3 Reasons Why the Oilers Are Struggling After the First Month of the Season – The Hockey Writers – Edmonton Oilers

The Edmonton Oilers are a month away from the end of the 2024-25 NHL season and have had a rocky road so far: Coming off a 4-2 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights on Wednesday, November 6, the Oilers sit in fifth place in the Pacific Division. 13 points.

Relating to: 3 Takeaways from Oilers’ 4-2 Loss to Golden Knights

Edmonton was 6-7-1 through its first 14 games, but even that subpar record saw the Oilers concede only 33 goals, second-fewest in the NHL, and had a goal differential of minus-12. It makes you proud. The worst in the league.

Outside of a few really good performances, the Oilers look nothing like the team that went 44-15-5 in their last 64 games in 2023-24 and then made a playoff run heading into Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final. There are three reasons why they have underperformed so far this season:

Oilmen Have Big Problems in Special Teams

The biggest and most obvious problem affecting the Oilers so far – let’s take these two issues – is their terrible play on both ends of the special teams.

Edmonton allowed just five goals with the man advantage. This meager total stems from a lack of production combined with a lack of opportunity: The Oilers average 2.5 power plays per game, the second-fewest in the league, and their 14.3% conversion rate is the second-lowest team in the Western Conference.

But Edmonton’s power play looks like a high-functioning unit compared to its penalty kill, which ranks last in the league at a terrible 59.5% rate.

Edmonton has allowed 15 power play goals in just 14 games, and most of them came at the worst possible time. For example, on Wednesday, the Oilers were up 2-1 and less than 10 minutes away from a big win. However, when they absolutely had to stop the penalty kick, they couldn’t do it. Golden Knights defenseman Noah Hanifin scored a powerful goal at 10:05 of the third period to tie the score and turn the game completely in his team’s favor.

Special teams were arguably the biggest reason Edmonton was able to come so close to the Stanley Cup in June: Through the 2024 NHL Playoffs, the Oilers’ goal differential is a plus-1 at 5-on-5 and plus-21. on special teams. Their goal differential at 5-on-5 so far this season is minus 3, which is comparable to the 2024 postseason, but they have a goal differential of minus 10 on special teams.

Edmonton killed penalties at a record 94.3% rate in the playoffs, allowing just four power-play goals in 70 opportunities. So what happened?

Oilmen’s New Arrivals Do Not Make an Impact

The sudden and dramatic decline in Edmonton’s penalty-taking ability may have something to do with the names the Oilers lost during the off-season: forwards Warren Foegele (signed with the Los Angeles Kings) and Ryan McLeod (signed with the Los Angeles Kings).Traded to Buffalo Sabers), defensemen Philip Broberg (signed with the St. Louis Blues), Cody Ceci (traded to the San Jose Sharks) and Vincent Desharnais (signed with the Vancouver Canucks) were all regulars on the shootout.

Meanwhile, Edmonton’s biggest offseason additions are Viktor Arvidsson (signed as a free agent), Jeff Skinner (signed as a free agent) and Vasily Podkolzin (signed as a free agent).Traded from Canucks) barely played in short-term situations last season. All of them are known for their more offensive production. The problem is, they don’t even do that.

Over the course of 14 games, Skinner has three goals and three assists, Arvidsson has one goal and three assists, and Podkolzin has zero goals and three assists. When you add it all up, the three of them combined don’t even average one point per game.

In Reality, Everyone Underproduces

It’s only fair to cut some slack for Edmonton’s newcomers as they adjust to a new team and teammates. But that excuse doesn’t apply to returning Oilers players, many of whom have been with the team for multiple seasons.

Each of the 10 forwards on Edmonton’s current roster who will play for the Oilers in 2023-24 averaged fewer points than they did last season. Even the best player on the planet, Connor McDavidHe scored only 3 goals and made 7 assists in 11 matches. All things considered, it’s easy to see that the league’s fourth-leading goal scorer in 2023-24 has one of the lowest goals against in the NHL this season.

The story is no better between the pipes with the goalies either. Stuart Skinner and Calvin Pickard each have a higher goals-against average and a lower save percentage than a season ago.

Despite all this, Edmonton currently sits just six points out of first place in the Pacific Division, which the Golden Knights hold for 19 points with a 9-3-1 record. The good news is that the Oilers managed to completely turn things around despite an even worse start to last season.

There is plenty of time as more than 80% of the schedule remains. But the sooner the Oilers get out of their funk, the better. Their next game will be against the Vancouver Canucks on Saturday, November 9 at Rogers Arena.