5 THINGS: Edmonton Oilers cruise into new year on cusp of playoff spot

Published Jan 01, 2024 • Last updated 12 hours ago • 4 minute read

Edmonton Oilers defenceman Vincent Desharnais, left, scuffles with Anaheim Ducks centre Sam Carrick on Sunday, Dec. 31, 2023, in Anaheim, Calif. Photo by Mark J. Terrill /AP Photo

Another new year for the Edmonton Oilers, the same big question.

Could this be the one the storied franchise has been waiting for since last hoisting the Stanley Cup in 1990?

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Incredibly, 34 years have passed since the end of the glory days in Alberta’s capital, which saw five championships in a span of seven years.

Aside from a blip in 2006, when an undersized squad punched its way up to Game 7 of the Stanley Cup finals, the Oilers haven’t resembled much in the way of their former selves.

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The 2023-24 season began with full expectations placed on the star-studded roster, only to see both the belief and the star power fade into a 2-9-1 reality in a heroes-to-zeroes run that ended with the dismissal of head coach Jay Woodcroft, who saw one bad run put an end to the most successful thing the Oilers had going on behind the bench in the Daryl Katz era.

But in the time since, they’ve managed to turn things around and get themselves at least pointed in the right direction at the turn of the calendar.

Here are some recent factors to consider as the Oilers open their January schedule:

ROAD WARRIORS

If the Edmonton Oilers can start the new year the same way they closed out 2023, they are on their way to eclipsing a season-high eight-game win streak.

Finishing out December on back-to-back three-game road trips surrounding the holiday break saw them go 5-1, including a 4-3 win over the league-leading New York Rangers. Not bad for a team that had previously been 4-8 on the road.

That draws them to an even 9-9 when playing out of visitors dressing rooms as they return to Rogers Place on a five-game win streak to play their first game of the new year Tuesday against the Philadelphia Flyers (7 p.m., Sportsnet).

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PLAYOFF PICTURE

Combined their recently discovered winning ways on the road with a 9-6-1 home record, the Oilers come into January sitting 18-15-1, having gone 16-6 since hitting rock bottom on Nov. 9, when they were the second-worst team in the league and just lost to the last-place San Jose Sharks.

The Oilers are 15-6 under new head coach Kris Knoblauch, including a run of 14-3 since Nov. 24 to climb back into the playoff race.

As of Jan. 1, they sat one place out of the wild-card playoff spot, three points behind the Arizona Coyotes (19-14-2), in a three-way tie at 37 points with the St. Louis Blues and Seattle Kraken — who faced the league’s other newest expansion franchise, the Vegas Golden Knights, in the NHL Winter Classic outdoor game Monday.

MR. 1,500

Philadelphia, meanwhile, comes into their first game of the new year having lost four of their previous five.

With a 19-12-5 record, they are a playoff team currently sitting third in the Metropolitan Division with 43 points.

Powered by the ever-fiery John Tortorella, who just surpassed his 1,500th NHL game behind the bench — the first U.S.-born coach to do so — in his last outing (a 4-3 loss to the Calgary Flames on New Year’s Eve), the Flyers will look to start 2024 off on the right foot.

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The love-him-or-hate-him coach comes into Tuesday’s game with a 723-591-150 record, along with 37 ties, 12 playoff appearances and a Stanley Cup over his 24-year career.

BECOMING PRIMARY

The Oilers are seeing some secondary scorers evolve into more primary roles, including a goal and an assist in Sunday’s 7-2 win over the Anaheim Ducks from Ryan McLeod. He now has five goals and three assists over this five-game win streak as he was bumped up into the top six along the way.

But on New Year’s Eve, it was Warren Foegele claiming the spotlight with a career-high five points off of two goals and three assists. He now has seven goals and 12 assists on the season to leapfrog defenceman Mattias Ekholm for seventh place in team scoring in one fell swoop.

As dominant a result as it was, Edmonton hasn’t fared very well on New Year’s Eve in their existence, improving to just 4-15-5 all-time on games played Dec. 31.

SCORING STREAKS

A trio of Oilers players are carrying over point streaks into the new year.

Connor McDavid, who leads the team with 48 points off of 13 goals and 35 assists, earned an assist Sunday for his seventh point (two goals, five assists) across five straight games.

Leon Draisaitl, who sits No. 2 on the squad with 40 points off of 17 goals and 23 assists, scored a goal and two assists against the Ducks to have three goals and two assists for a five-point streak over his past three games.

Defenceman Evan Bouchard earned an assist Sunday to keep his three-game streak alive, tallying up a goal and three assists in that span.

E-mail: [email protected]

On Twitter: @GerryModdejonge

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