The first Edmonton Oilers game of the 2026-27 pre-pre-season was a 6-1 victory on Monday evening.

Though the Oilers prospects defeated a team with one of the best prospect pools in the National Hockey League, they didn’t have a player who dominated. Instead, it was a collective effort featuring two power play goals, two goals from a defencemen, and a goal from each the second and fourth lines.

Let’s take a look at the standout performances, the notable performances, and the disappointing performances in the Oilers’ 6-1 victory.

The standout performances

On a conventional grading scale, there are five Oilers who earned an “A” grade, four forwards, a defenceman, and a netminder.

The best player of the bunch was Viljami Marjala, who lined up as the Oilers’ second-line centre. The 23-year-old centre made things happen offensively, picking up four assists while playing some solid defence.  Two of those assists came on the power play, one came on the empty-net goal, and the last one was the best of the four, protecting the puck and drawing in four Flames before dishing it off to an open man at the point.

Last season, the Finn scored just 17 goals, but added 43 apples in 72 American Hockey League games, as well as six assists in the Bakersfield Condors’ three playoff games. Playmaking is his calling card.

The Oilers used three netminders in this game, Nathaniel Day in the first period, Eemil Vinni in the second period, and Samuel Jonsson in the third period. Of the three, Vinni stood out the most. Not only did he face the most number of shots in his period (12), but the Finnish netminder also........

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