With new head coach, Edmonton wins in San Jose
The Edmonton Oilers arrived at SAP Center on Tuesday with a new head coach. They left with their second win in eight games.
Hours after Ken Hitchcock was hired to replace former Sharks head coach Todd McLellan behind the bench, Leon Draisaitl scored 51 seconds into overtime and Connor McDavid had his 100th career goal to give the Oilers a 4-3 win .
“It’s not going to change overnight, but we can start taking some steps,” Hitchcock said before the game. “I told the players today I can take them to a place personally that they can’t get to themselves, but they’ve got to buy into that, and it’s not going to be comfortable at times.”
The Sharks did their best to make the Oilers uncomfortable, taking leads of 1-0, 2-1 and 3-2 in the game. But each time, Edmonton responded.
McDavid set up Drake Caggiula’s tying goal early in the third period and then the winner in overtime when his pass hit off Draisaitl and trickled past goalie Martin Jones.
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins added a shorthanded goal and Mikko Koskinen made 22 saves for Edmonton.
Joe Thornton assisted on Marcus Sorensen’s goal in the first period to tie Mario Lemieux for 11th place all-time with his 1,033rd helper. Joonas Donskoi and Logan Couture also scored for San Jose.
The Sharks took a 3-2 lead in the final minute of the second period when Couture deked Adam Larsson on the rush and beat Koskinen for his first goal in 11 games.
The Oilers responded early in the third when McDavid set up Caggiula on an odd-man rush for the equalizer.
The Hitchcock era got off to a rough start for the Oilers, who allowed a goal in the opening minute when Donskoi was left alone in front of the net after a face-off win by San Jose. Brent Burns’ shot from the point was stopped by Koskinen, but Donskoi was able to backhand the rebound home.
McDavid got the equalizer midway through the period when he beat Burns down the slot to take a feed from Draisaitl and knocked it in for his milestone goal. McDavid reached the mark in his 230th game. Only Wayne Gretzky (145 games), Glenn Anderson (183) and Jari Kurri (214) got there faster for the Oilers.
Thornton then reached his milestone later in the period when he fed Sorensen from behind the goal line for a onetimer that beat Koskinen.
Edmonton tied the game early in the second when Nugent-Hopkins converted a 2on-1 off a feed from Kyle Brodziak after the Sharks committed a turnover in the offensive zone on the power play. Briefly: Thornton needs seven assists to tie Marcel Dionne for 10th place . ... Forward Tomas Hertl returned to the Sharks’ lineup after missing two games with a lower-body injury.