Oilers Started Hot but They Are Far From Perfect

It seems crazy to say it with the club off to one of the best starts in its 42 year National Hockey League lifetime, but there are problems with the Edmonton Oilers.

There are bright spots too, naturally, and two of those, in Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, are shining so brightly on a nightly basis that fans in the first few rows of Rogers Place should probably be wearing sunblock. But while the offence is on the hottest of streaks to start the season, cracks are showing on the other side of the ice for the Edmonton Oilers.

The defence has been porous, allowing a high danger chance against for everyone the team creates. Given the fact that other teams don’t have a 97 or 29 making plays for them, it seems to demonstrate a problem with either the defensive strategy or personnel. Questions were asked this summer as to whether blue line additions such as Duncan Keith and Cody Ceci could improve, or even maintain, the results from 2020-21. The record says yes, the stats aren’t so certain.

The Oilers are allowing 34 shots against every game. For a team amongst the league leaders in offensive zone and puck control time, that’s a high rate of shots per minute. Outshot by the Seattle Kraken, they found their opportunities to score and defeated the NHL’s newest club easily. Against the New York Rangers, they fell behind early but managed a comeback victory on the backs of amazing performances by their superstars. Finally, their slow starts and sloppy play caught up with them against the Detroit Red Wings. Spotting the young and improved club a three-goal lead, the Oilers weren’t able to repeat the performance of the game past, dropping the game 4-2.

The goaltending situation was an area of concern as well this summer, but the same tandem returned. Mike Smith, after re-upping for two seasons, is the best option on the current roster, but age and injury are inextricably tied together for every athlete not named Tom Brady. A predictable stint on the injured reserve list put overpaid and often limited Mikko Koskinen into the starting role, with Stuart Skinner called up from the feeder club.

While Koskinen has performed admirably, history suggests he’ll fade if asked to carry the load for too long. Skinner’s AHL numbers look okay, but it was already clear that head coach Dave Tippett isn’t comfortable playing him, and the loss to the Wings probably means Koskinen plays out the string until Smith is back.

Edmonton was the beneficiary of a somewhat easy October schedule, and they reside in the Pacific Division which, while improved, still gives them a number of relatively easy opponents to face multiple times a year.

That should mean their playoff slot is all but guaranteed. But when they get there, the competition will be tougher, the games tighter, and the power-plays that the team has been converting into so many goals for, harder to come by. The team needs another defenseman and a goaltender, be it a healthy Mike Smith or somebody new, or they run the risk of repeating their past two early post-season exits.