The Edmonton Oilers are 0-2 to start the 2023-24 NHL season, and there is panic in the Alberta capital, where expectations are sky-high, and anything less than a Stanley Cup will be considered a disappointment by most.
It certainly hasn’t been pretty for the Oilers, who have dropped both of their games to a Vancouver Canucks team that isn’t supposed to be on Edmonton’s level. The Oilers lost 8-1 on the road at Rogers Arena on Wednesday (Oct. 11) and fell 4-3 in their home opener on Saturday (Oct. 14).
How ugly have things been thus far? The 12 goals against are tied for the most allowed by the Oilers over the first two games of a season in franchise history, and Edmonton’s save percentage of .750 is second worst over the first two games of the season in NHL history.
This is the first time the Oilers have opened their season with consecutive losses to the same team, and their goal differential of minus-8 is the worst through the first two games of a season in team history.
Related: Oilers Press Panic Button Early as Roster Changes at Practice
So, yeah, it’s been bad. It’s also only been two games, though. There’s 80 more to play, and that’s just to get to the point when everything resets. Then there’s another 16 games to win after that. Suffice to say, it’s way too early to panic. And with that in mind, here’s a look at where things have gone wrong and how they can go right.
Oilers Have Offensive Depth
The Oilers have only four goals through two games, and they’ve all come from the team’s top three goal-scorers last season: Leon Draisaitl (who has scored twice), Connor McDavid, and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, who all have three points apiece. Beyond that trio, only two other Oilers have even registered a point: Evan Bouchard and Zach Hyman.
For years, a lack of scoring depth beyond Draisaitl and McDavid was one of the biggest factors holding the Oilers back, and that has been addressed in recent seasons. In 2023-24, when Edmonton scored the most goals in the NHL during the regular season, 12 different skaters scored at least 10 goals as a member of the Oilers. Players like Evander Kane and Darnell Nurse won’t be kept off the scoresheet for long.
Oilers Defence Still Causing Concern
That said, even the most prolific scoring teams are going to lose more often than not if they’re allowing six goals per game. And even though Edmonton carried the play for large portions of Saturday’s loss, out-shooting Vancouver 40-16, the Oilers have not been able to keep the puck out of their net.
Twelve goals surrendered on 48 shots. There are no innocent parties in that ghastly stat. But while Edmonton’s goaltenders, Jack Campbell and Stuart Skinner, haven’t been great, they’ve been left out to dry by the men in front of them.
Pick an Oilers blueliner and they have not performed well: Bouchard is minus-4. Philip Broberg and Brett Kulak are each minus-3. Cody Ceci and Nurse inexplicably both jumped in on a rush which led to a two-on-nothing break resulting in a goal for Vancouver on Saturday. Vincent Deharnais used his giant 6-foot-6 frame to screen the netminder on a goal Wednesday — unfortunately, that goalie was Skinner.
Even Mattias Ekholm, who most would agree is Edmonton’s top blueliner, was beaten on what would prove to be the game-winning goal in Vancouver’s 4-3 win.
Ekholm Will Make Impact
Ekholm was making his season debut on Saturday. The veteran blueliner missed all eight of Edmonton’s preseason contests as he dealt with a hip flexor sustained during offseason training, and he looked to be a bit rusty playing his first game in five months.
That won’t be an issue for long, and once Ekholm gets back up to speed, his play on the backend can make the difference between wins and losses. Edmonton has already seen how much of an impact the 33-year-old can make, as the Oilers finished the 2022-23 season going 18-2-1 after acquiring Ekholm from the Nashville Predators on Feb. 28, cutting their goals against average down from 3.28 to 2.67 before and after the trade.
Oilers Look for Win in Nashville
Incidentally, the Oilers’ next game, on the road against the Predators tonight (Oct. 17) will be Ekholm’s first game back in Nashville, where he spent the first decade-plus of his NHL career. Edmonton is looking to get on track and avoid its first 0-3 start since 2015-16.
The last team to win the Stanley Cup after starting the season without a win in its first two games is the 2018-19 St. Louis Blues. The last team to win the championship after opening 0-3 is the 2015-16 Pittsburgh Penguins.
A win against the Predators would calm a lot of nerves in Oil Country. A loss wouldn’t be the end of the world. No matter what happens, when the Oilers wake up tomorrow (Oct. 18), Game 1 of the 2024 Stanley Cup Final will still be seven and a half months away.
