There was an awful lot of pressure on the Edmonton Oilers heading into Monday night’s game versus the Columbus Blue Jackets. Not often would you expect a game in mid-November to have so much importance for a team coming off back-to-back Stanley Cup Finals, but that is exactly where the Oilers have found themselves early in this 2025-26 season.
The Oilers, yet again, have gotten off to a less-than-stellar start this season. There was already plenty of concern with this group, and that escalated to an entirely different level after they were thumped 9-1 by the Colorado Avalanche over the weekend.
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A big response was needed to restore any sort of confidence in the fan base, and though it wasn’t pretty, the Oilers were able to gut out a 5-4 overtime win over the Blue Jackets. That said, it was a game in which they trailed 3-1 and 4-2, and were only able to tie it at four apiece in the final minute of regulation thanks to a short-handed goal from Jake Walman. Two points is two points, but it was yet another sign that this team is lost right now, and may be getting frustrated with the voice behind the bench.
Knoblauch Could Be in Trouble
There are few jobs with less stability than that of a head coach at the NHL level. It’s much easier to replace a coach than an entire roster, resulting in the shelf life of a coach to be very short lived. Hence why we are even having this conversation about Kris Knoblauch, a man who helped lead the Oilers to back-to-back Cup Finals in his first two seasons behind the bench.
What’s worth noting is that Knoblauch is in his third season behind the Oilers bench. Jay Woodcroft was fired in his third season with the Oilers, as was Dave Tippett. For whatever reason, this group seems to need that sort of spark around the three-year mark, which doesn’t bode well for Knoblauch given this shaky start.
Though many are surprised to hear questions surrounding Knoblauch’s future, there were some suggestions he was losing the dressing room before the season even began. Take Connor McDavid’s quotes after losing last season’s Cup Final, where he seemed both frustrated and perplexed at his team’s inability to change their systems versus the Florida Panthers.
“Their forecheck was great. They tilted the rink and were able to stay on top of us all over the place,” McDavid said. “We were never really able to generate any momentum up the ice. We kept trying the same thing over and over again, just banging our heads against the wall. Credit to them, they played well.”
The fact that he mentions trying the same thing over and over seemingly suggests that the Oilers had no sort of changes throughout the series, which would make sense given how quickly the Panthers were able to take over and close it out in six games.
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Through 17 games, it still feels as though the Oilers are trying to figure out a new way to have success on a consistent basis. Granted, that isn’t all on Knoblauch, as there has been plenty of personnel change within the dressing room. At the end of the day, however, it’s on him as a head coach to figure out how to make it work.
Oilers are a Desperate Organization
By no means is this done with the intent to take away from all the good Knoblauch has done. He’s proven to be an excellent coach and, if fired, would likely get an opportunity elsewhere. That said, the Oilers don’t have a ton of time to sit around and wait for things to get better. They are desperate, understanding they may only have a few more cracks at getting McDavid his Stanley Cup. If they aren’t able to get rolling soon, Knoblauch may be the man on the chopping block in an attempt to get things back on track.
