How Should The Edmonton Oilers Finish The Season?

The Edmonton Oilers are not making the 2019 Stanley Cup Playoffs. However, there is still debate between fans on whether or not the team should be striving to be competitive the rest of the season, or should set their sights on increasing their lottery ball percentage. 

The Edmonton Oilers have just lost the last 3 of their last four games in the most critical part of the season. They are essentially eliminating themselves from any hope of playoff contention they previously had,

Which puts the team in a tight spot.

On one side, they have a decently “easy” end to the schedule that could potentially allow the team to string together a right amount of wins and end the season on a positive note that they can build off of for next year.

On the other side, they are only two points ahead of the Anaheim Ducks and the New York Rangers, who both have 69 points. If the Oilers were to be passed by both these teams by the end of the season, it would rank them 27th in the NHL, giving them the 5th highest odds of winning one of the three lotteries picks that could put them in range of grabbing the dynamic Finnish winger Kaapo Kakko.

Or at the very least have them drafting in a range where they could grab a player of the likes of Vasili Podkolzin or the high scoring Saskatoon Blades product Kirby Dach. All players who project to be high scoring forwards in the NHL, exactly what the Oilers are looking for.

It’s a tough question to ask because it really can’t go either way. If the Oilers string together anything close to a decent record to finish the season, it could see them climb as high as the top 20 in the NHL standings. With how close the bubble of teams in their range of points has become.

With that bubble being so tight, there are bound to be some teams who put together atrocious records to finish the season, many of which have a much more challenging upcoming schedule than the Oilers. So Edmonton is going to have to be extremely bad if they want to avoid climbing too high in the standings or secure a top 5 pick in the draft.

What To Consider

This article is less about me displaying my opinion on the topic and more about sparking an interesting discussion that I think Oilers fans should let marinate in their thoughts over the next few games of the season.

Would you rather watch the team go on a hot streak and put themselves in a position where they are just barely on the outside looking in on the playoffs? Potentially taking strides towards building a winning culture that the team can build off heading into next season?

(all be it a culture that should be victim to an overhaul of change this summer regardless of the result of the seasons final stretch)

Or…

Would you rather go through yet another frustrating losing skid to close the regular season but while almost guaranteeing the team will be in a position to select one of this drafts mostly highly touted wingers? Some of which could potentially have an immediate scoring impact on the roster as early as next season (I know it sounds gross, but these players do have that upside).

It’s a lot to consider, and I’m curious what side the majority of fans are on. Or maybe you are as torn between the two thoughts as I am. Either way, let me know.

Oilers fans… discuss.