Oilers on the verge of having one of their best seasons in franchise history
The Edmonton Oilers might end up having one of the best regular seasons in franchise history once this one comes to an end next month.
With 19 games left to go in the regular season, the team currently sits with a 39-21-3 record and 81 points. This is good enough for second spot in the Pacific Division. It’s also better than where last year’s Oilers team was at the same time when they had a 34-21-8 record and 76 points with 19 games remaining.
Last year’s team managed to go on an absolute tear at the end of the season, which saw them end with a 50-23-9 record and 109 points. That mark sits as the team’s best season in the past 39 years.
Believe it or not, despite one of the worst starts to a season by an Oilers team, this year’s club could wind up besting that total.
This year's #Oilers team is still outperforming last season's.
2022-23 Oilers (63 GP): 34-21-8, 76pts
2023-24 Oilers (63 GP) 39-21-3, 81ptsLast season the team finished with a 50-23-9 record and 109pts (most points since 1985-86).
Can this year's team surpass that?
— Preston Hodgkinson (@NHLHodgkinson) March 13, 2024
If the Oilers want to surpass last season’s point total they will have to continue to play at a high level. It’s easy to forget that the team ended off the previous regular season on a torrid nine-game winning streak, making up an astounding 18 points in that span. Despite stringing together a few lengthy streaks this season (the 16-game heater the most prevalent) it’s probably unreasonable to expect the same this season.
The team needs 28 points over their last 19 games to match that total and 29 to surpass it. This means the Oilers would need to have a record of at least 14-4-1 to hit the 110-point plateau or a points percentage (PTS%) of .763.
Since head coach Kris Knoblauch took over the team, the Oilers have had a PTS% of .740, so it will not be an easy hill to climb, but the team has shown that they can string together long streaks before.
So, who are the Oilers playing down the stretch and how easy will going 14-4-2 in that span be?
The Oilers don’t have the toughest schedule in the league but they also don’t have the easiest. Sure, 10 of their last 19 games are against non-playoff teams, but they also have to play the Colorado Avalanche three times, and all of the Toronto Maple Leafs, Winnipeg Jets, Vegas Golden Knights, Dallas Stars and Vancouver Canucks one more time as well.
Limiting to just four regulation losses in that span would be a difficult feat for any team in the league, not just the Oilers, but they have proved to be a team that tends to finish the season strong.
We’ll see if they have another long winning streak in them.
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