After a disastrous 2-9-1 start to the 2023-24 NHL season, the Edmonton Oilers have won three consecutive games, and are 2-0 under new head coach Kris Knoblauch, who was hired after Jay Woodcroft was relieved of his duties on Sunday (Nov. 12).
The Oilers have started to climb the standings, moving ahead of the Chicago Blackhawks and Nashville Predators as Edmonton looks to get back into the Western Conference playoff race.
There are reasons to feel positive about the Oilers, but have they really turned the corner? Edmonton’s three consecutive victories have come against struggling opponents, the Seattle Kraken (whom Edmonton defeated twice) and New York Islanders. The Isles and Kraken were both winless in six consecutive games before meeting Thursday (Nov. 16) at Climate Pledge Arena, where Seattle prevailed 4-3 in a shootout.
In their most recent game, against the Kraken on Wednesday (Nov. 15) at Rogers Place, the Oilers needed an unlikely rally to escape with two points. Edmonton trailed that game 3-1 late and had arguably been outplayed by the visiting Kraken, but three straight goals by Evander Kane, at 13:28 and 19:14 of the third period and then 2:57 into overtime, saved the day. That was the second natural hat trick in three games for the Oilers after Zack Hyman’s three consecutive tallies proved to be the difference in a 4-1 victory at Seattle in Woodcroft’s final game behind the bench last Saturday (Nov. 11).
Related: 3 Takeaways From Oilers’ Slump-Ending 4-1 Win Over Kraken
A team can only beat who it plays, and that’s exactly what the Oilers did, even if it was against two of the NHL’s weaker squads. And while one perspective says the Oilers were lucky to win Wednesday, another perspective says the win is indicative of progress. After all, there were multiple games throughout their first 12 games when the Oilers tried and failed to make a third-period comeback, including a 4-3 loss to the Dallas Stars (Nov. 2) and a 3-2 defeat at the hands of the San Jose Sharks (Nov. 9). On Wednesday, those one-goal losses turned to a one-goal win.
Hyman and Kane aren’t going to score natural hat tricks every other night. The Oilers still need to get a lot more from superstar forwards Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid, who are both producing well below their lofty standard, with one goal in the last 12 games and one even-strength point in the last seven games, respectively. But the Dynamic Duo are bound to break out, and if Edmonton continues to play better defensively, with goaltender Stuart Skinner (a goals-against average of 1.66 and save percentage of .942 while starting all of Edmonton’s last three games) keeping up his excellent play between the pipes, the Oilers are going to have a great chance to keep up their winning ways.
A much truer test of the level Edmonton is at now starts Saturday (Nov. 18) when the Oilers open a very challenging road trip that will see them play four games in seven days against southern U.S. opponents that are among the NHL’s most successful franchises in recent seasons, the hottest teams in the league currently, and have traditionally been handfuls for the Oilers. Here’s a look at what’s coming up for the team in orange and blue:
Oilers at Tampa Bay Lightning, Saturday, Nov. 18
Edmonton has won its last three meetings overall against the Tampa Bay Lightning, following a stretch of five straight losses to Tampa Bay.
Just over a year ago, on Nov. 8, 2022, the Oilers defeated the Lightning 3-2 at Amalie Arena to snap a streak of nine consecutive road losses to the Lightning. Draisaitl and McDavid scored in the first victory in Tampa Bay of either player’s career.
The Lightning might be quite the same team that from 2020 to 2022 played in three straight Stanley Cup championship series, winning two of them, but they are still a playoff-calibre team that is 4-2-2 at home so far this season.
Oilers at Florida Panthers, Monday, Nov. 20
Florida has picked up right where it left off after making a run to the 2023 Stanley Cup Final. After defeating the Anaheim Ducks 2-1 on Friday (Nov. 17), the Panthers are 11-3-1 in their last 15 games and have won six of their last seven contests.
The Panthers have been particularly good this season at Amerant Bank Arena, where they boast a 6-1-0 record. Their only home loss of 2023-24 came four weeks ago, on Oct. 21, 5-3 to the explosive Vancouver Canucks.
Edmonton, however, has had a tremendous history of success in Sunrise, Fla., with an incredible 12 wins in its last 13 visits to the home of the Panthers since the start of the 2002-03 season. The Oilers prevailed in their most recent meeting with Florida, 4-3 in overtime at Rogers Place on Nov. 28, 2022, when Draisaitl scored the game-winner, and McDavid had one goal and two assists.
Oilers at Carolina Hurricanes, Wednesday, Nov. 22
The ‘Canes, who Florida swept in the 2023 Eastern Conference championship series, have also lost just once at home so far this season. Carolina is hosting the Pittsburgh Penguins tonight before having three days off to prepare for the Oilers, who are just 2-6-0 in their last eight trips to Raleigh. N.C.
Overall, Edmonton is 5-10-0 in its last 15 times playing the Hurricanes. The Oilers went 1-1 against Carolina last season, with Hurricanes forward Andrei Svechnikov notching a hat trick in both games. Svechnikov has yet to score in eight games this season following his return from a knee injury that sidelined the NHL All-Star since March.
Carolina is 6-3-0 in its last nine games and enters play Saturday tied with the Washington Capitals for second most points in the Metropolitan Division.
Oilers at Washington Capitals, Friday, Nov. 24
Rumours of the Capitals’ demise appear to be only that. Since winning the Stanley Cup in 2018, Washington lost its opening series the next four postseasons and then missed the playoffs entirely last year. So when the Caps began this season with only one win – needing a shootout to get past the struggling Calgary Flames – in their first five games, many observers were already writing them off as also-rans in 2023-24.
Not so fast. Washington is 7-1-1 in its last nine games, including an impressive 3-0 victory in their most recent outing over the team with the most points in the NHL, the Vegas Golden Knights, at home on Tuesday (Nov. 14). Defensive play has keyed the Caps, who have allowed only 12 goals in their last seven contests.
The Oilers lost both of their 2022-23 meetings with the Capitals by one goal in regulation, 3-2 at home and 5-4 in Washington. McDavid has scored a goal in all of Edmonton’s last seven games against Washington dating back to 2017.
What will the Oilers’ record be when they depart D.C. following their matinee matchup the day after U.S. Thanksgiving? Five or more points out of a possible eight on their road trip would probably have to be considered a success, and while a 2-2-0 or a 1-2-1 record while running this gauntlet of opponents wouldn’t be unreasonable, three or four points over this next week isn’t going to get the Oilers anywhere in the standings.
It’s often noted how the standings around American Thanksgiving are a strong indicator of which teams are bound for the playoffs and which clubs are headed for the Draft Lottery in that respective season. The Oilers are about to find out where they stand for 2023-24.