Each week, we check in with our readers on social media and e-mail to see what’s on top of their mind, explore the hot topics of conversation and answer hard-hitting questions about the Edmonton Oilers. Here are some of the talking points from the past week:

I would love to be proven wrong. The Pacific is so weak that maybe the Oilers can bull their way into a playoff spot. But go up against Colorado, Minny or Dallas? No. Not if they keep taking two periods off. Those are teams, not collections of good players like Edmonton.

— AJ Punk (@SilentSnow89 on x.com)

Ouch. OK, talk about hitting the nail on the head. The Oilers are not playing like a team right now. Certainly not like the teams we saw put together the past two runs to the Stanley Cup Final.

Yes, this year. Heck, it’s not enough to get them there.

The goalie swap in December left them no better off in the crease, but did leave them shopping for a defenceman to fill the void left by moving Brett Kulak in the deal.

This is a classic case of the whole somehow being less than the sum of its parts.

They’re not playing well — certainly not to the level of Stanley Cup contender — and their record reflects it. Yet they’re still in command of their own destiny heading into the final 20 games of the season.

They’re in the thick of the pack leading a Pacific Division that sees all of three points separate first place from the second wild-card spot in the Western Conference.

They’re bleeding goals like never before, yet they are still above .500.

No bull is required, they can hold on and legitimately earn themselves a playoff spot, albeit one in an anemic division.

What they do from there, of course, could very well make this entire discussion moot. Could they defeat a Vegas Golden Knights or Anaheim Ducks-like opponent in the first round? Sure, maybe even the first couple.

Edmonton has been there, done that. And let’s remember, the Oilers are a team that plays better the more they have their backs up against the wall. And maybe that’s been their biggest downfall this year, being in a division where dominance isn’t necessary to keep up with the frontrunners, like we’re seeing over in the Central Division.

Maybe they need to start feeling the squeeze of dropping out of the playoff picture to put together a come-from-behind third period and overtime, like we witnessed in Tuesday’s 5-4 win over the Ottawa Senators.

At their best, could these Oilers give one of those big three a run for their money in the Western Conference Final?

The answer is we simply don’t know, because we have yet to see the 2025-26 edition of the Oilers at their best in a season where they have one single, solitary three-game win streak to their credit.

Well, I guess we are finding out if the Oilers will suck or swim here in their post-Olympic-break schedule. I think history would prove that after any extended break it’s usually quite a bit more to the suck end of things. I really hope I’m wrong.

— Les Derksen

Boy,  you’re not wrong. Two years ago, the NHL all-star break ended the Oilers’ win streak at 16 games, just one shy of the record set by the Columbus Blue Jackets in 2016. Any and all momentum had simply fizzled away by the time the

Last year, the Four Nations Face-Off broke up the schedule for exactly two weeks, whereupon the Oilers resumed by immediately dropping the next four in a row. (After having gone a respectable 5-2-1 heading in).

Add in starts of 1-5-1, 0-3-0 and, most recently, 2-3-1 to the season over the past three years, and you can see why Oilers fans are gun shy when it comes to any sort of down time.

Fast-forward to today, and the Oilers turned what was shaping up to be a 1-3 start coming out of the Olympic break into 2-2.

But it’s only thanks to a 6-on-5 goal by Zach Hyman to lead to an overtime winner by Evan Bouchard, as the Oilers came back from trailing the Ottawa Senators 4-2 after 40 minutes.

After the game, the Oilers talked about the confidence they have in the room to be able to come back from that kind of deficit and pull out a win.

Outside the room is another story entirely, as fans fully realize that sort of strategy is unsustainable, especially in a best-of-seven format.

Simply put, they need to come up with better starts, whether they’re coming out of a break or not.

YOU SAID IT

Dear Gerry:

The Oilers in their last few games and, the 8-1 win in L.A. aside, are bleeding goals at an exorbitant rate, (6 against Anaheim, 5 against San Jose and four in a near-miraculous win against Ottawa). These defensive numbers aren’t conducive with a Stanley Cup contender by any means. So, unless Bowman does some magical — or perhaps mystical — trades before Friday’s deadline, I can’t see this team going far in the playoffs. I hope this isn’t another wasted year for Connor, Leon, RNH, et al. If that ends up being the case, then I think it’s time for Bowman to take his show elsewhere. 

— George Colgan

It’s not just the win column that matters right now as much as the scoreboard that may just be the telling factor when looking ahead at the playoffs.

The Oilers have surrendered four goals or more in nine of their past 11 games (going 6-5-0 in the process). But it’s not just a one-off, it’s a season-long concern that has seen them give up at least four goals 31 times in the 62 games they’ve played so far.

That’s half. Half the time where they need to overcome four on the other side of the scoreboard.

It’s no wonder the Oilers have 30 wins to show for those 62 games, having lost more than they have won. Standings-wise, their 30-24-8 record puts them barely over the even mark, at .548.

And while their 210 goals-against are a big concern right now, it’s one less goal surrendered than by the Anaheim Ducks one place ahead of them in the Pacific Division standings. And the Ducks have scored 20 fewer goals than Edmonton.

So, it’s not the be-all, end all. But it’s certainly a dangerous game to play, trying to outscore your mistakes. And to be sure, nobody is picking the Ducks or the Oilers to come out of the Western Conference right now.

But if Edmonton can find a way to cut down on the goals-against, it might be their most direct route to the success they are counting on to come.

The addition of a defensive-minded defenceman (what a concept, I know!) in the freshly acquired Connor Murphy is a good start, but the rest of the defensive corps needs to pick up their socks, as well as whoever’s in net.

And for Bowman turning the failed experiment that was Andrew Mangiapane into a couple other Chicago forwards (at the price of yet another of the franchise’s dwindling first-round draft picks!), he’s primarily counting on the horses he already has in this race to come through in the end.

Otherwise, it might just spell his end.

For a chance to appear in an upcoming edition, send your questions, concerns and comments on all things Edmonton Oilers related to:

E-mail: gmoddejonge@postmedia.com

On Twitter: @StarkRavinMod

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