Watching the Oilers face off against the Flames on Saturday and seeing actual fans in the seats was the first time that it hit me that this season feels normal once more. Every scrum seemed that much more heated with the fans cheering and egging their team on. The goals were that much sweeter with the roar of the crowd. The added in noise from last year just didn't cut it and it already feels like a distance memory.

On Saturday night the Oilers were able to keep the Flames streak of losing season openers going as Calgary lost their 12th straight opener. It's an impressive record that only a team with the finesse and ability of the Flames could possible achieve.

Here are my thoughts:

While the shot clock favoured Calgary to the tune of 47-33, it certainly did not feel like it. Many of Calgary's shots were from the outside with no real threat of going in. That being said the Flames did have some instances of sustained pressure where the Oilers had no answer and relied far too heavily on Smith. Credit where credit is due, Mangiapane is an absolute pest and a brilliant young player.

Things were going Calgary's way to start the first period and in previous years that could have signaled bad things were about to happen. Unlike previous years, the Oilers have a third line that can get things done at 5 on 5. Former Flames player Derek Ryan banged one away in front of the net with Foegele and Kassian getting their first assists of the season. Foegele checks like a fiend and Kassian was physically involved as well. This line was effective most of the night for the Oilers.

Special teams continued to be a strength for Edmonton. Calgary and Edmonton battled heavy all night and while the refs had the unenviable task of getting control, they used their whistles a bit too freely for both sides. Regardless, the Oilers were able to kill off 3/4 of the penalties against while scoring on 2/4 of their own powerplays.

Speaking of powerplays, defenders around the league should be scared that McDavid is adding a one-timer to his repertoire. McDavid teed off the shot from an area that is usually Draisaitl's wheelhouse and made no mistake to get it cleanly past Markstrom. I'm not suggesting McDavid is suddenly going to be Ovechkin out there every night but it gives the opposition one more threat to be concerned about and another way the Oilers powerplay can do some damage.

Puljujarvi continues to be a workhorse whenever he steps out onto the ice. Jesse fought hard in front of the net, stood his ground against the Flames defenders, made some good hits and steals. Most importantly, when the Flames had momentum and were back within one, it was Puljujarvi less than a minute later who was sprung on a partial breakaway and ripped one past Markstrom to regain the two goal lead.

Zack Hyman also almost scored his second of the season on a breakaway attempt. Hyman continues to look like the driving force for the Oilers second line and each game (only two so far) we learn something new about him. He showed against the Flames that he does have breakaway speed.

McDavid scored his 11th career hat-trick; three of which have come against the Flames. Connor loves to play against Calgary.

Yamamoto had an engaged game. The small forward has his best games when he is physically engaged and getting under the skin of his opponent and he certainly was doing that against Calgary. Rasmus Andersson took exception to Yamamoto coming up to his netminder and took a cheap shot that resulted in a 4 minute powerplay for the Oilers and a $5000 fine for himself (the right call by the league instead of a suspension in my opinion). This is the kind of game Yammer needs to have in order to be an effective player in the league.

It was a quiet night again for Ryan Nugent-Hopkins. Not a bad night but the Nuge was the only Oilers forward in the top six who did not register a shot on net.

The defense as a whole still scares me. There were some good moments with quick puck movement but as previously mentioned, the Flames were able to spend far too much time in Edmonton's end. The first goal was scored by my eyes due to Keith skating out of position and leaving Mangiapane alone and behind the Oilers blueliners. Barrie struggled again and once more we saw Bouchard get some reps with Nurse.

Mike Smith has now played two great games in a row. If you're Tippett do you start Koskinen against the Ducks to get him into game action or do you wait until the Coyotes games when the Oilers play Arizona and then Vegas back to back?

The Oilers will try and keep their winning streak going against the Anaheim Ducks on Tuesday night.

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