Edmonton Oilers: Is this our Rebound Year?
By Sammi Silber
It’s no secret that the Edmonton Oilers have a lot of work to do in order to rebuild. The team has not made the playoffs in nine years, and although our past draft picks have proven to treat us well, we are still not making it to the post-season. However, with the rise of Connor McDavid, the hiring of Todd McLellan and an ever-changing roster, is this the year that the Oilers will return to their former glory?
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First, let’s talk about McDavid. We all know his name; it’s heard around the world. We won the first pick in the lottery and capitalized, taking him immediately. This is a good acquisition for us. Not only does he fully capture the ice and play to the best of his ability, but he has scoring talent. Period.
This past season alone, in just 47 games as captain of the OHL’s Erie Otters, McDavid scored 44 goals and 76 assists. Although he claims he doesn’t have the greatest shot, he still managed to get almost 50 pucks in the goal and almost 80 assists. The kid is a modest rockstar, and through his amazing play this season, as well as his play the past two years, he is all anyone was- and still is- talking about.
The Edmonton Oilers took him in the first round, and McDavid told reporters he wanted to play the rest of his life in Edmonton. Not only is he a great, skilled player, he is classy and honored by this opportunity. With this dedication to the team, as well as his outstanding performance at development camp, it looks like he might, just might, be on the road to becoming the Next One, as well as a huge factor in the Oilers organization. And he’s only 18.
Now let’s take a look at new head coach Todd McLellan. This is, without a doubt, one of the greatest hires by the Oilers. And let me tell you why.
McLellan’s teams always hit some kind of milestone. He head the Houston Aeros to a Calder Cup Championship in 2003. In 2005, he became an assistant coach for the Detroit Red Wings, handling their power-play unit. Working with former Wings coach Mike Babcock, he transformed the Wings’ power-play unit and made it the top-ranked unit in the entire National Hockey League. He also helped lead the team to a Stanley Cup Championship in 2008.
After that, the San Jose Sharks made McLellan their new head coach. Under his coaching, the San Jose sharks made the playoffs for six straight seasons, where they made it to the Conference Finals twice. Eventually, after the Sharks missed the playoffs this past season, he and the team parted ways.
Long story short, McLellan will take a team and get it to where it needs to be. He will fix the Oilers blueline, improve the offense, as well as the power-play unit and will get them back to playoff position. In addition, he has a lot of talent to work with, including Andrew Ference, Taylor Hall, Jordan Eberle and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins among others. He will take these first-round draft picks and make them into a team.
In addition, the Oilers are acquiring players that will truly help the team. Cam Talbot is one of these players. The former New York Rangers goalie had a short yet amazing season with the Rags, posting a 2.21 GAA and a .926 save percentage. In 36 games, Talbot won 21 games and only surrendered nine regulation losses and four overtime losses. Imagine what he can do in at least 50 games.
In conclusion, with the acquisitions of McDavid, McLellan and Talbot, this team has what it takes to rebound. McDavid will bring fresh talent to the offense, the signing of Andrej Sekera and the possible emergence of Darnell Nurse (if he keeps up consistent, sensational play) will definitely help the blue line and the new coaching staff will power this team to reignite the flame. The team won’t become Stanley-Cup ready overnight, but we will definitely improve, possibly to the point where we can return to the playoffs. Get ready, Oil Country. We’re back.
Next: Prospects McDavid, Nurse lead Oilers Development Camp