NHL Playoff Bracket if the season ended today for the Oilers
The NHL Playoff Bracket could have the Oilers playing a weaker team at the moment, but that may not be the case when the regular season ends.
Four months ago, we didn’t know if the Edmonton Oilers would even find themselves in a wild card position. Sure, they had some epic talent on the team, led by Connor McDavid and Leon Draistaitl. But if you looked at an early NHL Playoff Bracket, Edmonton was hovering somewhere near the bottom of the Western Conference.
Since the much-needed coaching change, that hasn’t been the case, and Edmonton would probably find themselves leading the Western Conference’s Pacific Division had it not been for those early season setbacks. But nevertheless, Edmonton climbed back into the second spot in the Pacific, and they are eight points behind the first-place team, the Vancouver Canucks, with three games in hand.
Unfortunately for Vancouver, goaltender Thatcher Demko’s injury could set them back over the next week, and they have already lost back-to-back games. But, barring some major shift in the Pacific, Edmonton won’t be squaring off with Vancouver. Instead, the Los Angeles Kings would get the nod if each team remains in the same place when the postseason begins.
NHL Playoff Bracket has the Oilers in a generous matchup one month from postseason
The Kings saw their own struggles throughout portions of the 2023-24 season, which also led to the firing of their coach, Todd McLellan. They have won under Jim Hiller and now sit five points behind the Oilers in the Pacific. But Edmonton still has two games in hand, so that will make it tough for Los Angeles to climb back into second.
Edmonton has also been more consistent in recent months than the Kings, so if this matchup took place tomorrow, it’s more likely that the Oilers would win in the First Round over Los Angeles. But if the surging Vegas Golden Knights find themselves back in third place, Edmonton’s First Round matchup just got a lot tougher.
Realistically, the Canucks are likely too far ahead of the Oilers in the Pacific. That said, look for Edmonton to square off against either Los Angeles or Vegas, depending on who ends up in third place.
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(Statistics provided by Hockey-Reference)