A slow start to the season isn’t unfamiliar territory for the Edmonton Oilers, but they are going to have to get things together soon.
The Oilers were shut out last night versus the Montreal Canadiens, and are now averaging just 2.63 goals per game. That ranks 24th amongst all 32 NHL clubs, which is shockingly low given all the fire power they have on their roster.
A big part of the issue is the play of Zach Hyman and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, who have combined for just four goals on the season. Meanwhile, newcomers Jeff Skinner and Viktor Arvidsson have yet to perform how everybody expected.
Offence is far from this team’s only issue. Their blue line has many question marks and is an area that seemingly needs an upgrade before the playoffs get underway. Evan Bouchard has struggled, and icing all three of Troy Stecher, Travis Dermott, and Josh Brown — as they did last night — is far from ideal.
Then comes the goaltending. Stuart Skinner has gotten off to an ugly start for the second-straight season, putting up an ugly 3.28 goals-against average (GAA) along with a .877 save percentage (SV%) through 12 starts. Calvin Pickard has been the better of the two, though his .893 SV% proves he’s been far from great.
All three areas have been plagued by poor special teams. The Oilers’ usually dominant power play is at just 16.3%. Their penalty kill, while showing signs of improvement as of late, is second to worst in the NHL at just 67.4%.
Factor all those struggles in, and you have a team that sits at an extremely mediocre 9-8-2 through its first 19 games.
There’s no reason to hit the panic button just yet, as Preston Hodgkinson pointed out that by November 18 of last season, the Oilers had just 11 points to this year’s 20. That said, the fact they are struggling in so many areas is a cause for concern.
#Oilers are not having the start they wanted to the season, but it’s still way better than last year…
Record on Nov. 18, 2023: 5-10-1, 11pts
Record on Nov. 18, 2024 (today): 9-7-2, 20pts
Nearly double the amount of points with just two more games played.
— Preston Hodgkinson (@NHLHodgkinson) November 18, 2024
The offence is likely the least concerning of all the Oilers’ current issues, as many of their struggling forwards track records suggest things will turn around. The blue line and goaltending is worrisome, however, and general manager (GM) Stan Bowman may be forced to address it sooner than later if things don’t begin to improve in the near future.
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