Canucks open season with overtime win over Oilers

9/30/2026

Canucks beat Oilers 6-5 in OT as Manny Malhotra era begins with a thrill Cotter scores twice, Lankinen makes 32 saves; see the debut win and replay

The Vancouver Canucks began the Manny Malhotra era with a 65 overtime victory over the Edmonton Oilers in Edmonton on Tuesday. Paul Cotter scored twice, including the winner in overtime, as Vancouver built an early lead and then held on after Edmonton forced extra time late in the third period. Marco Rossi, Jonathan Lekkerimaki, Max Sasson and Elias Pettersson also scored for the Canucks, who finished last season at the bottom of the NHL standings. Vancouver led 22 after two periods, then scored three times in a fourminute stretch to open the third before the Oilers rallied to tie the game with 43 seconds remaining. Cotter made team history by scoring both a shorthanded goal and the overtime winner in his Canucks debut. Kevin Lankinen stopped 32 shots for the win. The teams meet again Thursday in Vancouver.