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The Edmonton Oilers lost to the Columbus Blue Jackets on Thursday night. However, this setback will not slow down Connor McDavid and his teammates as they continue their push for the Pacific Division championship.
Heading into 2023-24, many hockey experts projected that Edmonton, coming off a disappointing second-round exit at the hands of the eventual Stanley Cup champions, Vegas Golden Knights, last season, would get the last laugh this season.
However, they started miserably, firing one of their winningest coaches of all time, Jay Woodcroft, and bringing in McDavid's former junior coach, Kris Knoblauch, who left his job in the AHL for his first NHL head coaching gig.
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Since Knoblauch's hiring, the Oilers are 35-12-1, collecting two win streaks over 10 games, including one (16) that almost broke the NHL record of 17 set in 1992-93 by the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Before reuniting with his former head coach, McDavid scored just 10 points in the first 11 games, a significant slump considering he scored 153 points in 82 games last season.
Since the change, McDavid is right back in the hunt for the scoring title, with 90 points in the past 48 games (1.87 points per game) to lead Edmonton from the bottom of the Pacific Division to within 11 points of the top spot.
Although the Columbus Blue Jackets defeated the Oilers on Thursday, there is no stopping Edmonton from securing a playoff spot and possibly winning the Pacific Division with 20 games left.
Edmonton Oilers reinforce their lineup at the NHL trade deadline
Last year, Connor McDavid took over the NHL and scored at a pace unseen in three decades. Unfortunately, he couldn't carry the Oilers to the Stanley Cup Final when the Los Angeles Kings and Vegas Golden Knights exposed their weaknesses in the first and second rounds.
Instead of retooling the lineup over the summer, general manager Ken Holland opted to run it back with most of the team, which couldn't win more than six playoff games last season. Despite finishing as a Calder Trophy finalist, Stuart Skinner was given the starting role, and Jack Campbell (who makes $5 million) was buried in the minors.
Overall, the Oilers owe much of their success to beating struggling teams and catching elite teams in slumps. Of course, all these victories have energized the fan base, and the hope is that McDavid wins the Stanley Cup this season and signs long-term.
However, the Edmonton lineup still has flaws. Skinner will be relied upon to play almost every night down the stretch and increase the number of games he plays to 60 or more. Hopefully, he isn't burnt out by the end of the regular season and struggles to maintain the high level of play necessary to win the postseason.
Meanwhile, Zach Hyman will finish the season with over 50 goals, thanks to McDavid setting him up for one or two on a nightly basis. He has 19 career playoff goals, so can he maintain his scoring pace when the games are more intense, and he won't find the extra room against weaker teams to bury one home?
After Saturday night's contest with the Buffalo Sabres, the Oilers will have 19 games left and only nine against playoff-caliber teams. Interestingly, the games against top-ranked teams are spread out, so Edmonton can play Calvin Pickard in the net and give other superstars some rest.
Unless they are all-in on trying to win the Pacific Division. Then, it would be all hands on deck for the final push, which includes one more showdown with the Vancouver Canucks on Apr. 13. So far this season, the Canucks have owned Edmonton, going 3-0-0 and outscoring them 18-6.
Although the Kings are nipping at their heels, trailing the Oilers by three points in the standings, they have 19 games left and a favorable schedule with only seven playoff opponents left to play. As another team that fired its coach, the Kings have been 9-4-1 since the beginning of February, while Edmonton has been 9-6-1.
Before the NHL trade deadline, they acquired free agent Corey Perry (seven points), traded for Adam Henrique (42 points) and Sam Carrick (11 points) to help boost the bottom six, and then brought in Troy Stecher (five points) to help on defense.
Ultimately, the Oilers will only advance as far as McDavid and Leon Draisaitl can carry them. The reigning league MVP and top scorer still has 20 games to left to catch Nathan MacKinnon (109 points) in the scoring race. The Oilers superstar could reclaim the Hart Trophy with an outstanding performance down the stretch.
It will not be easy, especially if Edmonton goes down the path of facing the Kings (for the third consecutive season) and then facing off against the mighty Canucks in the second round. However, one thing is almost guaranteed: they are returning to the Stanley Cup playoffs, and anything is possible once the puck drops.
