Edmonton Oilers' penalty kill has been a disaster and here's how they can fix it
The Edmonton Oilers have a lot of issues right now, but their penalty kill may be at the top of the list.
Goaltending and defensive play at five-on-five have been lacking through the first two games against the LA Kings, but the leaky PK has caused all sorts of issues. The Oilers have taken 10 penalties and have allowed goals on five of them, giving L.A. a conversion rate of 50 per cent.
The penalty kill has been in such a state lately that it’s tied a franchise record for futility. This is the most PP goals that the Oilers have allowed in the first two games of the playoffs since the LA Kings also scored five in 1989.
Oilers tie franchise record for the most PP goals allowed within the first 2 games of a postseason (5)
Also allowed 5 PPG in 1989 vs the Kings
— Sportsnet Stats (@SNstats) April 24, 2025
The Oilers also did not fare well in that 1989 series with the Kings, as they lost the series in seven games. They did, however, manage to split the first two games of that series, something that the current iteration has failed to do.
This is a stark departure from how Edmonton’s PK performed against L.A., where they had a perfect penalty kill through five games. The Oilers finished 16th in the NHL over the regular season with a 78.2 per cent.
There are a few reasons why the penalty kill is struggling as much as it is. The first, and most obvious, is that the team has experienced significant turnover among penalty killers since last season.
Mattias Ekholm, who is usually the top PK defender for this team, is out with an injury, and the team bid farewell to players like Ryan McLeod and Warren Foegele, who have now taken up arms with the Kings this time around.
The replacement of Adam Henrique, Vasily Podkolzin, and Jake Walman has not been able to perform at that high level on the kill. They have taken on a bit of a passive kill, which has not worked out at all.
A change in strategy, perhaps to a more aggressive kill, could work to their advantage, as the Kings employ a five-forward formation on the power play, which could break down if the Oilers mount a counterattack.
Connor McDavid was used on the kill in Game 2, which didn’t work out as hoped, but there may be something to that. You don’t want to tire out your star offensive players on the PK, but attacking the puck carrier to create turnovers that the Oilers can mount a counter-offensive with could help.
Another reason is that the team is not getting a save from Stuart Skinner, who has faced .736 SV% on the kill, allowing five goals on 19 shots. The chances against have been high quality, but an NHL goaltender playing on a contending team needs to make a save on at least a few of those.
The obvious fix for that is for the goalie to make more saves, but limiting the amount of grade-A chances would also help.
The series is far from over, with Games 3 and 4 shifting to Edmonton. If the Oilers want any hope of getting back into things, the PK will have to step up significantly.