The Edmonton Oilers are among the last four standing in the chase for the 2024 Stanley Cup. While they’re still in the hunt this season, they’ve yet to win a championship with two of the most dynamic players in the world. What do they need to do to keep their contention window open?
Roster Ruminations
NHL Roster
The Oilers got off to a horrid start to the 2023-2024 season and an early coaching change saved their season. They’re still in the hunt for the Stanley Cup this year, kicking off the Western Conference Final tonight against the Stars. Their contention window should remain wide open for at least a few more seasons and the early projections for 2024-2025 show them as a good possession team that could use some improvement in finishing and goaltending.
Salary Cap Management
The Oilers roster is largely set to remain in place for one more season before contracts start to come due for the current core. Their 2024 UFAs are depth players and this year’s deadline acquisitions. Leon Draisaitl has one more year on his deal and Connor McDavid has two remaining. Getting their two superstar forwards extended will be paramount for the Oilers over the next couple of seasons. They will both no doubt receive healthy raises, which could mean some roster renovations around them.
Future Assets
The Oilers have used much of their future asset base to add to their contention roster over recent seasons. Hockey Prospecting ranks the Oilers prospect pool 27th in the NHL and it really doesn’t have much for star potential. They’ve also traded away draft picks and have only one pick before the 5th round this summer.
What’s Next?
The Oilers dynamic duo of Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl are anchor talents that they can build around for a long time yet. Obviously, the key will be signing each of them to extensions when they become eligible over the next couple of seasons. Losing one or both of them for nothing could slam their contention window shut quickly. With both on the roster, the Oilers have a two-headed monster that they can deploy together or separately depending on what the situation calls for. In their mid-prime, they both have plenty left in the tank.
The Oilers depth has been a sore spot for years. They’ve done a better job over the past couple of seasons but there is still room for improvement. As matchups get tougher late in the playoffs, it often seems as if the team with 3 or 4 strong lines wins out more often than not. We saw it with the Oilers bowing out to the Golden Knights last season and we’re about to find out how they match up against a deep Stars team this spring. Opposing teams have to gameplan to stop McDavid and Draisaitl and the Oilers need to find that next level of forward depth that can take advantage of better matchups. Dylan Holloway and Evander Kane are currently playing in the top six and, while they are capable NHLers, they aren’t the kind of dominant second line forwards that can really turn the tide in a series. It would behoove the Oilers brass to find a way to add one or two good top six forwards and push the rest of the existing group down the lineup.
Similarly, the Oiler’s defense corps could use an injection on the second pair. Evan Bouchard and Mattias Ekholm have been outstanding but things get dicey after that on a too regular basis. Darnell Nurse and Cody Ceci were split up late in the Oilers second round series against the Canucks and the Oilers need to take a hard look at what changes they may be able to make to this part of their lineup. Bouchard only has one year left on his current deal and will be due a raise at the same time that Draisaitl’s contract is up. The Oilers could really use some extra cap space and Nurse is tying up over $9MM for the next six seasons. Nurse does have a no movement clause, however, so he would have to agree to any potential move.
To keep their contention window open for the foreseeable future, the Oilers need to ensure they lock up their superstars as they come due for new deals over the next couple of years. Assuming they do that, the middle of their lineup would be the ideal spot to focus their attention to improve their roster.
