CALGARY, Alberta - Connor McDavid came through with another big night and the Edmonton Oilers got another big win.

McDavid had a goal and two assists for his second straight three-point game to lead the Oilers to a 5-3 win over the Calgary Flames on Friday night.

''We will be talking about him all year and for many years to come,'' Edmonton coach Todd McLellan said of his 19-year-old captain. ''You can have a game plan but he has all the skills and tools, a tool box that is second to none.''

Leon Draisaitl had two goals and Jordan Eberle and Mark Letestu also scored to help the Oilers complete a sweep of the teams' season-opening home-and-home series. Cam Talbot finished with 32 saves.

McDavid showcased his speed in the first period by getting behind the Flames' defenders for a breakaway and beating goalie Brian Elliott with a lightning-quick shot.

''He's deadly off the rush,'' Flames defenseman Mark Giordano said. ''Again tonight, he capitalizes on his chances. He got a few breakaways. Power play, he made some nice plays. That's another big night for him.''

McDavid helped set up Eberle's tying goal in the second period and Draisaitl's go-ahead score early in the third.

On Draisaitl's tiebreaking power-play goal, McDavid patiently hung onto the puck in the high slot and started a tic-tac-toe sequence with a quick pass down low to Milan Lucic, who zipped the puck across the crease to Draisaitl for a tap-in.

''I don't really know what to say. He's just phenomenal. He's just that good,'' Draisaitl said. ''He just makes something happen every single shift out of nothing where you think there's nothing going on and he just creates absolute top, Grade-A chances. He's very special.''

Sean Monahan and Michael Frolik scored for the Flames, who fell to 0-5-1 in their last six home openers. Elliott stopped 24 shots.

Calgary coach Glen Gulutzan said his team needs to tighten up defensively.

''We're not giving up a ton of chances, we're just giving up real high quality chances and there's a big difference,'' said the first-year coach, who took over in the offseason after Bob Hartley was fired.

About five minutes later, Dennis Wideman's turnover led to a short-handed breakaway for Letestu, who beat Elliott to make it 4-2.

Jokipakka scored into top corner off a feed from Kris Versteeg to get Calgary back within one with 7:44 to go. However, the Flames couldn't complete the comeback as Draisaitl added an empty-netter with 1:20 left.

Elliott, who has given up 10 goals on 55 shots through two games, said he wasn't sure how many odd-man rushes he faced throughout the game.

''There were a lot,'' he said. ''I don't know if there was a count going, but we can't give those up. We have to keep the play in front of us a little bit, especially against a team where we know they're jumping at any opportunity.''

Trailing 2-1 after a first period where they were outshot 24-12, Edmonton tied it 5:25 on the man advantage when Eberle knocked in a loose puck.

Calgary got on the scoreboard 1:22 in with Monahan putting in a second rebound after Deryk Engelland hit a goal post and Johnny Gaudreau was stopped.

McDavid tied it on his second breakaway of the period when he tore away from Mark Giordano and zipped a shot over Elliott's shoulder at 7:45.

Frolik restored the lead with about 8 1/2 minutes left in the first when his shot from the sideboards slipped past Talbot, who didn't appear to see it.

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Jared Bednar waited a long time to be in an NHL game. He'll finally get his chance when the Colorado Avalanche open their season against the Dallas Stars.

Bednar, a career minor league player and coach, makes his debut behind Colorado's bench after his quick hire Aug. 25. Bednar brings championship experience from the minors, winning titles in the AHL and ECHL, but more important for the Avalanche he brings a different style after two disappointing seasons.

Bednar's system emphasizes speed coupled with an aggressive, pressure game.

"I have a style of play that I think works in today's NHL game," Bednar told NHL.com. "I think we have to be an aggressive team. The game is getting faster every day and I think you have to play an up-tempo style. You have to attack. And that's not just offensively but defensively as well."

Bednar has also stressed moving the puck out of the zone, so quick passes from the defensemen to the forwards to start the breakout. Colorado has spent too much time in its own end the past few seasons, which led to Avalanche goaltenders facing a lot of shots every game.

"We still go 'D' to 'D,'" defenseman Tyson Barrie told The Denver Post. "It's going to be 'D' to 'D' with a purpose, to get it in the forwards' hands."

The Avalanche have reached the postseason once in the last six seasons -- in 2014, when Patrick Roy led Colorado to 112 points and the Central Division title in his first year as the coach. The team struggled with poor starts the next two years and missed the playoffs.

Roy's abrupt resignation Aug. 11 forced an unexpected coaching search that snagged Bednar from the Columbus system. While Avalanche players said they were stunned by Roy's departure, they are embracing Bednar's system.

"It's great for me," 21-year-old center Nathan MacKinnon told The Denver Post. "I can just skate and not think so much. Be aggressive. I think the biggest thing is that if we're going to make mistakes, they're aggressive mistakes. We've been very passive the last couple of seasons."

One thing that contributed to Colorado missing the playoffs the last two years was bad starts to those seasons. The Avalanche are hoping a 6-0 preseason portends a fast start to this year, similar to the 12-1 mark they had at the beginning of the 2013-14 campaign.

It won't be easy against a Dallas team that won the Central Division last year and beat Anaheim 4-2 in its season opener on Thursday. The play of goalie Antti Niemi in the win, after a tough finish to last season, has the Stars feeling confident going into Saturday's game at Pepsi Center.

"I am really happy with the preseason and with all the practice we have done," Niemi told the Dallas Morning News. "I just want to keep doing the same thing here and not worry that this was the season opener."

Niemi was 1-3 with a 3.29 goals-against average in the playoffs last season, but if Thursday is any indication he is back on track.

He faced 17 shots in the first period against the Ducks and finished with 33 saves.

"I thought Antti was excellent," Stars coach Lindy Ruff told the Dallas Morning News. "That first period, we had some bad decisions, gave up some odd-numbered rushes, gave up three two-on-ones where he made real good saves."

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NASHVILLE, Tenn. - P.K. Subban already has belted out ''Folsom Prison Blues'' at Tootsie's, a famous tonk. He visited the local children's hospital before training camp opened. Then he scored a goal in each of his first two preseason games with his new team.

In Nashville, that's called knowing how to make an entrance.

Subban's passion may not have gone over well with coaches and management with the Montreal Canadiens. His new teammates with the Nashville Predators see the defenseman as a perfect fit in Music City - a town built on entertainment and filled with fans who want a great show from a franchise now expected to go further than ever before in chasing the Stanley Cup.

''Fans are going to love him, there's no question,'' Predators captain Mike Fisher said. ''And our fans are very passionate. They're loyal. They're forgiving, too, even through the ups and downs. ... It's not going to be long before he's a lot of people's favorite player.''

Montreal and Nashville stunned the NHL on June 29 when the teams swapped star defensemen straight up, sending Predators captain Shea Weber north for the 2013 Norris Trophy winner. Talk surfaced of personality conflicts with the organization and inside the Canadiens' locker room, and Subban tried to make it clear he loved Montreal, both the atmosphere and media in a town that loves its storied hockey team.

''At the end of the day, there's a lot of people who have microphones and pens and paper and I can't challenge every person that has made an opinion of me based on `facts,''' Subban said. ''So for me, I'd rather just let my play do the talking, and I look forward to being a big part of this team moving forward. ... I've always been one to let my actions do my talking for me.''

Subban is busy making friends in his new locker room and learning his way around Nashville, a switch for a guy used to being the one who welcomes new players.

''It's an exciting time for me at 27 years old with no family or any children or anything like that,'' Subban said. ''It's like you get a bunch of new brothers right? So it's fun.''

The Predators prefer to make their own minds up about Subban rather than listen to rumors. Fisher said it's easy to hear a lot of things about players, and he believes Subban will fit in nicely.

''Everyone knows he's an outgoing guy that brings passion to the game and sometimes the game of hockey that's a little bit laid back it's something new, but I think it's a good thing,'' Fisher said.

Forward James Neal has had dinner with Subban and sees someone both passionate about hockey and his fans. Subban's comfort handling both the media and social media has been quickly noticed.

''He's going to be good for our team,'' Neal said.

Goaltender Pekka Rinne was shocked by the trade sending his close friend Weber to Montreal.

''But all of a sudden you realize you're going to get P.K., all the potential and all the talent he brings,'' Rinne said. ''He's going to bring a lot of different elements to our team and also the attention on him. He's very electric and a very exciting player to watch on the ice and off the ice. He's going to bring a different element to our team. It's good for the city of Nashville, the organization.''

Nashville fans got a great look at Subban during the NHL All-Star weekend in January. Subban slipped on a wig to imitate Jaromir Jagr for lots of laughs during the breakaway challenge and ended up winning the event decided by Twitter .

This franchise went seven games in back-to-back series last spring in the postseason, and general manager David Poile saw Subban as the perfect combination of skating and speed for coach Peter Laviolette's attacking offense. The trade was criticized in Montreal with the Predators getting the younger player. Poile thinks that speaks more to just how popular Subban was throughout Quebec.

''We've seen in the short time P.K.'s been here ... he makes a lot of touches and he gets a lot of publicity,'' Poile said. ''People gravitate to him because he's a hockey player, yes, but he has more going on his life and he has some really good purposes in his life.''

The Predators sold out a franchise-record 35 games last season, though the need to sell tickets never fades. Subban is more than happy to help sell the sport of hockey in his new winter home.

''At the end of the day, it's sports entertainment, and we have to perform to keep fans in the seats and what they pay helps put food on our tables,'' Subban said. ''The more people we can engage and bring into the game, the better our game is going to be.''

A perfect fit indeed.

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WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama is honoring the Pittsburgh Penguins at a White House ceremony for winning their fourth Stanley Cup.

Obama says the Penguins victory over the San Jose Sharks in the finals completed one of the most remarkable turnarounds in the history of the National Hockey League.

Obama says he has now been able to celebrate with eight Stanley Cup winners during his presidency, all from the United States and beginning with the Penguins. He says the team's return represents a nice book-end for his presidency.

Related: Obama joins in on the Kessel love

The Penguins, led by Sidney Crosby, overcame a tough start to the season with Obama noting that they were closer to last place than first in December. He credits their persistence and teamwork as critical factors in completing the turnaround.

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ST. PAUL, Minn. - The Bruce Boudreau era has begun for the Minnesota Wild.

For the players, the demands will be many. The expectations will be as straightforward as can be. The experience also promises to be a lot of fun.

''Sometimes he doesn't even know what's coming out of his mouth when he's talking,'' forward Charlie Coyle said.

The rotund new head coach, well-regarded for his regular-season success, well-known for his profane rants and well-liked for his down-to-earth and self-deprecating manner, formally took over Friday for the first two practices of training camp. The squad split into two groups and, in addition to plenty of time with the white board picking up Boudreau's defensive scheme, went through a grueling conditioning test during which skaters had to complete several laps around the rink under certain times.

The drills were no joke, but Boudreau made sure to keep the mood light even while barking encouragement to the participants.

''We're huffing and puffing,'' Coyle said, ''and he's still making us laugh.''

NHL training camps began about a week later than usual because of the World Cup of Hockey, and six Wild players were given a break for the first three days in their transition back home from competition: forward Zach Parise and defenseman Ryan Suter from Team USA, forwards Mikko Koivu, Mikael Granlund and Erik Haula of Team Finland and forward Nino Niederreiter of Team Europe. Only Niederreiter's team is still alive in the tournament, so he could be delayed further.

The learning process won't wait, though.

''We want to ramp it up as quick as we can. We want to have a lot of pace in our practice. It's a real mixture, because we have to teach at the same time. It's not going to be like a practice in December,'' Boudreau said. ''At the same time, we don't want anything slow. We want a lot of moving parts.''

The first exhibition game is on Monday against Buffalo in State College, Pennsylvania, and the season opener is Oct. 13 at St. Louis. That's less than three weeks away. Hence the hard work on the first day, even though players train year-round these days and don't typically need to get back into shape.

''Everyone's just excited to get this thing going and start playing some real hockey,'' defenseman Matt Dumba said.

There will be differences in style, for sure.

''I think they're still trying to figure me out. `What's this guy like? He seems to be smiling a little too much.' Or, `He's joking around with me. Is he really joking or is he sarcastic?''' Boudreau said. ''I think it takes a little bit of time for guys to get to know me.''

Impressions are there to be made for the players, most of whom have never played for Boudreau before.

''Everyone's here to get a job and knock people out of their jobs, so everyone came prepared,'' Coyle said. ''It's good to see that intensity and that competition right away.''

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TORONTO - Brooks Laich has seen top draft picks blossom in the NHL.

With the Washington Capitals, he watched Alex Ovechkin burst onto the scene in 2005. Now with the Toronto Maple Leafs some 11 years later, he has a ringside seat for Auston Matthews' debut.

The 19-year-old forward, the No. 1 overall pick this summer, turned heads at the World Cup of Hockey on a Team North American line with Edmonton's Connor McDavid and Winnipeg's Mark Scheifele.

''It puts a big smile on your face,'' Laich, a 12-year veteran, said about watching Matthews. ''I see a lot of little things in his game, habits that you don't generally see in young players.''

Those include his positioning, the way he competes for the puck and his shot release. From Scottsdale, Arizona, Matthews played last season in Switzerland.

Leafs center Nazem Kadri has also seen Matthews play from the Air Canada Centre stands.

''(He's) obviously high-level skill,'' he said. ''(He) can skate, he's big. So he's only going to get better. Obviously, with that 82-game season, it's going to be a little difficult but I think he's going to be more than ready for it.''

Leafs management already likes what it sees.

''There's no question he has a bright future,'' GM Lou Lamoriello said. ''It's just exciting to see him play. But I think the most exciting thing is to know he's ours.''

Laich reminded reporters asking about Matthews that the team comes first.

''This isn't an individual sport,'' he said. ''This isn't a tennis or a golf where everything comes down to one person. Auston's a great player from what I've seen. But there's also going to be 22 other great players in this room.

''So as a young guy, he's got enough pressure on himself. He puts, I'm sure, enough pressure on himself. You don't get to be where he is already without having an internal drive like that. So we don't need to put anything else on him. We want to make him a member of the team, we want to treat him like the other 22 guys.''

''The logo comes first. I'm sure Auston will tell you that.''

The Leafs begin on-ice activities at training camp Friday in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

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TORONTO - Daniel Sedin knows the World Cup of Hockey may be his final chance to represent Sweden at a best-on-best tournament along with twin brother Henrik.

With that in mind, there's no shortage of motivation for the 35-year-old Vancouver Canucks forwards heading into Sunday's semifinal meeting with Team Europe.

''We realize as we get older there's not going to be a lot of these tournaments moving forward,'' Daniel Sedin said. ''We don't know about the (2018) Olympics yet, but we're enjoying this. We're having a lot of fun and getting a chance to play in the semifinals, it was tough getting here.

''We're enjoying every day and we'll have some fun on Sunday.''

The last time Sweden won gold at a best-on-best tournament was the 2006 Olympics in Turin. Sweden lost to Canada in the gold medal game at the 2014 Sochi Games.

Sweden won its round-robin opener at the World Cup 2-1 against Russia on Sunday and blanked Finland 2-0 on Wednesday before falling 4-3 in overtime to Team North America on Wednesday.

The Swedes are hoping to learn from their loss against the Under-23 team moving forward. They were thoroughly outplayed early, quickly going down 2-0 before rallying to force overtime.

''I think we can definitely learn (about) being ready when the puck drops, those first 10 minutes were pretty embarrassing from our part,'' said defenseman Niklas Hjalmarsson. ''The Europeans have some speed in their lineup as well so we have to be ready when the puck drops. We weren't ready for Team North America, but somehow we managed to a big comeback there.''

After losing the first two pre-tournament games by a combined 11-4 score to the North Americans, Team Europe bounced back to defeat Sweden 6-2 in its final tune up game.

''They surprised us a little bit in the exhibition game, but they won't surprise us on Sunday,'' Sedin said. ''They wait for you to make mistakes, and then they create offence from that. We've got to be careful on Sunday. We can't just go on offence like we did in that pre-tournament game.

''I think our defense was jumping a little bit too much and got too involved in the offense. I think we have to respect their forwards.''

Team Europe, made up of players from eight different countries, stunned the Americans 3-0 in the tournament opener and defeated the Czechs 3-2 in overtime before falling 4-1 to the Canadians on Wednesday.

European captain Anze Kopitar pointed to the second period of the pre-tournament game against Team North America in Montreal as the turning point for the team of players unfamiliar with playing with one another.

''I think the first period in Montreal really opened our eyes and we really showed ourselves how we don't want to play,'' Kopitar said of the second pre-tournament game. ''After that, we kind of realized how we have to play: smart (and) with a lot of patience, there's no flash to it. We're playing a boring style of hockey, but it's turned out to be a pretty successful one so we're obviously proud in doing that and we're going to continue doing that.''

The winner of Saturday's Canada-Russia semifinal will play the winner of Sweden-Europe in a best-of-three final beginning on Tuesday.

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TORONTO - The NHL has gotten almost everything it hoped for so far at the World Cup of Hockey.

In holding the first World Cup since 2004, the league and players wanted a festival of hockey that showcased the its best players. Two losses and an early exit by the United States isn't what anyone wanted for the sake of interest, but the 23-and-under Team North America put on a show and captured the attention of fans, coaches and players around the tournament.

Team North America and the U.S. are out, with Canada and Russia meeting in one semifinal Saturday night and Sweden and Team Europe in the other Sunday afternoon. The quality of play has already been Olympic-level high and should only get better with at least four and potentially five games left.

''The winners here have been the fans,'' North America coach Todd McLellan said. ''They've watched some really good hockey in September and that doesn't happen very often.''

The NHL was panned initially for the North American and European all-star teams, but the youngsters' speed, skill and scoring won so many people over that merchandise bearing the ''NA'' logo was almost entirely sold out at Air Canada Centre. Europe won people over by winning, beating the U.S. and the Czech Republic to advance.

Two-time Olympic champion Canada has rolled, going 3-0 and outscoring opponents 14-3 along the way, and Sweden has leaned heavily on goaltender Henrik Lundqvist. North America's games against Russia and Sweden were two of the most exciting end-to-end games in recent international history.

Commissioner Gary Bettman is proud of how the NHL and NHLPA ''revived the World Cup in world-class fashion.''

''It's been sensational. It's exactly what we expected,'' Bettman said. ''We wanted this to feel like and be a major event. We predicted that the competition would be better than any international tournament to date, that it would have a big-event feel.''

The World Cup achieved big-event status in Toronto, with a mostly full arena and buzz around the city. The same can't be said on U.S. TV, as ESPN reported that approximately 770,000 people watched Canada beat Team USA on Tuesday night, the most watched game so far.

Executive vice president of programming and scheduling Burke Magnus called the Americans' disappointing showing ''a lost opportunity.''

''That's the beauty of live sports,'' Magnus said by phone Thursday. ''That's what makes sort of the unscripted nature of what we do so much fun. We obviously were counting on them to get out of pool play, but they weren't able to do it. But this is the best players in the world.''

Canada looks like it still has the best collection of players in the world, even without North America's Connor McDavid and Nathan MacKinnon, who orchestrated a magic show on ice. Even the most grizzled old-school fundamental hockey people had to appreciate the way McDavid, MacKinnon, 2016 top pick Auston Matthews and Co. played.

McDavid said North America ''definitely turned heads.'' Canada coach Mike Babcock called it ''a great way to showcase the NHL'' of the future.

''The North American kids have been a home run for the NHL,'' Babcock said. ''This North American team is a pump in the arm for hockey. It's fantastic.''

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WASHINGTON - The NHL is revamping its concussion monitoring system for the upcoming season.

Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly says the league will have four concussion spotters watching all games from a centralized location in either Toronto or New York, as well as spotters at each game to check for visible symptoms. Those spotters will have the authority to have players removed from games.

Previously, there had been team-affiliated concussion spotters in each arena and they could recommend but not require players be removed from a game.

Daly says the new concussion policy goes into effect for the eight-team World Cup of Hockey, which begins Saturday in Toronto, and that the NHL will release more details closer to the start of the regular season.

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GLENDALE, Ariz. - The Arizona Coyotes have hired Dawn Braid as skating coach and say she is believed to be the first full-time female coach in NHL history.

Braid has a long association with the NHL.

She worked part-time for the Coyotes last year and has served as a skating consultant with the Toronto Maple Leafs, Anaheim Ducks, Buffalo Sabres, and Calgary Flames.

Braid also spent seven years with the Athletes Training Center as director of skating development. Among the skaters she worked with there is New York Islanders center John Tavares.

The hiring is the latest in a series of breakthroughs for women in men's sports.

Last year, the Buffalo Bills made Kathryn Smith the NFL's first full-time assistant coach. Smith is the team's quality control coach.

The NBA has had two female assistant coaches - Becky Hammon of the San Antonio Spurs and Nancy Lieberman of the Sacramento Kings.

A year ago, the Arizona Cardinals made Jen Welter the first woman to hold a coaching position of any kind in the NFL when she served as an intern in the preseason.

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