10 Oilers franchise milestones to watch for in 2024-25

Even after falling just short of winning it all -- or maybe because of this -- there's a lot for Edmonton Oilers fans to look forward to next season. Following a tremendous free agency, the roster is now even better than the one which just came within a whisker of claiming the Holy Grail of hockey.

As the Oilers go on their quest for the Stanley Cup in 2024-25, there are a considerable number of franchise milestones within reach for several of their players. Here's a look at these now, with no prizes for guessing who comes first:

Connor McDavid

No surprise really to find Connor McDavid on this list, with him only 18 points away from becoming just the fourth player in Oilers history to reach 1,000 points. (Along with Wayne Gretzky, Mark Messier and Jari Kurri.) Also, if he can reach 61 points during the 2024-25 season, he will move into second place for most ever points in franchise history at 1,044. (At which point he'll 'only' be 635 points behind Gretzky.)

Outside of the Oilers, McDavid can also leave his mark in the NHL record books, with another 100-point season making him just the fourth player in league history with eight such seasons. (Along with Gretzky, Mario Lemieux and Marcel Dionne, as per Forbes' Carol Schram.) And finally, if he can record 18 points in the first 11 games of next season, he will surpass Mike Bossy as the third-fastest in NHL history to reach 1,000 points.

Leon Draisaitl

The second-best player on the team also has some enticing milestones coming his way in 2024-25. including being 50 points away from reaching 900 career points. Of course this leads you to think further ahead about Leon Draisaitl reaching 1,000 career points, but that wouldn't be until the following season, which is no certainty anyway, until he confirms he is signing a contract extension to remain in Edmonton.

Draisaitl also has a goal-scoring mark within his reach, with him currently sitting on 347 goals, 45 behind Messier in fourth place, and 53 away from 400 overall. While no certainty next season, keep in mind he did score 55 and 52 goals in 2021-22 and 2022-23 respectively, so he undoubtedly has a genuine chance.

Ryan Nugent-Hopkins

A sentimental favourite in Edmonton, given he's been with the Oilers through the ups and downs -- okay, the downs and the ups -- during 13 NHL seasons, Ryan Nugent- Hopkins has a few milestones on his radar. The first is the easiest, with him just one point away from 700 for his career.

The next most feasible mark is 900 career games for the Oilers, with Nugent-Hopkins only 19 appearances away. (For what it's worth, he's 90 games away from tying Ryan Smyth with 971 regular season appearances.) Finally, he's 52 assists away from 500, and keep in mind he reached a career-high 67 in 2022-23 and 49 this last season, so it's certainly doable.

Miscellaneous

Darnell Nurse currently sits in 10th place for the Oilers on 1,508 career shots, 116 behind Paul Coffey in ninth position. Consider that Nurse has surpassed 116 shots in eight of his nine seasons as a regular in the lineup, including quite easily in his past seven.

Zach Hyman and Evander Kane are tied with others in seventh place, on five career hat-tricks. Pending Kane's status with the team in the coming months, they both have a chance next season to claim seventh position all to themselves, with one more hat-trick. (Of note, Draisaitl is on his own in sixth place, with eight career hat-tricks.

Stuart Skinner is ninth among Oilers goalies, with 72 career wins, With 33 more victories, he can jump all the way up to fifth place, one ahead of Cam Talbot who is on 104 wins. (Skinner recorded 29 wins in 2022-23 and 36 this past season.)

NB: All statistics are provided courtesy of Hockey Reference

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