EDMONTON — Ryan Nugent-Hopkins scored a pair of goals as the Edmonton Oilers finally found their offensive touch, defeating the Dallas Stars 5-4 on Thursday.
Connor McDavid, Patrick Maroon and Matt Benning also scored for the Oilers (3-5-1), who came into the game with the fewest goals scored in the NHL so far this season, with 15 through their first eight games.
Jamie Benn struck twice for the Stars (5-5-0). Alexander Radulov and Esa Lindell also scored for as Dallas dropped back-to-back games.
Edmonton started the scoring midway through the opening period as Ryan Strome came out of the penalty box and sent McDavid on a partial breakaway, scoring his fifth of the season up high on Stars goalie Ben Bishop.
It took just over a minute for Dallas to tie it back up, as Radulov dropped a puck to Benn in front of the net, and he put his sixth past Oilers starter Cam Talbot.
Maroon helped Edmonton regain the lead with 24 seconds left in the first, put his shot off a Dallas skate and into the net.
Radulov beat Talbot with a howitzer of a one-timer as the Stars tied the game back up on the power play three minutes into the second period.
Edmonton made it 3-2 with six minutes left in the middle frame when Nugent-Hopkins picked up a rebound on a wide shot and hooked it in from behind the net.
The Stars evened it up once more a couple of minutes later with another power-play goal as Benn picked up his second of the night by chipping in a rebound from the doorstep.
Lindell waited for Talbot to commit before lifting a shot into the net as Dallas took its first lead midway through the third on yet another power-play goal.
The Oilers bounced back a couple of minutes later as a Dallas turnover led to Nugent-Hopkins scoring on a shot that deflected off a defender and in.
A Benning point shot hit Radulov and got past Bishop as Edmonton surged back ahead with 2:27 left.
The Stars are right back at it on Friday, heading to Calgary for the third game of a five-game trip. The Oilers host the Washington Capitals on Saturday.
Shane Jones, The Canadian Press