It’s an exciting time of year for Oiler fans because the crispness in the Fall air is there to tell us that Hockey is right around the corner. In a very short amount of time the Oilers will be testing their rookies against those of a few other clubs and then main Camp will begin. It’s all happening so fast and I for one cant wait to see how the added depth will impact the NHL club.
The biggest problem that the Oiler had was that they had to compete night in and night out against an unforgiving Western Conference. The fact that they are learning to swim in a shark tank is the exact reason why so few people believe the Oil are capable of making the playoffs, even with all the added skill through the lineup.
It’s going to be rough.
Against the East Edmonton was a .500 club, going 14-14-4. The Maple Leafs weren’t even a .500 club against the Eastern Conference. Sadly for the Oilers .500 was tied for the 2nd worst that any Western club fared against the East (tied with Vancouver but ahead of Dallas). I think it’s safe to say that if the Oilers played in the Leastern Conference there would be much more optimism about their playoff chances.
Against the West, however, the Oilers were brutalized. It was the Shawshank shower scene all year long. The club’s record in their own division was a horrible 15-30-5. What’s worse is that it was a blood bath within their own division, where they went 8-17-4. This is where they need to perform better. No one is expecting them to come out of the Pacific at number 1, but they have to be able to compete for points.
The Pacific’s 3 heavy hitters Anaheim, San Jose, and Los Angeles haven’t gone anywhere. That’s the challenge for the Oil. Against those clubs the Oilers went a combined 3-10-1 for a total of 7 of a possible 28 points.
Here’s the bad news. Those teams haven’t exactly gotten any easier to play against. The Ducks added Kesler who may or may not have a bounce back season and add depth to a forward group that already posed a problem for Edmonton. The Sharks are questioning their identity but have yet to do anything colossally stupid from a player perspective (except maybe add John Scott), and the Kings are laughing at the rest of the NHL who just found out it really IS the Corsi Hockey League.
Here’s better news. Against the remaining 3 Pacific teams the Oilers went a more pleasant 5-7-3 for 13 points of a possible 30. It’s still bad, but given the changes these clubs have made it isn’t unreasonable to think Edmonton is ready to take more points away from them.
The Arizona (blech) Coyotes are one Mike Smith injury away from playing Devan Dubnyk in net and their forwards are a patchwork of bland faceless bodies and aging cheaters (looking at you, Doan). Vancouver will be reliant on the Sedins, Bonino, and Miller, an undesirable place between here and nowhere in the cycle of their team. And the Flames are in the midst of a rebuild in which their last pick is apparently unlikely to crack the squad, as per their GM.
The Oilers are capable, though not at all a lock, of coming in 4th in the Pacific this coming season. They’ve made the changes necessary to stop getting kicked around by the big dogs and maybe even pick on a few of the weaker clubs.
It’s September and anything is possible.
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