Oilers snap losing streak as McDavid ignites late rally to tip Blue Jackets 5-4 in OT

EDMONTON – The Edmonton Oilers needed some kind of positive response after their humiliating 9-1 loss to the Colorado Avalanche on Saturday.

It certainly didn’t look like they’d make amends for that beat down — tied for worst loss at home in franchise history — on Monday night against Columbus however, as more bad giveaways had led them trailing the Blue Jackets 4-2 with 6 1/2 minutes left in the third period.

But then they turned things around in a manner that they hope is a harbinger of things to come as they mounted a furious comeback, culminating in Jack Roslovic scoring on a backhand 56 seconds into overtime to register a 5-4 victory.

“Sometimes you get nice bounces and get off the losing streak. It’s nice to see a crazy one go in,” said Roslovic, who went unsigned through free agency before joining Edmonton, inking a deal that was announced during the middle of the Oilers first game of the season.

It’s been a good move for the team as he also had an assist and now has 10 points in 15 games.

“There are times where we’re going to fall behind, it’s just getting back on the horse and doing the things we did tonight,” said Roslovic.

Before that, captain Connor McDavid scored a highlight reel goal just 58 seconds into the third period, spinning all the way around before lifting a backhand shot to the top corner. He got Edmonton back to within one with 6:21 left in the third as he turned on the jets and blew past a pair of defenders before cutting hard on net and tucking in his seventh goal of the season.

Edmonton tied the game with a fluky short-handed goal with 58 seconds left in the third as Jake Walman tried to pass and it deflected off of Mathieu Olivier’s stick and into the net for Walman’s second of the game and third of the campaign. It was the first game-tying, short-handed goal in the final minute of regulation in Oilers history.

Walman then hit Roslovic with a long stretch pass in OT and he scored his fourth of the season on a breakaway.

“That’s probably the exact type of game it was going to take to get out of this little funk, or at least to start,” Walman said. “It wasn’t perfect at all, but we found a way and stuck with it. There was a lot to like in that game.”

The Oilers (7-6-4) snapped a three-game losing skid just as they are about to head out on a season-long seven-game road trip.

“It was a big win at home before going on a long stretch here and after what happened on Saturday,” McDavid said. “It felt like a little bit more of a bigger game than you usually get in November, and I thought it showed. We hung on right to the end to tie it and won the game.

“We stuck with it. We put ourselves in a tough spot, but we’re good at coming from behind. We found a way. It’s not the prettiest way to win a game, but a win nonetheless.”

The Oilers are the only team in the NHL this season with two wins when trailing by multiple goals in the third period.

“The group likes to put itself in a tough spot and just when you think it’s a tough spot we go a little bit further,” sighed McDavid. “Then we decide it’s time to go.”

Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch credited McDavid for his superb effort getting the team back into the contest.

“Connor wasn’t going to let us lose tonight, he was so focused on getting the job done,” Knoblauch said. “I’ve seen Connor rise to the occasion and play some tremendous games, and I’m not going to say this was his best game that I’ve seen him play, but under the circumstances it’s right up there. Just because he was so determined to get the job done.

“He had an incredible night, two fabulous goals, but there was just so much determination to his game that it was like, ‘It’s not going to happen again tonight.’ And he just willed the team to win.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 10, 2025.