The Edmonton Oilers and its fan base are champing at the bit to get the 2025-26 season going. For the second-straight year, they are entering a new campaign with vengeance on their minds after losing out in the Stanley Cup Final. While it won’t be easy, they’ll be looking to not only get back to the Cup Final this coming season, but this time win it all.
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While the Oilers figure to be a very competitive team once again in 2025-26, they went through a number of roster changes during the offseason. It remains to be seen how these changes will affect the group moving forward, as fans in Edmonton continue to long for their team to win its first Cup since 1990. With that said, here are four way-too-early predictions for the Oilers this coming season.
Stuart Skinner Takes Next Step Forward
The Oilers have been high on goaltender Stuart Skinner for some time, and early into his NHL career, you could understand why. The now 26-year-old wound up being thrust into a starting role in his first season with the Oilers due to Jack Campbell’s struggles. He more than lived up to the expectations, finishing second in Calder Trophy voting after posting a 2.73 goals against average (GAA) along with a .914 save percentage (SV%) in 50 appearances.
Unfortunately for Skinner, he struggled immensely in the playoffs that same season, putting up a 3.68 GAA and a .883 SV% in a year where the Oilers were eliminated in the second round by the Vegas Golden Knights. It was then that many started voicing doubts about Skinner’s future as a starting goalie, and his play has suffered ever since.
Skinner has been average at best the past two regular seasons, and has had well-documented struggles in each of the past two postseasons. Those struggles had many calling for a change between the pipes heading into 2025-26, but with no clear upgrades available in free agency, management appears to be going with a tandem of Skinner and Calvin Pickard once again.
The one thing about Skinner is that he’s always been very strong mentally. He’s proven that by being able to recover and excel after losing the starting position for parts of the past two postseasons.
Though the doubts that many have are more than fair, there is reason to believe this is the season where Skinner finally puts it all together and proves himself as a true starting goalie at the NHL level. Not only does he have motivation based on recent struggles, but he’s also in need of a new contract following the 2025-26 season.
McDavid Signs Extension to Remain in Edmonton
There is plenty of concern in Edmonton regarding Connor McDavid’s future, as the Oilers captain is set to become an unrestricted free agent following the conclusion of the 2025-26 season. It isn’t a situation that has Oilers fans in an outright panic just yet, though there are and will continue to be some nerves until an extension gets done.
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Had McDavid won a Stanley Cup in either of the past two years, he may be more tempted to head elsewhere on a new contract, but the fact he hasn’t been able to get the job finished in Edmonton yet should be enough to get him to sign an extension in Edmonton. It may not be the maximum eight-year deal the fan base hopes to see, but Oilers supporters should expect to see him locked up, whether it be before or perhaps during the 2025-26 campaign.
Hyman Will Have a Bounce-Back Season
One of the disappointments in 2025-26 was Zach Hyman’s play. The 33-year-old wound up finishing with 27 goals and 44 points in 73 outings. While it wasn’t a horrible effort by any means, it was a big drop in production from his 54-goal, 77-point 2023-24.
Hyman’s struggles resulted in him being left off Canada’s 4 Nations Face-Off roster, a team which he was seemingly a lock for prior to 2024-25 . Now, with another opportunity to crack Canada’s roster for the upcoming 2026 Winter Olympics, Hyman once again has plenty of motivation and should be in store for a much bigger season offensively.
Oilers Will Win the Stanley Cup
As fans in Edmonton and around the NHL heard at this time last year, sometimes a team needs to go through the ultimate heartbreak before experiencing true triumph. The Oilers have now suffered that heartbreak two years in a row, which while certainly causing pain for the entire roster, also gives them plenty of motivation going forward.
Players such as McDavid and Leon Draisaitl have accomplished everything they could have dreamed of from personal standpoints, but have yet to capture the ultimate prize. That is their one and only goal going forward, and it’s going to be tough for any team to prevent that from happening after two-straight years of agonizing heartbreak.
Oilers Will Be a Fun Team to Watch
While it remains to be seen how these predictions will play out, one sure bet regarding the Oilers is that they will be an extremely fun group to watch this coming season. Not only do they have two of the game’s best up front, but they also have some youth coming into the lineup in Isaac Howard and Matt Savoie, which will only help them be an even more dynamic group in 2025-26.
