The Edmonton Oilers start their 2024-25 campaign on Oct 9, 2024, against the Winnipeg Jets, and are looking to have another successful season in hopes of making another deep playoff run. With some interesting moves this offseason that bolster the team’s forward group, there are still some questions that need answering before they drop the puck on the new season. In this new series and the first edition of the Oilers’ mailbag, we will dive into a few things that have been surrounding the team for the past few weeks.
Given the Difficult Journey Edmonton Endured in Nearly Winning the Stanley Cup, Are the Oilers Built to Repeat a Similar Cup Run Next Season? – @MrEd315
The start of the 2023-24 season is something the Oilers would obviously love to forget, as they began 2-9-1 and ended up relieving Jay Woodcroft and Dave Manson of their coaching duties. While they bounced back in a big way and made it all the way to the Stanley Cup Final, they weren’t able to bring home their first Stanley Cup since 1990. To answer the question asked, I personally believe the Oilers should be considered the team to beat this season. The additions of Jeff Skinner and Viktor Arvidsson to their top-six make them one of the strongest teams in the entire league, so the answer is yes they are built for a similar Cup run, and I think they’re built to win a seven-game series against any team in the NHL.
Teams like the Nashville Predators, Florida Panthers, and Vancouver Canucks are all built to make a deep playoff run as well, and they’re not the only teams that might be able to do that. However, they don’t have the offensive firepower or defensive strength to be able to take down the Oilers. At the end of the day, the Oilers will be the toughest team in the NHL to get past, and something would have to go terribly wrong for them to not make another deep run into the postseason.
The Stan Bowman Hiring
The Oilers recently made their decision of a new general manager (GM) and made a controversial choice to hire Stan Bowman. He was recently given permission to seek employment in the NHL after having been suspended due to the way he handled a serious situation with the Chicago Blackhawks over a decade ago, and Oilers fans are still quite upset over the fact the organization chose to hire him. While he has been given the blessing from those involved in the incident, some fans question whether or not he deserved the position in the first place.
Related: Oilers: 8 GM’s Who Would’ve Been Better Hires Than Stan Bowman
Personally, I don’t like the hire. I believe Bowman has grown as a human being and I appreciate what he has accomplished to be able to seek employment again. I believe the blessings from the victims involved help his case and make him deserving of a second chance. However, there were better candidates available on the market who needed a new job, and Bowman has a track record of making bad trades that usually don’t work long-term. I also think there would have been less pushback from fans if he had started in a lesser position and worked his way back up to the top. Hopefully, Jeff Jackson continues to oversee the transaction side of the hockey operations and doesn’t let Bowman make a move that would negatively impact the Oilers moving forward.
Do the Oilers Have Any Trades Lined Up, Does Anything Make Sense?
The Oilers have made two trades this offseason that have bolstered their prospect pool. They acquired Matt Savoie from the Buffalo Sabres in exchange for Ryan McLeod and Tyler Tullio, as well as trading Xavier Bourgault and Jake Chiasson to the Ottawa Senators in exchange for Roby Jarventie. Those two deals took the Oilers’ prospect pool from the worst in the league to a middle-of-the-pack future group. After an active summer from Jackson before hiring Bowman, it led some fans to wonder if anything else was coming down the pipeline.
An Evander Kane or Cody Ceci trade seems logical as far as a cap dump to give the Oilers some room to work heading into the 2025 Trade Deadline. Unfortunately, it doesn’t seem like anything is going to happen anytime soon. I’d be surprised if there was any interest in Ceci from anyone other than a rebuilding team like the San Jose Sharks, and Kane likely won’t waive his no-movement clause for a trade. At this time, I don’t see any more moves happening until the deadline.
If anyone has questions for a future mailbag, be sure to send them on X. We look forward to seeing any other questions in the next edition of the Oilers’ mailbag, as we hope to do plenty more of these this summer and during the regular season.
