Dobes, Canadiens hold off Oilers for 4-1 win as Draisaitl remains at 999 points

Edmonton Oilers' Leon Draisaitl (29) comes off the bench during first period NHL hockey action against the Montreal Canadiens in Montreal, Sunday, Dec. 14, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Graham Hughes

MONTREAL — Jakub Dobes stopped 27 shots as the Montreal Canadiens held off the Edmonton Oilers 4-1 and prevented Leon Draisaitl from recording his 1,000th point on Sunday.

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Ivan Demidov, Joe Veleno, Nick Suzuki and Alexandre Texier scored for Montreal (17-11-4), which squandered a 3-0 lead to the New York Rangers in a 6-5 overtime loss Saturday. Juraj Slafkovsky and Lane Hutson provided two assists each.

Dobes played his first game since the Canadiens lost 6-1 to the Tampa Bay Lightning on Tuesday, sparking the call-up of up-and-coming netminder Jacob Fowler, who started the two previous games.

Zach Hyman scored and Calvin Pickard stopped 23 shots for Edmonton (15-12-6) in the loss, ending a two-game winning streak.

Draisaitl remained at 999 points through 823 games after picking up three assists in a 6-3 win Saturday over the Toronto Maple Leafs to open a five-game road trip.

After an entertaining — but scoreless — first period, Demidov picked the top right corner with a wrist shot on the power play to give the Canadiens a 1-0 lead 2:28 into the second.

Veleno then capitalized on a costly turnover from Oilers captain Connor McDavid to double the lead at 11:58. From behind Edmonton’s goal line, McDavid dished the puck into the slot to brace for a hit, only for Veleno to intercept and fire a shot past Pickard for his second of the season.

The Canadiens made it 3-0 on the power play when Slafkovsky found Suzuki at the back post 3:38 into the third period. Hyman replied on an Oilers power play at 12:29, but Texier responded one minute later to restore the three-goal lead.

TAKEAWAYS

Canadiens: Dobes rebounded after two shaky performances. Defenceman Mike Matheson dominated his matchup with McDavid, limiting his time and space throughout the game.

Oilers: Edmonton went 1-for-5 on the power play, including a goalless 5-on-3 advantage for two minutes in the first period. The Oilers were scoring at a 31.3-per cent clip this season — the third-highest rate in the league — before Sunday’s game.

KEY MOMENT

Dobes denied Edmonton’s high-octane power play during the Oilers’ early two-man advantage. He made six saves, including a desperation pad stop on Hyman and two dangerous shots from Draisaitl.

KEY STAT

Draisaitl is one point away from becoming the 103rd NHL player — and first German — to reach 1,000 points.

UP NEXT

Canadiens: Host the Philadelphia Flyers on Tuesday.

Oilers: Visit the Pittsburgh Penguins on Tuesday.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 14, 2025.

Daniel Rainbird, The Canadian Press