The time has come for the Edmonton Oilers franchise to take the next step: 9 Things

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The Edmonton Oilers begin their latest search for The Stanley Cup.

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It has been an up-and-down season for the Oilers, including a mid-season drought that interrupted two stretches of dizzying highs that cost a veteran coach in Dave Tippet his job.

Yet here we are in May, with a strong winning record in the regular season in the rear-view mirror and visions of a championship in the windscreen.

That and more in this week’s edition of…

9 Things

9. The Los Angeles Kings and Edmonton Oilers will meet in the post-season for the first time in 3 decades. The last time? Edmonton ousted LA in the 1992 Divisional Semi’s, with some guy named Wayne Gretzky on the other team.

8. The Oilers 104 points in 2021-22 is the most amassed since the 1986-87 season. That year they put up 106 points en route to a Stanley Cup. For context, Edmonton won 2 more cups (in 87-88 and again in 89-90) with fewer points in the standings.

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7. The Oilers-Kings 1^st Round playoff series will get the TV crew of Harnarayan Singh and Louis DeBrusk. This means that Edmonton fans tuning in on radio will get the familiar play-by-play team of jack michaels and Bob Stauffer. Like teams, broadcasters often achieve next-level status based on their performances when the games mean the most.

6. Connor McDavid you have won yet another Art Ross Trophy as the league’s highest point getter with 123 points. That shattered his previous best of him by 7 points. And the achievement puts #97 in heady territory. The only other NHL players to have done this 4 times by the age of 25 are Wayne Gretzky and Gordie Howe. McDavid also set a personal high in +/- at +28. It is difficult to imagine how a career best performance like that is not the frontrunner for the Hart Trophy.

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5. A few moves by Edmonton over the last couple regular season games could have an impact, the longer an Edmonton playoff run may go. The obvious one was the resting of McDavid/Draisaitl in Game 82. But giving Philip Broberg a spin in Game 81 and Derick Brassard a game at Center in Game 82 gave those guys some reps in roles where depth could matter. A couple games to not just rest mike smith but keep mikko koskinen sharp is smart insurance. Even subtle little things like injecting Devin Shore into the shootout versus Vancouver have potential down the playoff road.

4. The Oilers 3^dr line centered by Ryan Nugent-Hopkins has been excellent down the stretch. Hey, Warren Foegele and Derek Ryan really have 2-way chemistry. Keeping that ball rolling may be key to the Oilers advancing past the 1^st round. The Kings have 2 terrific pivots in Anze Kopitar and Philip Danault. Each of them matches up very well head-to-head with Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, perhaps as well defensively as any other 1-2 punch in the league. If they have any success in neutralizing the Oilers top offensive threats, then production from Edmonton’s 3^dr line will be critical.

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3. The NHL Network’s Mike Kelly released a series of statistics this weekend that paint a number of Oilers players in a bright analytical light. In terms of puck control in the attacking zone, Connor McDavid had the puck on his stick in the O-Zone more than any other player at 105:48. Leon Draisaitl was 2^na at 93:05. Zach Hyman produced more shots from the slot this season than anyone else, 100 in 76 games. Draisaitl led the NHL in slot passes with 264.4 more than McDavid. And Connor has more rush chances than any other the attacker at 115. Analytics on their own do does not win cups. But they can be indicative of a club doing a lot of the little things right.

2. What a difference a day has made behind the bench. The Edmonton Oilers under Jay Woodcroft have 26 wins, tied for the best in the NHL since February 11^th. And in a category, I see as very predictive of success, the club is 2^na in Goal Differential over that same stretch at +40. There is no question Woodcroft’s systems, methods and messaging have had influence. But as much as I believe in X’s and O’s, I suspect the latter has been the biggest factor. The NHL is filled with great players, and we’ve never seen such parity. At that point, it is not just talent alone that wins but what you can extract from them.

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1.This is a critical post-season in the evolution of the Oilers in the Connor McDavid it was. Detractors can find all kinds of fault with a team that under Ken Holland has now made it to the post-season in 3 consecutive seasons. That is no mean feat, especially considering the long stretch of losing that had preceded Holland into town. And as I have stated earlier in this piece, the points posted in the standings by this team is in entering record historical franchise territory…the 7^th best in 42 years.

But in a game where the ultimate goal and measurement of success for any team is winning in the playoffs, this Edmonton franchise and its front office will be remembered for how it performs after Game #82 and not before it. It is next level time. Anything less than a berth into the 2nd Round at minimum would be considered “coming up short”.

It is not unusual for a team to go through a couple playoff series where they learn more than they earn. But this Era of Oilers hockey has now been there and done that. It is now time to convert those lessons into results.

All other franchises have and should be adjudicated in the same way.

Find me on Twitter @KurtLeavins

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