Oilers find incredible Connor McDavid irony as soon as playoffs arrive originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The Edmonton Oilers did something Monday night that they hadn't done the entire 2025-26 regular season.

They won a game without Connor McDavid scoring a point.

They had lost all 14 games in the regular season in which McDavid wasn't on the scoresheet.

But in the first game of the playoffs, McDavid didn't score, and the Oilers won 4-3 over the Anaheim Ducks anyway.

Jason Dickinson and Kasperi Kapanen each scored two goals, including the game's only two goals in the third period as Dickinson tied it up about midway through the frame before Kapanen won it with less than two minutes left.

Of note, the returned-from-injury Leon Draisaitl had two assists.

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Dickinson himself was just returning from injury. He was a question mark as to whether he'd suit up for Game 1.

In the end, both Dickinson and Draisaitl recovered in time to make it on the ice, and that turned out to be crucial.

It was an odd game for the Oilers, which went up 2-0 in the first period, then allowed all three goals in the second period to fall behind, before rallying in the third.

McDavid was on the ice for 24 minutes and 50 seconds. He had three shots on goal and won 8-of-14 faceoffs.

It just didn't work out for him to find his way on the scoresheet, which if anything might be bad news for Anaheim.

If the Oilers finally can win a game without McDavid scoring, they might end up in quite a good place once he gets back to his usual scoring ways.

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