The Battle of Alberta preseason edition kicked off on Sunday evening and saw both sides leave with victories. The Edmonton Oilers and Calgary Flames split their split-squad matchups. Edmonton fell 3-2 in overtime at Rogers Place, while the Oilers blanked Calgary 3-0 at the Saddledome.

None of the big stars on the Oilers roster saw action in either game, but there's plenty of preseason still to be played. These were games that fans got to see some of the newer faces, and they showed fairly well. 

Game 1: Flames Edge Oilers in Edmonton OT 

The Oilers dominated the shot clock at Rogers Place, outshooting Calgary 30-14, but it was Calgary who got the win. Morgan Frost scored twice, including the overtime winner just 1:07 into the extra frame, sealing a 3-2 Flames victory. Joel Farabee added the other Calgary goal, scoring on the power play.

Edmonton got goals from Darnell Nurse—who looked sharp paired with Jake Walman on the top defensive unit—and Matvey Petrov. Newcomer David Tomasek centered the second line, flashing his shooter’s mentality and getting praise from head coach Kris Knoblauch.

Goaltender Matt Tomkins, also making his Oilers debut, turned aside 11 quality chances but couldn’t stop Frost’s decisive shot in overtime.

Knoblauch said he liked Tomkins and the way he played despite the loss, noting that his saves came under difficult circumstances: “If you looked at the scoresheet, you’d say three goals on 14 shots isn’t great. But he made big saves when we needed them.”

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Game 2: Oilers Lock Down Flames with Shutout in Calgary

In Calgary, it was the Oilers who imposed their will. Edmonton rolled to a 3-0 victory behind goals from Kasperi Kapanen, Connor Clattenburg, and Riley Stillman.

Kapanen opened the scoring early after a slick passing sequence that featured rookie Isaac Howard, who picked up his first point in an Oilers sweater. Clattenburg -- who has been all over the ice and was quite physical in the rookie games -- impressed again, burying a shot to make it 2-0 before dropping the gloves to cap a standout performance. Stillman sealed the win with a heavy blast from the point midway through the third.

In goal, rookies Samuel Jonsson and Nathaniel Day combined for a 20-save shutout, showing poise in their first NHL preseason appearances.

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The Oilers Probably Should Have Won Both Games

The split results are good and bad news. The bad news was that Edmonton wound up losing in Edmonton. The good news was that they probably should have won that game. They played well enough to do so, but Frost was too much and was the hero for Calgary. 

Edmonton saw newcomers play well, which will be important. Howard, Tomasek, and Savoie were big parts of all three games. Tomasek might have been the most pleasant surprise of the three. 

The Oilers resume preseason action Tuesday in Winnipeg before returning home to host Seattle on Wednesday.

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