The Edmonton Oilers have now lost to straight games after the Pittsburgh Penguins decimated them. Connor McDavid and Co. Were just not ready for the scoring barrage that the Sidney Crosby-led squad was going to unleash. So, the home team at Rogers Place ended up losing 6-2 to the the visiting team while also sliding down to second in the Pacific Division standings.
McDavid goes off about Oilers' urgency
Any loss is tough to swallow but this was not an ordinary dent in Edmonton's record. They gave up three goals in a span of 37 seconds in the first period and just could not recover. Tristan Jarry ended up with a 72.7% save percentage after allowing Anthony Mantha, Sidney Crosby, Rickard Rakell, Evgeni Malkin, and Egor Chinakhov to all find the back of the net.
McDavid also could not play aggressive enough to put the Oilers back in the game. In fact, he only recorded one shot on goal. Jake Walman and Matthew Savoie did score goals to cushion the blowout but the game had already been decided three minutes after the start. The Oilers superstar was clearly not pleased about the outcome and did not mince words, via Jamie Umbach of NHL.com.
"There are 30 games left. We're coming down the home stretch here. There are no February games this year, so it's like we're at the end of February. The sense of urgency's got to go up, and our group's playoff race is real tight, and we gotta find a way to get points here, especially at home," he declared.
THE PENGUINS HAVE 3 GOALS ON 4 SHOTS 3 MINUTES IN AGAINST THEIR FORMER GOALIE TRISTAN JARRY 🫨🚨 pic.twitter.com/NfigiUSDMV
— Gino Hard (@GinoHard_) January 23, 2026
The Oilers still have a shot at redeeming this homestand. Before the Olympic break starts, the Washington Capitals, Anaheim Ducks, San Jose Sharks, Minnesota Wild, and Toronto Maple Leafs will all head to Rogers Place. They will then head to Scotiabank Arena to face the Calgary Flames after that stretch of games.
"Well, it starts with me. I think the last two, probably not my best. I could've been better. When I'm better, usually the whole group responds, so that starts there. Even back to practice, I thought our puck play's been really bad. Not really connecting on passes. So when you're playing that way, it looks slow and clunky, and I thought we've looked that way for the last two games," McDavid admitted.
Will the Oilers be able to climb up the standings before all eyes focus on the Milano Cortina Olympics?
More Oilers News:
This Connor McDavid pass is actually unbelievable to assist Oilers goal
Connor McDavid passes Oilers legend on historic hat trick record list
Why Leon Draisaitl isn't with Oilers right now after leaving team