The Edmonton Oilers have undergone an extreme makeover from the first 25 games of the 2025-26 season compared to the second 25 games.
They’ve gone from being a sputtering beater of an NHL team to a wagon, a strong, dynamic two-way powerhouse.
Grade A shots, goals for, and wins are all up.
Grade A shots and goals against and losses are all down.
The goalies are much better. So are the defencemen and the forwards.
The Grade A shot differential has gone from -0.6 to +4.0 per game.
The goals differential went from -0.6 per game to +1.2 per game.
And the points percentage went from a mediocre .500 to an outstanding .660.
The Oilers are a bona fide Stanley Cup contender again.
trends
What changed?
Five big things.
1. Two big trades brought in new goalies this year, first Connor Ingram before the season began, then on Dec. 12 Tristan Jarry. In the past 25 games the goalie shake-up has cut down on iffy goals against dramatically.
2. Connor McDavid made up his mind to go supernova.
3. A bunch of new forwards on the squad finally started to figure out their roles.
4. The coaching staff finally started to figure out workable lines and d-man pairings.
5. No fewer than 14 Oilers players significantly raised their level of play in one way or another.
players
Connor McDavid went from 1.36 points per game in the first half to 2.04 points per game in the second half. He increased his shots from 73 in the first 25 games to 113 in the second 25.
Curtis Lazar got into more games, took hold of the fourth-line centre spot, and went from -3 in nine games in the first half to +2 in 18 games.
Darnell Nurse increased his physical play and simplified his defensive game, putting slot coverage first and cutting down on his risky decisions up-ice, going from -10 in the first half to +1 in in the second.
Evan Bouchard and Mattias Ekholm ramped up their two-way play, going from -1 and -2 respectively to +9 and +17.
Kasperi Kapanen got healthy, joined a heavy hockey line with Leon Draisaitl and Vasily Podkolzin and put up seven points in eight games. Podkolzin also ramped up his points production, going from 10 to 13 points, with his plus-minus going from +5 to +9.
Mattias Janmark got a minute more ice time per game and found a home with Lazar on the fourth line.
RNH’s two-way play picked up as he excelled on a line with McDavid and Zach Hyman, going from -11 to +8.
Leon Draisaitl and Hyman both ramped up their scoring, with Drai going from 1.16 points per game to 1.65 and Hyman from 0.33 per game to 1.16.
goalies
As for the goalies, in the first 25 games Calvin Pickard had a .847 Save%, with Stuart Skinner at .878.
In the next 25 games, Pickard has been at .897 in seven games, Skinner at .937 in five games before he was traded, Jarry at .907 in five games and Ingram at .917 in nine games.
Can the Oilers keep this up?
Yes, so long as all the players stay healthy.
In fact, it’s possible the Oilers could build on this and become as fearsome a firewagon as the Colorado Avalanche.
How so?
The Oilers should improve as Jake Walman gets healthy, Alec Regula and Spencer Stastney settle down and settle in, Jack Roslovic rediscovers his first half game, Trent Frederic figures out how to build on some recent success and plays consistent hockey, and all the lines and pairings function that much more smoothly.
Much will come down to good health and good goaltending, but Edmonton has turned the corner now.
The Stanley Cup is the limit.
At the Cult of Hockey
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