Edmonton Oilers 2010-11 Season Preview

Taylor Hall {Leon T. Switzer - TotalPhoto}

When the Edmonton Oilers called out Taylor Hall’s name in the 2010 NHL entry draft, it came with a renewed sense of hope in the city of champions. The run to the Stanley Cup finals in 2006 aside, the Oilers have done very little in the way of playoff accomplishment over the past few years. But just as teams like Pittsburgh, Chicago and Washington have proven, you have to be bad to be good, and the Oilers have been bad. Last season they finished dead last in the NHL standings, and close to the bottom in nearly every category. But the losing season brought them the first overall pick, and another building piece in an already strong set of prospects. It can’t get a whole lot worse, but it can stay the same. Another high draft pick will obviously do wonders for the organization, but it makes watching the team play unbearable for die-hard fans. But the Oilers are building the right way, and the patience will pay off. Here’s a look at the team for the upcoming NHL season.

Forwards

Obviously fans would love to get a closer look at the promising prospects in the Oilers system like Taylor Hall, Jordan Eberle, Magnus Paajarvi-Svensson and Linus Omark, but there’s no indication right now if they will make the big club out of camp. In the case of Hall, he would probably have to be completely incompetent during camp to not be on the opening night roster. So prospects aside, the Oilers forward unit appears thin at best. The return of sniper Ales Hemsky will be a huge boost if he can stay healthy. Sam Gagner and Andrew Cogliano will be relied upon for stronger seasons, and last years leading scorer Dustin Penner will also be a key to the offense. UPDATE: All prospects, with the exception of Omark have made the Oilers roster. Hall is expected to play on a line with Eberle and Horcoff, while Paajarvi is lining up with Andrew Cogliano and Gilbert Brule.

Defense

Kurtis Foster, Ryan Whitney, Tom Gilbert and Ladislav Smid are expected to be the top 4 for the Oilers, with Jim Vandermeer and either Theo Peckham or Jason Strudwick rounding out the top 6. The addition of veteran Vandermeer is a huge locker room boost, and he’ll be a great mentor for the youngsters on defense. One of the biggest problems on the Oilers blueline last season was the outrageous amount of turnovers and giveaways they committed. Edmonton lead the league in total team giveaways with a whopping 1055. Of course the forwards had a hand in that, but the Oilers blueline can ill afford to cough up the puck in their own zone as much as they did last season. The offensively gifted Whitney and Gilbert will be relied upon to move the puck up to the forwards, because the least amount of time that the Oilers defense have the puck, the better. The ongoing saga of Sheldon Souray still isn’t resolved, and if a trade doesn’t happen, he will be assigned to Oklahoma City in the AHL.

Goaltending

As outlined here, the Oilers currently have four NHL ready goaltenders on the roster for next season, assuming projected starter Nikolai Khabibulin is healthy and not in jail. The young netminders on this team, Devan Dubnyk and Jeff Deslauriers, did the best they could last season with the caliber of players in front of them. This season however, with a potentially stronger defense, look for a better statistical performance by the goalies, but it’s still anyone’s guess if Edmonton’s league worst combined goals against average of 3.39 will be improved upon.

Jeff Deslauriers (Dan4th/photoree)

Season Outlook

If the young prospects perform well out of the gate, and the defense holds the fort, there’s a chance this team will be more competitive than most will predict. With a new coach and philosophy, Edmonton appears to be on the right track for the future. But for this upcoming season, a playoff berth is likely not a realistic option.