be done on the evening. At the 15:41 mark of the second period, Draisaitl found some space down the left wing and ripped a shot past the glove of Lankinen for his 20th goal against Predators since the start of the 2018-19 season. No player has scored more goals than Draisaitl against a single club during that time.

TURNING POINT

McDavid added another to his extensive and incredible highlight reel.
With the Oilers on a man advantage at the tail end of the second period, the league's best player weaved through a handful of Predators defenders before releasing a quick shot through the legs of Lankinen to give the Oilers a 5-3 lead.
The goal was one of four McDavid points on the evening and added to his NHL leading goals total (26), assists total (33), and points total (59) as he continues his scorching hot start to the season.

The moment was made possible by Jack Campbell and the Oilers penalty kill coming up huge in the minutes that preceded it. With Darnell Nurse and Derek Ryan in the box for a pair of holding infractions, the Predators took aim at the Oilers net and the one-goal deficit. Campbell would make several stops, including a cross-crease toe save on Ryan Johansen to preserve the Oilers one-goal advantage.
"I think that might have been our first 5-on-3 that we killed off fully. I think we've had a couple of other ones where it's maybe a team scored right at the tail end of a 5-on-3 or whatnot," Coach Jay Woodcroft said after the game. "I think it's important for our confidence. I think our penalty kill is improving. We're getting good contributions there, but certainly when your goaltender makes some big saves, that's key to it."
McDavid would do the remarkable a few minutes after to give the Oilers a two-goal cushion heading into the final period -- a lead they would not relinquish.

PARTING WORDS

Leon Draisaitl on his five-point night:
"I'll just talk about the team success. It's not about me. Lots of great performances tonight. We were swimming a little bit there in the second, but other than that, I thought it was pretty solid effort, really good in the third. Soup was amazing. So big two points."
Draisaitl on Hyman recording his first-career hat trick:
"I just found out. I actually didn't know, but, yeah, it's always great to see. Those milestones are amazing. Always fun to be a part of. He was great tonight, hounding it and obviously being strong as a bull on it, as always, as we all know him. So great game from him."
Draisaitl on the performance of Jack Campbell:
"I thought he was really good. I thought he kept us in it for a bit of the time there. We were kind of swimming. I thought he was solid. You know, I think he's coming. He's getting better and better, and we trust him 100 per cent. I think he's shown that tonight. He's going to be a big part for a group."
Head Coach Jay Woodcroft on the performance of his top line:
"They paced us tonight offensively. They were feeling it. We were able to not overtax them either and it was a tight game. I mean, their team pushed in the second period, they pushed in the third period, but we're able to get good contribution from that line. They didn't have answer for them tonight on tonight's occasion. But I saw a lot of other really good plays. I saw a lot of self sacrifice on the penalty kill. I thought Jack Campbell had a good night. I thought our penalty kill as a whole had a good night."
Jack Campbell on the Nashville crowd tonight:
"Yeah, it's a great barn to play in. It's kind of a college feel with NHL fans, which obviously the 20,000 people, they're super loud and into the game and it's a blast to come in and play."