Connor McDavid teammate drops bold wake up call to Oilers after disheartening loss vs Flames in NHL debut

Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers got off to a bad start in the 2025-26 NHL season. The opening night Battle of Alberta looked destined for a blowout in Edmonton’s favor, but the Calgary Flames fought back and the Oilers had no answers.

The sold-out crowd at Rogers Place headed for the exit doors crestfallen after the Oilers squandered a 3-0 lead in the 2025-26 NHL season opener. As if blowing a multi-goal lead wasn’t bad enough, doing so to the archrivals in Calgary only made it worse.

The Oilers must bounce back after their head-scratching outing in opening night of the NHL campaign. McDavid and the rest of the team know the spotlight is upon them. Contract drama aside, there is nothing standing on the way for Edmonton not to have success. It all comes down to the action on the ice, and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins knows a lot can be done better in that regard.

“We just kind of got sloppy with it and turned the puck over too much, which started to give them life,” Nugent-Hopkins admitted postgame, per NHL.com. “They capitalized on one and they started to get the momentum there. But it started with 10 minutes of being sloppy and just turning the puck over.”

Ryan Nugent-Hopkins in action during an NHL game

Learning from it

While a heartbreaking loss, the Oilers still salvaged a point—though it feels too little a reward after leading 3-0 midway through the game. After a fiery contest, it was actually Calgary who finally put out the flames with Nazem Kadri’s shootout winner in the 8th round.

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“I thought when we were playing on top of them, when we were playing fast and simple there was a lot of things to like,” Nugent-Hopkins added. “But obviously the first one, you’d like to close that one out. There’s lots to like but also a lot to learn.”

Onto the next one

McDavid finished the night with two assists. It was the captain’s first game after re-signing on a two-year, $25 million contract. However, he missed his penalty shot during the decisive round, and couldn’t help his team take down the visiting Flames at home.

Up next, the Edmonton Oilers will gear up for yet another Pacific Division showdown. On October 11, the Vancouver Canucks will travel to the Gateway to the North for Evander Kane’s return to his former team.