EDMONTON— Mattias Ekholm felt his Edmonton Oilers were on track after an overtime loss earlier in the week. They proved the veteran defender right based on how they played on Friday.

Most of the problems that plagued the Oilers for much of the young season were resolved in a 4-0 win over the Oilers. Pittsburgh Penguins. They dominated this match.

“That’s what we didn’t do on a couple of nights earlier in the year where we played really well early, but we faded a little bit,” Ekholm said.

The Oilers finally looked like the Stanley Cup contenders they are supposed to be. This is a decisive result that could easily have been even more one-sided.

They limited Pittsburgh’s chances and the goalkeeper Stuart Skinner was there to make the saves whenever there was a gap.

Skinner’s best saves came in the third period when the Oilers were already up three goals. He turned away Erik Karlsson in the slot, refused Christmas Acciari on a two on one and I got a shoulder on a Kris Letang shot from the slot in the final seconds to preserve the clean sheet.

“He deserved the shutout,” coach Kris Knoblauch said. “It was one of his easier games to play, but he made some big saves.”

Edmonton goalie Stuart Skinner faced just five shots in the first period and 27 in the game. (Perry Nelson/Imagn Images)

It was by far Skinner’s best performance of the season and the first time he did not allow at least three goals in a game.

“He was great,” winger Viktor Arvidsson said. “He saved us several times and put in a great performance.”

Skinner’s shutout helped the Oilers eliminate both of the Penguins’ power plays, just the second time they controlled an opponent’s power play. Both attempts came in the final six minutes and the outcome was decided.

“It gives you a lot of pride in the group,” Skinner said. “We want to do well in our PK. The guys were obviously fighting for me, but also to get some wins.

The defense helped the offense get going.

The Oilers tied a season high with four goals, even though it took them 50 shots to get there and didn’t get much from the first unit’s power play, which remained intact despite training adjustments this week. It was Ekholm from the second unit, with Corey Perry providing the screen up front, which scored the team’s power play goal.

The game was all about perseverance until the superstar Leon Draisaitl started the scoring 13 minutes into the second period.

“It’s nice to see our guys — especially with the way the season started — that they haven’t been frustrated,” Knoblauch said. “They held on.”

The evil one Ryan Nugent-Hopkins scored his first goal 16 seconds into the third period, eliminating any hope of a Penguins comeback. Vasily Podkolzin got his first point as an Oiler, an assist on Evan Bouchardthe goal in the second period.

But it was Arvidsson who stood out offensively. It took eight games, but the high-profile offseason addition finally recorded his first points with his new team. He had three main assistants.

“That’s the Viktor I know,” said Ekholm, Arvidsson’s longtime teammate in Nashville. “He’s always the hardest working one.

“He feels more and more comfortable every night playing here and developing chemistry with his teammates. He showed what he could really do.

All that remains is for Arvidsson to score a goal now. He recorded four shots and made four other attempts that failed to reach the net. He was all around the offensive zone, providing the spark alongside Draisaitl that was hoped for when the Oilers signed him to a two-year contract on July 1.

As for the score, the same goes for Zach Hymanwho got his first point of the season by setting up Nugent-Hopkins’ goal. Hyman had six shots and five missed attempts but, like Arvidsson, is still looking for his first marker.

“I’m not sure how many shots they took from the slot, but I think it was pretty high between the two of them,” Knoblauch said.

“I thought they played some really good games and had so many chances to score. It’s only a matter of time. You have so many opportunities and it has to happen soon.

It wasn’t perfect, but it was as close to an iconic performance for the Oilers as they’ve ever had. Even some of the best aspects of their game have been taken up a notch.

The Oilers have been a great possession team over the first two weeks, but Friday was the next level. They had 21 straight shots on goal between 9:13 of the first period and 7:49 of the second as part of a 50-27 advantage.

“It was an incredible team effort,” Skinner said. “It was definitely the way we wanted to play, from start to finish.”

It didn’t hurt that the Penguins were in the building. It was the Oilers’ eighth straight victory over Pittsburgh, a streak dating back to February 13, 2019.

The Oilers can’t control who they play. No demerits were issued here because the Penguins were the opponent.

How they will be judged from here is whether they can take that plan forward on a three-game road trip and use it to build on their third win of the season.

“We played really well on both sides of the puck for 60 minutes,” Arvidsson said. “It was a great statement game. This is how we have to play, and this is how we are going to be good.

(Top photo of Mattias Ekholm, left, celebrating his third-period goal: Perry Nelson / Imagn Images)