The 2021-22 Edmonton Oilers opening night roster has been set and released, and practices have begun to prepare the team for the long eighty-two game schedule ahead of them. A strong showing in preseason is a promising start to the year, and definitely a confidence booster for the team, and for some fans who have a lot of doubts about how much of a contender the team will be. There are three items I want to cover in this article, as I believe they are the main storylines to watch and keep track of this season, if the team wants success.
Edmonton Oilers: McDavid and Draisaitl on the Same Line:
The chemistry between two elite level players on the same team can often times be a toss up. One player wants to outshine the other, one player begins complaining and wants to be on a different line, there’s many scenarios where two stars don’t mesh well on the same team let alone the same line. This is exactly the opposite of the case with Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, who have shown in the past they work quite well together, and feed off of each other’s success.
The elite level powerplay the Oilers have only got better this offseason, bringing in a solid net front presence in former Leafs forward Zach Hyman. Aside from that, Hyman was expected to be McDavid’s winger on a line that saw the two paired up with Puljujarvi. This hasn’t been the case at recent team practices though, as Hyman has moved down and slotted into the second line spot with Yamamoto. McLeod is also on that second line for now, and may play there if Nugent-Hopkins isn’t ready to go for the season opener.
The two stars playing on the same line on 5v5, has some fans skeptical, and I can see why. Advanced stats have shown the two play better apart, then together when it’s even strength. On top of that, Zach Hyman was brought in for the purpose of having someone who can keep up, and play with McDavid, and it wouldn’t have to force Tippett’s hand in moving Draisaitl up, or having them change the lines randomly mid game.
I don’t think the two will stay together very long, as it became obvious over the past couple of seasons that a line of Yamamoto, Draisaitl and Nugent-Hopkins is one of, if not the most dangerous second line in the NHL. But if they do end up sticking together, they’ll have to find a way to keep the offensive production through lines 2-4. Management is counting on new guys like Hyman, Foegele and Ryan to put up some points to spread out the scoring, as offensive depth is something the Oilers have seriously lacked in the past few seasons. If Tippett and the Oilers are thinking about having Draisaitl and McDavid together for the season, I don’t see it working as well as some may think. Sure they do well on the powerplay, but 5v5 they need to be split up.