As a team, the Edmonton Oilers have big expectations this season. They’re going in with players like Mattias Ekholm and Connor Brown, have some of the best players in the world, and their young players are stepping up and expected to do more.
The Oilers led the league in goals and had the top power play last season. Lots more goals are expected of this offensive powerhouse, but better defense and goaltending is also expected of them. There are five players on the Oilers that stand out this season with some big expectations.
Evan Bouchard
After putting up 12 goals and 43 points in his first full season in the NHL in 2021-22, last season was expected to be a bigger one for the young Evan Bouchard. Things didn’t get going that well for him and the depth on the right side limited him at times. He is a great offensive defenseman with elite offensive potential. That wasn’t able to be reached on the second or third pairing with limited power-play time. But everything changed once Ekholm arrived (from “Why the Oilers are counting on Evan Bouchard to be even better than last year”, Edmonton Sun, Sept. 26, 2023).
The Ekholm effect on Bouchard was amazing. The 23-year-old finished up the season with five goals and 19 points in 21 games beside Ekholm and with the power play to help him, exploded offensively in the playoffs with four goals and 15 points on the power play in 12 games. Having the veteran step in beside Bouchard and mentor him made a world of difference. He now has full control of the spot on the top power-play unit and is without a doubt a top-four defenseman in the lineup this season.
The Oilers are actually trying him out on the top pairing with Darnell Nurse. While this will allow Bouchard to eat minutes, he would also lose the close mentorship from Ekholm. I don’t think the Oilers will continue with an experiment if it doesn’t work, so Bouchard should be placed in a spot where he can succeed this season and put up a ton of points. That is at least what we are all expecting him to do after the 33 games he played alongside Ekholm.
Connor McDavid
Connor McDavid keeps exceeding expectations to the point where many don’t think it is possible for him to get any better. But he is only 26 years old and has lots more to give. He is the type of player that continues working on every area of his game despite already being the best. After scoring 64 goals and 153 points, he already broke any numbers put up in the past 25-plus years.
After not only just scoring 60, but blowing by it, I think that is the standard for him this season if he wants to hold onto the puck more and shoot. As for points, 150 is definitely reachable, especially with the talent he has surrounding him at five-on-five and on the power play. In almost every season, he has put up better numbers than the last since coming into the NHL. Until that stops, that’s what we have to expect from the best player in the world.
Leon Draisaitl
After Leon Draisaitl noted that McDavid was going to hit 60 goals last season and it came true, I think it’s only fair to expect the same from the three-time 50-goal scorer on the Oilers as well. Draisaitl nearly broke the all-time power-play goal record last season and the Oilers are absolutely elite on the man advantage. Not only will he have better full-time wingers throughout the season, but he could realistically top 60 points on the power play again.
I think leading the league in power-play goals and challenging for the Rocket Richard Trophy is at least what will be expected. Even though Draisaitl won the Hart Trophy, Art Ross Trophy, and Ted Lindsay Award one season, I think that is above expectations for him to play better than McDavid without an injury to the Oilers’ captain. He will surely push McDavid for the scoring lead in goals and points while being able to play at an elite level in the playoffs. He will have to at least reach 50 goals and 125 points this season again.
Stuart Skinner
Not much was expected from Stuart Skinner in Edmonton last season as a rookie backup goalie. Unfortunately, Jack Campbell, in the first season after signing a five-year, $25 million extension, struggled a lot. Skinner ended up taking over the starting job, finishing second in Calder Trophy voting, and starting all 12 playoff games for the Oilers.
Related: 3 Oilers You Should Lower Your Expectations For in 2023-24
His regular season numbers were very solid, but the fatigue did start to set in. By the time the playoffs rolled around, his save percentage (SV%) and game dropped off a fair bit. This caused his SV% to drop from .914 in the regular season to .883 in the playoffs, getting pulled four times. He learned a lot over the summer and knows that he’ll be better this season. The Oilers would probably be more than fine with a .914 SV% over the regular season again, but they do need more from him in the playoffs. Skinner will likely be splitting time with Campbell this season, so the young goaltender will be less fatigued by the time the playoffs roll around.
Jack Campbell
Expectations were definitely high for Campbell going into last season and he failed to even get close to them. They have dropped a bit going into this season, but on a team like the Oilers who have gotten better in their own end thanks to Ekholm and company, Campbell will at least be expected to get a .905 SV%. Although that wouldn’t be great, it would be serviceable on a team that scores as much as the Oilers do.
Campbell did start to play better later in the season, including four relief appearances in the playoffs where he stopped 49 of 51 shots (.961 SV%). It’s not a huge sample size, but it does give everyone the hope and confidence that some of that game can be carried over into his second year in Edmonton after he’s settled his game down. He is expected to at least split starts with Skinner this season and not be bumped into the backup role again. Goalies tend to struggle in their first season with new teams after getting a larger payday. Take Jacob Markstrom on the Calgary Flames for example. Year two was much better. I’m not expecting Campbell to finish second in Vezina Trophy voting, but I am expecting a better season from the Oilers’ veteran.
Big things are expected from the Oilers this season and most of these individuals with high expectations have to at least match them. It feels like Stanley Cup or bust this season, and there is confidence that this team can be the first one to bring the Cup back to Canada.
