Edmonton concluded its pre-Olympic schedule on Wednesday (Feb. 4) by suffering a third consecutive loss, falling 4-3 to the Calgary Flames<\/a> at Scotiabank Saddledome. The two-time defending Western Conference champions now have a record of 28-22-8 for 64 points through 58 games.<\/p>\n Oil Country keeps waiting for this team to hit the switch and start racking up the wins that they did the last couple of seasons on their way to a Stanley Cup Final appearance. But they\u2019ve only won more than two straight games once all season, and that was a modest three-game winning streak at the end of January.<\/p>\n With eight straight games at home from Jan. 18 to Feb. 3, including five against teams not in a playoff spot, the Oilers were well-positioned to put together a stretch of wins. But they fumbled that opportunity, going just 4-4-0 on the homestand (and that record would have been 2-6-0 were it not for a pair of miraculous last-minute comebacks that led to overtime wins).<\/p>\n Now with just 24 games remaining on the Oilers\u2019 regular-season schedule, it\u2019s fair to ask: Is this team a legit Stanley Cup contender in 2026?<\/p>\n Oilers\u2019 Position in Standings Is Misleading<\/p>\n Edmonton currently sits second in the Pacific Division, which is exactly where the Oilers finished each of the last two seasons when they went on to make the Stanley Cup Final. But the Oilers\u2019 position in the standings is a little misleading, because the team is well off its pace from the last two seasons. At the 58-game mark, Edmonton had 74 points in 2023-24 and 72 points in 2024-25.<\/p>\n The only reason Edmonton occupies second place is that its division is so weak. If the Oilers were in either Eastern Conference division, they would be in sixth place and five points out of a playoff spot. If the Oilers were in the Central Division, they\u2019d be tied for fourth.<\/p>\n Looking at the entire league provides a more accurate picture of how Edmonton stacks up. With a point percentage of .552, the Oilers are only 19th among the NHL\u2019s 32 teams. They also have the 19th-most wins, with more than a quarter (8) of their 28 victories coming in overtime.<\/p>\n But the clearest indication that Edmonton does not rank among the league\u2019s elite this season is based simply on how it has fared against said clubs. Against teams currently in a playoff spot, the Oilers are 9-13-3. Against the 11 teams with a point percentage of .600 or better, Edmonton is 5-12-3. In six contests against the top three teams in the Western Conference, the Oilers are 0-5-1 and have been outscored a combined 33-12.<\/p>\n Oilers Have Taken a Step Back in Several Areas<\/p>\n There are several aspects in which the Oilers appear to be weaker than in prior seasons and below the calibre of a championship-contending team.<\/p>\n For one, they lack the depth that was provided in the past by the likes of Connor Brown and Corey Perry, among others. When superstar centres Connor McDavid<\/a> and Leon Draisaitl<\/a>, along with high-scoring winger Zach Hyman and gifted offensive defenceman Evan Bouchard, are filling opposition nets as no other team can, the Oilers appear unstoppable.<\/p>\n But on the nights that the quartet isn\u2019t going full superhero mode, the Oilers struggle to win, and their lack of secondary scoring becomes painfully obvious. McDavid has been held pointless in 10 games this season, and the Oilers have lost all of them.<\/p>\n At the other end of the ice, Edmonton\u2019s defensive play ranges from \u2018adequate\u2019 to \u2018dumpster fire.\u2019 In December, the Oilers effectively made a wholesale change between the pipes, going from the goaltending duo of Stuart Skinner and Calvin Pickard to the netminder tandem of Tristan Jarry and Connor Ingram, and yet the team\u2019s goals-against average (3.29) and save percentage (.878) have only marginally improved.<\/p>\n The fact is, almost any goalie would have a hard time keeping the puck out of their net playing behind Edmonton\u2019s defence. To make matters worse, the Oilers have one of the worst penalty kills in the NHL, with a success rate of just 76.9%.<\/p>\n Oilers May Be Running Low on Gas<\/p>\n Moreover, it\u2019s not only that the Oilers have failed to string wins together, but they\u2019ve rarely played a full 60-minute game. Edmonton has been prone to slow starts and frequent lapses, and gives up goals right after scoring far too often. At times, the Oilers simply look tired, and while that\u2019s not an excuse, it\u2019s worth noting that in each of the last four seasons, Edmonton has played more than 100 games spanning the preseason, regular season, and playoffs.<\/p>\n From 2021-22 to 2024-25, including the regular season and playoffs, Edmonton played a total of 403 games, the most among Western Conference teams by a wide margin, and second in the NHL to only the Florida Panthers. For what it\u2019s worth, the two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Panthers are struggling this season even more than the Oilers, sitting dead last in the Atlantic Division with 61 points, eight back of a wild-card playoff spot.<\/p>\n Oilers Are Not Guaranteed a Playoff Spot<\/p>\n The attitude around the Oilers is that the regular-season standings don\u2019t mean much, so long as they make the playoffs. It\u2019s true that lower-seeded teams make deep postseason runs all the time, and any time you have Draisaitl and McDavid on your team, you\u2019ve got a chance.<\/p>\n But it\u2019s far from a sure thing that Edmonton even reaches the playoffs. Currently, the Oilers are just one point ahead of both the Anaheim Ducks and Seattle Kraken, who are tied for third in the Pacific Division, and both have two games in hand on Edmonton.<\/p>\n If the Oilers fall out of the top three in the division, they will then have to qualify for the postseason via a wild-card berth. As it stands, the first team outside of the wild card is the Los Angeles Kings, who are only four points back of Edmonton and appear primed to make a playoff push after acquiring star forward Artemi Panarin<\/a> in a trade with the New York Rangers this week.<\/p>\n Suffice to say, there\u2019s not much margin for error, and the Oilers have the third toughest remaining schedule in the Western Conference, according to Tankathon<\/a>.<\/p>\n If Draisaitl\u2019s fiery comments<\/a> following Edmonton\u2019s loss to the Flames are any indication, the Oilers are aware of the situation they\u2019re in. But will the alternate captain\u2019s words translate into actions? Or could it be that, in 2026, this version of the Oilers simply isn\u2019t good enough? The hockey world will find out after the NHL resumes play on Feb. 25, when the Oilers visit the Ducks for what will be a critical game.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a>![\"Connor](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Connor-McDavid-Leon-Draisaitl-Oilers-1200x800.jpg\")
Edmonton Oilers centres Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl (Perry Nelson-Imagn Images)<\/p>\n![\"SUBSCRIBE](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Oilers_Banner-1200x122.jpg\")
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