Oilersnation is reviving the Top 100 Edmonton Oilers of All Time list, a project originally created by the late Robin Brownlee in 2015. Adam Larsson comes in at No. 59 on our updated 2025 list. He was not ranked on Brownlee’s original list.
The infamous Taylor Hall-Adam Larsson trade was one of the first Remember-where-you-were when-you-heard-the-news type of deals I can recall. Do you remember where you were when you heard the news in 2016?
I was walking to work that afternoon at my Dad’s shop when he texted me:
“Hall got traded.”
“What?! For who?”
“Larsson.”
Oh, Oliver Ekman-Larsson, that’s a good trade! No, apparently not. Another different Larsson was the newest Edmonton Oiler I discovered when I arrived at work and heard 630 CHED.
As a big of a moment that was, the trade doesn’t have the same gusto all these years later, especially since Larsson is long gone.
The 24-year-old (at the time) became a productive and useful defenceman for the Oilers, particularly in the 2016-17 playoffs. The next year, Taylor Hall won the Hart Trophy in 2018. However, injuries, inconsistency, and Larsson’s eventual departure, makes this trade more footnote than narrative these years later.
For as mad as many Oilers fans were that they didn’t get more for Taylor Hall, Larsson provided quality play for his five seasons in the orange and blue, and we were just as upset that he chose Seattle over Edmonton in free agency.
Larsson was a top prospect in the 2011 NHL Draft, selected fourth overall by the New Jersey Devils after Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Gabriel Landeskog, and Jonathan Huberdeau.
He made a quick jump to North America and played 65 games in 2011-12 and scored 18 points, but the next few seasons saw him split time between New Jersey and their AHL affiliate the Albany Devils.
His game began to click in 2014-15, sticking in the NHL for 64 games, and also providing what would be his second-highest point total in a season with 24.
Then the trade happened June 29, 2016. Like the Tristan Jarry trade from Pittsburgh, the league’s attention whiplashed in the span of an hour, as PK Subban was also dealt from Montreal to Nashville for Shea Weber, and Steven Stamkos avoided free agency and re-signed with Tampa Bay.
However, I can’t quite recall running to the radio to hear Bob Stauffer with the quite same fervour before or since.
It’s easy to forget the state of the blueline that general manager Peter Chiarelli inherited. Larsson was one of the key fixtures to jump-starting a turnaround, and for a little while, it worked.
Notable
From 2016-17 to 2020-21, Larsson was a fixture in the Oilers top-4. Paired with Oscar Klefbom when he arrived, the duo was a mix of good defending with quality offence (Klefbom never had a better season than 16-17).
Larsson provided sandpaper with the ability to lay a big hit, but direct net-front traffic as well in front of Cam Talbot. He was the team’s go-to shutdown defenceman, admired with his play without the puck more than with it.
After the signing of Andrej Sekera the year before, and deals with Kris Russell and Matt Benning before the season began, Larsson was a piece that could focus on defending first, which at times made his statistics hard to gauge.
He would also soak pucks like nobody’s business, willing and able to throw his body in front of a loose biscuit. His impact was felt best watching the games and fans were quick to forget about Hall once the Oilers made the playoffs for the first time in 11 calendar years.
“He’s been so good for us all year, playing a physical game,” Klefbom said of Larsson in April 2017. “For me as a player, (I) can just focus on my game and you know he’s going to take care of his business.”
What a playoffs Larsson had in 2017. After beating the Sharks in six games, Edmonton went up 1-0 against Anaheim in a career night for the Swedish tower, scoring twice and adding an assist, including the game-winning-goal he banked in off of Josh Manson.
Game 5 was a novel of its own. With the series tied 2-2, Andrej Sekera gets injured in the 1st period, leaving the Oilers with five defencemen. Edmonton had a three goal lead, but it’s a game best remembered for the egregious no-calls for goalie interference that allowed a Ducks comeback.
In the eventual double-overtime loss, Larsson played an astounding 44:58 of TOI, nine minutes more than the second highest in Connor McDavid, and 12 minutes more than the next defenceman in Kris Russell. Larsson was doing everything he could in a series that eventually went Anaheim’s way.
Over the next four seasons, his play didn’t quite reach those same highs. In February 2018, his 50-year-old father Robert came to Edmonton for a visit, but a sudden heart attack claimed his life, something that understandably shook Larsson up emotionally.
In 2018-19, he played all 82 games. Often believed to be playing through a back injury, the results were not the same. While he scored a high of 20 points with the Oilers, he was -28 and allowed the most goals against while at 5-on-5in the NHL. It couldn’t all be laid at his feet, the Oilers blueline was brutal, with 11 rearguards suiting up that season. (Remember Kevin Gravel playing 36 games?)
The season began on the wrong foot literally in 2019-20 after fracturing his right fibula when blocking a shot against Vancouver, but he recovered and still played 49 games.
I thought Larsson came back in 2020-21 with a renewed presence to his game, with some of the TOI pressure being taken away with Darnell Nurse, and the all-Canadian division being the game du jour in the return from COVID.
The Story
But alas, after the season was up, he was looking for a change. He was selected by the Seattle Kraken in the 2021 expansion draft, and signed a four-year, $21 million pact with the Seattle Kraken. It was a blow in the short-term for the Oilers.
The truth is, over that five-year span no one played more hard minutes than Adam Larsson. His game was not sexy, but those punishing hits in the corner were met with rousing cheers. Larsson is on the Mount Rushmore of Peter Chiarelli acquisitions (although I don’t believe any rocks will be carved soon), as few players can shake off the expectations of overcoming a trade like that.
He was as honest a hockey player as you can imagine. He represents the good and bad of those teams, from the unexpected highs of the 2017 playoffs to the subsequent sequels and dismissal of Todd McLellan. But for a little while, we watched as Larsson and Klefbom looked like a top pair for many years to come. I respect the hell out of him for it.
What Brownlee said
The Last 10
- No. 69 — Vincent Damphousse
- No. 68 — Dustin Penner
- No. 67 — Roman Hamrlík
- No. 66 — Pat Hughes
- No. 65 — Dave Brown
- No. 64 — Tom Gilbert
- No. 63 — Mike Grier
- No. 62 — Marty McSorley
- No. 61 — Ken Linseman
- No. 60 — Evander Kane
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Oilersnation is reviving the Top 100 Edmonton Oilers of All Time list, a project originally created by the late Robin Brownlee in 2015. Cam Talbot comes in at No. 58 on our updated 2025 list. He was not ranked on Brownlee’s original list.
Cam Talbot was the best Edmonton Oilers goalie of the 2010s and the best the franchise had since Dwayne Roloson.
Granted, there isn’t a murderer’s row of choices, but the 2016-17 season of Talbot alone places him amongst the best Edmonton Oilers goalies of all-time, as evidenced by being our 58th greatest Edmonton Oiler of all-time.
Now, Talbot had his ups and downs, as did the team in the Peter Chiarelli era, but make no mistake – the ability for an Oilers goaltender to play an NHL-leading 72 games in a single season, and win a franchise record 42 games in 2016-17, was unforeseen and simply awesome.
The Oilers got the best version of Cam Talbot there’s ever been, and in the spring of 2017, he was a true reason to have hope in a long-forsaken organization.
Notable
There was no NHL path laid out for Talbot. He played Junior A hockey in Hamilton and went undrafted, going to the University of Alabama-Huntsville of the NCAA where he was named All-College Hockey America Second Team and MVP in the 2010 CHA tournament.
His third college season was standout, and he got a chance to play with the Hartford Wolf Pack of the American Hockey League, after signing a pro contract with the New York Rangers.
He grinded in the AHL to eventually earn a backup role with the Rangers. That turned into a starting job after a bizarre neck injury took Henrik Lundqvist out of action. Talbot performed extremely well, posting a .926 save percentage and started 24 out of 26 games.
That’s when the Oilers came calling. In the off-season, Chiarelli traded a 2nd, 3rd, and 7th round picks to acquire Talbot to become the Oilers’ next starter, as Ben Scrivens et al tended the nets in a horrid 2014-15 season.
Talbot played three-and-a-half seasons with the Oilers, providing a couple of quality years and one outstanding season, before struggling in his final year in Edmonton.
He was traded to Philadelphia for Anthony Stolarz (remember the Oilers had Stolarz!) and has been used as a backup or platoon starter for Calgary, Minnesota, Ottawa, Los Angeles, and now Detroit.
The Story
The move to get Talbot to Edmonton was shrewd and required, and it worked wonders out of the gates. For a team that was second from last overall in 2015-16, he gave the Oilers a .917 save percentage.
As the Oilers improved their blueline with Adam Larsson and got impressive offensive seasons from Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, Talbot was the backbone of a team that would improve from 29th to 8th overall in the NHL, and was only two points back of Anaheim for a division title.
Chiarelli campaigned in the media for Talbot to get Vezina consideration (he finished 4th in voting), and it makes sense why.
He played damn near every game, providing an absurd 42-22-8 record, 2.21 goals against average, and .919 save percentage. That broke a nearly 30-year franchise record set by Grant Fuhr for wins in a season with 40 in 1987-88. He even received one vote for the Hart Trophy.
That set up a playoff run where he played outstanding. Against San Jose, he brickwalled the Sharks for back-to-back shutouts in Games 2 and 3, and only three times in 13 games was his save percentage below .900.
The Oilers advanced to play the Ducks. Unfortunately, the biggest single moment involving Talbot was Ryan Kesler holding his pad open to tie the game in Game 5 and complete a three-goal comeback, (inexplicably uncalled for goalie interference) and eventually win in double OT.
Talbot was sensational in that game, though. He made 60 saves in 84:57 of game action. Of course, the Oilers would fall in seven games, and Talbot would never see the playoffs again with Edmonton, but performances, including Game 2 of that series, were tremendous.
He finished the post-season with a .924 save percentage, and is in the same ballpark of Bill Ranford, Grant Fuhr, Curtis Joseph, Andy Moog, and Dwayne Roloson, as best playoff goaltenders in franchise history.
Early in his tenure, Talbot had a penchant for making huge saves. The one I remember the most is the snow angel stop on Dmitri Kulikov in Florida in January 2016.
He could bail out the team and often did with spectacular efforts.
However, the next season was less Cinderella and a lot more pumpkin for the Oilers, who came crashing back to earth to finish 23rd overall in the league. Talbot played 67 games, but there was some frustration to his game, as the Oilers allowed a goal on the first shot against 14 times that season.
Looking for a bounce-back in 2018-19, it wouldn’t materialize, but neither would the team. Todd McLellan was fired early on after a 9-10-1 start, but Chiarelli would be dismissed just a couple of months later in Janaury.
Talbot had struggled, and before Chiarelli’s dismissal as GM and President of Hockey Ops, he had taken a liking to newcomer Mikko Koskinen, whom he extended to a three-year contract in what would be one of his final acts. The writing was on the wall.
On Feb. 16, 2019, Talbot was shipped out by interim GM Keith Gretzky before Ken Holland took over in May.
The rapid ascension of the Oilers from cellar-dweller to playoff hopeful (and even betting favourite to win the Stanley Cup after leading the Duck series 2-0) has everything to do with Cam Talbot’s play.
He was exactly what the Oilers needed at the time. The idea of an Oilers goaltender finishing 4th in Vezina voting was a foreign concept to fans after the Decade of Darkness, and even now seems implausible.
Talbot continues to plug away in the league at 38-years-old and has played 552 games. For an undrafted, unheralded netminder — that’s impressive. This season, with former adversary John Gibson, they might end the Detroit Red Wings’ playoff drought of nine seasons. Sounds eerily familiar.
The Last 10
If you’re a Battle of Alberta fan, tonight’s the night.
The Edmonton Oilers visit the Calgary Flames at the Scotiabank Saddledome for game two, and if last game said anything, it’s that this one should be worth watching.
Last game, in Edmonton on Tuesday, Leon Draisaitl scored a hat trick — all three goals on the power play — passing Glenn Anderson for third in Oilers franchise history with 419 career goals. Connor McDavid had five assists, becoming the first player with 67 or more points entering the holiday break since Mario Lemieux and Jaromir Jagr in 1995-96. And if you care about the score too, the Oilers won 5-1.
But there’s more.
Trent Frederic fought Kevin Bahl after a blindside hit on Zach Hyman. Frederic had been a healthy scratch the game before, came back in, and immediately decided it was time to throw hands. It was the seventh time in Battle of Alberta history that a fight broke out on the day before Christmas Eve.
Mackenzie Weegar took a two-minute minor for whacking away Darnell Nurse’s stick, then earned a 10-minute misconduct and got kicked out for bashing his stick in protest toward the referee.
So yeah, Calgary should be upset. They sure looked like it.
We can only hope that carries over into tonight.
McDavid is playing the best hockey of his career right now. He’s on an 11-game point streak with 31 points. He’s leading the NHL with 67 points through 38 games. The puck follows him everywhere. Defenders can’t keep up. It’s not fair, Calgary thinks so.
Draisaitl ended a nine-game goalless drought with his hat trick but had nine assists over his previous four games before that. He’s on a five-game point streak. He now sits third in Oilers franchise history with 419 career goals behind Wayne Gretzky and Jari Kurri.
The Oilers went 3-for-6 on the power play Tuesday. Their man advantage registered 40.5 percent in December.
Calgary remembers.
The Flames are 15-18-4 and outside the playoff picture. But they’ve been good at home lately—5-1-0 at Scotiabank Saddledome since December started with 26 goals in those six games. They’ve outscored opponents 13-2 in third periods at home this month. Dustin Wolf has been solid with a .926 save percentage on home ice.
Not only did Calgary get embarrassed at Rogers Place in front of their own fans who travelled to Edmonton, but so did Wold. They’ll want to return the favour on home ice.
Tonight’s game starts at 8 PM MST. And we can only hope that intensity carries over into tonight. Because if Calgary comes out as upset as they looked leaving Rogers Place on Tuesday, this game could get very entertaining very quickly.
Lines and Pairings
RNH-McDavid-Hyman
Podkolzin-Draisaitl-Roslovic
Mangiapane-Henrique-Savoie
Jones-Frederic-Janmark
Ekholm-Bouchard
Nurse-Regula
Stastney-Emberson
Ingram
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Well, that was a let down.
Not only did the Edmonton Oilers lose 3-2 to the Calgary Flames on Saturday evening, but it was a rather docile affair in terms of chipiness. Let’s take a look at what went on in this game.
Seven minutes into the first period, the Flames got on the board thanks to Yegor Sharangovich. The Belarusian forward was all alone in the slot when Adam Klapka’s pass from behind the net connected. Nice shot to rip it past Connor Ingram.
Yegor Sharangovich opens the scoring, 1-0 Flames.
: Sportsnet pic.twitter.com/WbmC3AnnGj
— Oilersnation.com, Oily Since ‘07 (@OilersNation) December 28, 2025
On the next shift, the Oilers drew a penalty to head to their lethal power play. Towards the end of it, the Oilers got on the board, as Evan Bouchard one-timed it past Dustin Wolf to tie the game at one.
Now that's the definition of a Bouch Bomb.
— Oilersnation.com, Oily Since ‘07 (@OilersNation) December 28, 2025
The Flames were given a gift about three and a half minutes into the middle frame, as Alec Regula panicked and centred the pass when he was dealing with a forecheck. Unfortunately, Ryan Lomberg was the first one it, ripping it past Ingram to make it 2-1 Flames.
Ryan Lomberg takes advantage of Alec Regula's turnover and gives Calgary the lead.
— Oilersnation.com, Oily Since ‘07 (@OilersNation) December 28, 2025
Moving to the third period, the Flames scored the game-winning goal with seven and a half minutes left in the game. Just like the first goal, the trailing player wasn’t picked up (this time on a three-on-two), allowing Blake Coleman to beat Ingram after a handful of passes.
The Flames find a third, giving them a 3-1 lead over Edmonton.
— Oilersnation.com, Oily Since ‘07 (@OilersNation) December 28, 2025
With just under five minutes left in the third period, the Oilers got to within one as Connor McDavid pounced on a rebound to extend his point streak to 12 games. Unfortunately, the Oilers were unable to find the game-tying goal despite a few chances.
Connor McDavid's point streak extends to 12 games!
— Oilersnation.com, Oily Since ‘07 (@OilersNation) December 28, 2025
Takeaways…
Tuesday’s game got chippy, but that didn’t carry over to Saturday’s game, which is a bit disappointing. There were a few big hits, but nothing to hype up the two team’s next matchup on Feb. 4.
It’s hard to argue that Connor Ingram shouldn’t be their backup goaltender for the remainder of the season. Facing 32 shots, the netminder was able to stop 29 of them for a .906 save percentage. He’s such a calming presence inside the net and he made a big save late in the game to give the Oilers a chance.
Evan Bouchard had a strong game, playing a game-high 29:04. On top of his seventh goal of the season, the right-shot defenceman blocked three shots and took four of his own. He defended well on the rush as well, breaking up multiple opportunities.
Unsurprisingly, the Oilers’ bottom six was nearly invisible. Matthew Savoie was the lone bright spot, and even then he didn’t do a whole lot. Andrew Mangiapane took a penalty and also had a quiet game. Adam Henrique and Trent Frederic? They were playing? It’s clear that will be an area the Oilers need to upgrade before the trade deadline.
With Connor McDavid’s goal late in the third period, his point streak has now extended to 12 games. Leon Draisaitl, Zach Hyman, and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins picked up two assists, while Bouchard accounted for the other goal and other assist.
This was the fourth time the Oilers had an opportunity to win three consecutive games, and all three times, they’ve come up short. First was a 4-3 overtime loss to the Buffalo Sabres, then a 4-1 loss to the Montréal Canadiens, and then a 5-2 loss to the Minnesota Wild. They need to figure it out.
They’ll have another opportunity to start a winning streak on Monday, as they head to Winnipeg to face the Jets at 5:30 PM MT. Their final game in the calendar year is a matchup against the Boston Bruins on New Year’s eve at 7:30 PM MT.
Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for Oilersnation, FlamesNation, and Blue Jays Nation. Follow her on Twitter @Ryley__Delaney.
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The Edmonton Oilers haven’t lost consecutive games in over a month.
They are 10-5-1 since November 21st, but they will need to be sharper tonight in Winnipeg than they were in Calgary on Saturday if they want to avoid a second straight loss. The Winnipeg Jets are desperate and angry after losing 4-3 in overtime to Minnesota on Saturday. It was their fifth consecutive loss, all by one goal, and they are struggling at 2-6-4 in December.
The Oilers need to be prepared to match the Jets’ intensity, frustration and desperation tonight. Winnipeg played well for 59 minutes against the Wild, allowing only two goals and limiting the Wild’s chances. But then the Wild scored a PP goal late, and Matt Boldy won it in overtime. Jets’ head coach, Scott Arniel, didn’t hide his frustration with the events that led to the Wild tying the game late on a power play.
“That’s a terrible non-call on Josh Morrissey. Absolute terrible non-call on Josh Morrissey,” said Arniel. “It should have been called. Head-first into the boards. And then a ticky-tack little call (on DeMelo) after that. That’s got nothing to do with managing. That was just a bad non-call by the referees.”
I respect that Arniel didn’t back down when a follow-up question asked for more thoughts on the non-call.
“Any other top players in the league, elite players, get hit from behind into the boards, I’m pretty sure that’s a penalty,” said Arniel. “Just a non-call on one of our star players.”
The Jets have slid down the standings in December and woke up this morning in 15th place in the Western Conference with 34 points. Only Vancouver (33) is below them, and the Jets are five points behind San Jose and Utah for the final Wildcard spot. They were not expected to be in this position. They were supposed to be competing with Colorado, Dallas and Minnesota for home ice in the Central division, but they are 29 points behind Colorado, 23 back of Dallas and trail Minnesota by 18. They aren’t finishing in the top three in the Central. Their only chance of the playoffs will be as a wild card team, but they need to start winning to stay in the race.
They’ve been the opposite of the Oilers in December.
The Oilers are 8-4-1 while the Jets are 2-6-4.
Edmonton is first in goals for/game at 3.92 and the Jets are 26th at 2.50
Edmonton is 11th in goals against/game at 2.77 while the Jets are 25th at 3.33.
Edmonton’s power play is 1st at 40 percent and Winnipeg is 25th at 14.3 percent.
The only area they are similar is on the penalty kill where the Oilers are 22nd at 75.6 percent and Winnipeg is 28th at 71.4 percent.
Connor McDavid has been involved in 32 goals (13 goals, 19 points) in December, while the entire Jets’ team has scored 30 goals. McDavid has more points than seven NHL teams have goals so far. He has more than The New York Rangers (31), Winnipeg and St. Louis (30), Los Angeles (29), Vancouver (26), Chicago and New Jersey (25).
To put it mildly, the Jets are struggling, but if the Oilers have a similar start like they did in Calgary they could be in trouble.
“We got off to a slow start,” said Kris Knoblauch. “We had a push in the third period. They were hanging on, and we just couldn’t find that tying goal. We hit some goal posts and missed some chances. We weren’t as sharp as we were before the break. We gave up too many odd many chances, but Connor Ingram was good.”
McDavid hit two crossbars and was stopped on a breakaway, while Mattias Ekholm hit one and Evan Bouchard hit a goal post. The Oilers did have chances, and they didn’t play poorly, they just weren’t as sharp as they’d been prior to the break. They have an opportunity to have an outstanding month if they can defeat Winnipeg tonight and Boston on Wednesday, but losses will ruin a great start to the month.
The Oilers have won three in a row in Winnipeg and are 8-3 since 2021. Strong play before Christmas got them back in the race, and avoiding a two-game losing streak out of the break must be their main focus tonight.
SNAPSHOTS…
— McDavid is having the best month of his career with 32 points in 13 games with two games remaining in December.
[td width="102px"]MONTH[/td][td width="97px"]SEASON[/td][td width="41px"]GP[/td][td width="50px"]G[/td][td width="47px"]A[/td][td width="54px"]PTS[/td][td width="61px"]GWG[/td][td width="66px"]PPG[/td][td width="69px"]SHG[/td][td width="110px"]OT GOALS[/td][td width="102px"]December[/td][td width="97px"]2025-26 [/td][td width="41px"]13[/td][td width="50px"]13[/td][td width="47px"]19[/td][td width="54px"]32[/td][td width="61px"]1[/td][td width="66px"]4[/td][td width="69px"]1[/td][td width="110px"]0[/td][td width="102px"]March[/td][td width="97px"]2023-24[/td][td width="41px"]15[/td][td width="50px"]7[/td][td width="47px"]24[/td][td width="54px"]31[/td][td width="61px"]2[/td][td width="66px"]2[/td][td width="69px"]0[/td][td width="110px"]0[/td][td width="102px"]December[/td][td width="97px"]2022-23[/td][td width="41px"]15[/td][td width="50px"]14[/td][td width="47px"]17[/td][td width="54px"]31[/td][td width="61px"]1[/td][td width="66px"]6[/td][td width="69px"]1[/td][td width="110px"]0[/td][td width="102px"]March[/td][td width="97px"]2022-23[/td][td width="41px"]15[/td][td width="50px"]11[/td][td width="47px"]18[/td][td width="54px"]29[/td][td width="61px"]2[/td][td width="66px"]4[/td][td width="69px"]1[/td][td width="110px"]1[/td][td width="102px"]March[/td][td width="97px"]2017-18[/td][td width="41px"]16[/td][td width="50px"]13[/td][td width="47px"]15[/td][td width="54px"]28[/td][td width="61px"]2[/td][td width="66px"]1[/td][td width="69px"]1[/td][td width="110px"]0[/td][td width="102px"]February[/td][td width="97px"]2023-24[/td][td width="41px"]12[/td][td width="50px"]2[/td][td width="47px"]25[/td][td width="54px"]27[/td][td width="61px"]1[/td][td width="66px"]0[/td][td width="69px"]1[/td][td width="110px"]1[/td][td width="102px"]March[/td][td width="97px"]2018-19[/td][td width="41px"]14[/td][td width="50px"]7[/td][td width="47px"]20[/td][td width="54px"]27[/td][td width="61px"]1[/td][td width="66px"]1[/td][td width="69px"]1[/td][td width="110px"]1[/td][td width="102px"]November[/td][td width="97px"]2019-20[/td][td width="41px"]14[/td][td width="50px"]13[/td][td width="47px"]13[/td][td width="54px"]26[/td][td width="61px"]0[/td][td width="66px"]6[/td][td width="69px"]0[/td][td width="110px"]0[/td][td width="102px"]March[/td][td width="97px"]2021-22[/td][td width="41px"]15[/td][td width="50px"]9[/td][td width="47px"]16[/td][td width="54px"]25[/td][td width="61px"]3[/td][td width="66px"]1[/td][td width="69px"]0[/td][td width="110px"]1[/td]
Wayne Gretzky and Jari Kurri are the only other Oilers to have 32+ points in a month. Gretzky did it 26 times (no joke) with his best month coming in November of 1983 when he tallied 49 points in 14 games. He also had two months with 44 points, one with 43 and another two with 40. Gretzky had 36+ points in a month 14 times. Jari Kurri did it once, scoring 36 points in the same month of November 1983 when Gretzky had 49 points. I wouldn’t be shocked if McDavid keeps rolling and picks up four or five points in the next two games to reach 36 or 37 points.
— McDavid needs three points in his final two games of December to become the first player since 1995 to score 35+ points in one month. Here are the best months since 1996:
You are witnessing one of the most productive months in the last 30 years of the NHL, and what would be the most productive if he produces three points in the next two games.
— McDavid’s success in December has been entertaining to watch and the differences, from his 26 games in October and November to the 13 in December, are significant.
[td]McDavid[/td][td]GP[/td][td]G[/td][td]A[/td][td]PTS[/td][td]EVG[/td][td]EVP[/td][td]PPG[/td][td]PPP[/td][td]SOG[/td][td]TOI/GP[/td][td]Dec[/td][td]13[/td][td]13[/td][td]19[/td][td]32[/td][td]8[/td][td]15[/td][td]4[/td][td]16[/td][td]61[/td][td]22:12[/td][td]Oct-Nov[/td][td]26[/td][td]11[/td][td]25[/td][td]36[/td][td]8[/td][td]21[/td][td]3[/td][td]14[/td][td]74[/td][td]22:59[/td]
The biggest difference is his shots on goal. He averaged 2.84/game in the first two months, but he’s averaged 4.69 in December. If we dig deeper, we discover that he had 141 shot attempts (74 on goal, 21 blocked and 46 missed the net) for an average of 5.42 in Oct/Nov and in December, he’s had 106 shot attempts (61 SOG, 21 blocked and 21 misses) for an average of 8.15. He is shooting way more and getting rewarded.
— This is the 12th time in his career McDavid’s had a point streak of at least 12 games. He’s had streaks of 17 twice, 16 once, 15 twice, 14 once, 13 twice and now 12 four times. His 13 goals are tied for the most goals during any streak. He also had 13 goals and 29 points during his 15-game scoring streak. The most points he’s had was 37 during his 17-game streak in 2022 and the second most is his current total of 32 points and the 32 he had in 2021 during his first 17-game streak.
— The Oilers activated Noah Philp from LTIR yesterday and placed him on waivers. Some asked why the Oilers wouldn’t have placed him on a conditioning stint. If he went on a conditioning stint, he would still be on the active roster and the Oilers would have to send down another player, as they’d have 24 on the active roster, due to them carrying three goalies. If they were certain Tristan Jarry would be out 10 games and 24 days, they could have moved him to LTIR, but they would have to know for certain he wouldn’t return before January 11th. Philp has many attributes that suggest he could be an NHL player. He skates well, has a good shot and is solid defensively. I think the Oilers would have liked to see him play with a bit more of an edge or aggression. When you are trying to break into a lineup, you need to do something to stand out. Take Connor Clattenburg for instance. He’s rambunctious. He was around the net. He only played five games, but he scored once, had two other good chances and he got noticed. You could argue Philp has more raw skill than Clattenburg, but Clattenburg brough energy to the game. The line for many fourth line players and players in the AHL is razor thin, and sometimes it can be as simple as doing things in a game that get you noticed.
The Carolina Hurricanes claimed Philp, and hopefully he gets a shot there.
— I understand Oilers fans frustration with wanting more production from the bottom six. No question you’d like them to chip in a bit more, but scoring goals isn’t a major concern for the team. The Oilers are third in the NHL averaging 3.38 goals/game so far this season and they’ve averaged 3.70 in their last 20 games. Limiting goals is the bigger issue. However, while Oilersnation wants more goals from the bottom six, and that is a fair ask, be glad you are not a Canucks fan right now. Their top four wingers are fighting it right now.
Brock Boeser has one goal in 19 games. Jake Debrusk has one in 16 games, and he will be a healthy scratch in Seattle tonight (bit of an odd decision from my viewpoint). Conor Garland has one in 12 games and Evander Kane has one in 11. Those four have a combined cap hit of $22.825m and in the Canucks’ last 19 games they’ve combined for 10 goals. Zach Hyman has 10 goals in his last 19 games.
The Oilers’ bottom six wingers of Trent Frederic, Andrew Mangiapane, Mattias Janmark and Curtis Lazar have a total cap hit of $9.675m and have combined for four goals in the past 19 games. A lack of scoring from the bottom six wingers isn’t ideal, but I’d rather have that than my top six wingers firing blanks.
LINEUPS…
Oilers…
RNH – McDavid – Hyman
Podkolzin – Draisaitl – Savoie
Janmark – Roslovic – Frederic
Mangiapane – Henrique – Lazar
Ekholm – Bouchard
Nurse – Stastney
Stillman – Emberson
Pickard
Alec Regula will get the night off. He had a tough turnover that led directly to the Flames’ second goal, and he’s been fighting the puck for a while. He’s still young, so giving him a reset isn’t a terrible idea. Spencer Stastney gets promoted to play with Darnell Nurse.
Jack Roslovic will play centre for the first time this season. He was drafted as a centre and played down the middle for Winnipeg and Columbus, but he hasn’t been a regular centre since 2023. The Oilers need more speed at the 3C position, and Roslovic will provide that. He did play centre for 20+ games last year with Carolina. He struggled on faceoffs early in his career, but last year and this season, he has taken 407 draws and won 54.3 percent of them, so he should be okay in the dot.
Eventually, I think we will see Ryan Nugent-Hopkins get an extended look at the 3C position, but that likely won’t happen until the first line cools down a bit, or the Oilers go on a bit of a losing skid.
Calvin Pickard gets his 11th start of the season.
Jets…
Connor-Scheifele-Vilardi
Perfetti-Namestnikov-Iafallo
Barron-Lowry-Pearson
Niederreiter-Toews-Nyquist
Morrissey-Demelo
Samberg-Pionk
Stanley-Schenn
Hellebuyck
On paper, the Jets shouldn’t be the third-worst team in the Western Conference, but through 36 games that is where they are. They rank 21st in GF/GP, 16th in GA/GP, 12th on the PP and 16th on PK. In December they are 2-6-4 and have been outscored 40-30 with a porous PK (71.4%) and a lethargic PP (14.3%).
They really struggle when they allow the first goal. They rank 31st in win% (.118) when the opposition scores first. They are 2-13-2. Edmonton isn’t much better as they rank 29th (.158%) and are 3-13-3 when allowing the first goal. These two teams have combined to win five of 36 games when they allow the first goal. Scoring first could be a big key to victory for either team.
TONIGHT…
Photoshop by Tom Kostiuk
GAME DAY PREDICTION: Oilers bounce back and continue their success in Winnipeg and pick up a 5-3 victory.
OBVIOUS GAME DAY PREDICTION: McDavid extends his point streak to 13 games and produces two points.
NOT-SO-OBVIOUS GAME DAY PREDICTION: Adam Henrique’s goalless streak ends at 31 games. He scores tonight.
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The Edmonton Oilers are back in the win column.
On Monday night, the Oilers defeated the Winnipeg Jets for a second time this month, this time by a score of 3-1. Barring results in the Vegas Golden Knights and Anaheim Ducks games, the Oilers may finish the night first in the division. Let’s take a look at what went on in this one!
The Oilers opened the scoring eight minutes into the second period. Curtis Lazar had a strong forecheck after a dump-in, forcing a turnover. The puck went to Max Jones, who caught Connor Hellebuyck sleeping and slid it five-hole. Good hands in tight from the energy forward.
MAXIMUM JONES OPENS THE SCORING, 1-0 OILERS!
— Oilersnation.com, Oily Since ‘07 (@OilersNation) December 30, 2025
With just over seven minutes left in the second period, the Oilers extended their lead to two, courtesy of the second power play unit. Matthew Savoie carried the puck in, made a pass to Mattias Ekholm at the line, then received it again. Savoie’s shot was deflected by Adam Henrique, with the rebound spilling out to Jack Roslovic. He picked his spot for his 11th goal of the season.
A GOAL FROM THE OILERS' SECOND POWER PLAY UNIT!
Jack Roslovic extends Edmonton's lead to 2-0.
— Oilersnation.com, Oily Since ‘07 (@OilersNation) December 30, 2025
About six minutes into the third period, the Jets were finally able to beat Calvin Pickard to make it 2-1. A turnover from Jones led to a shot on goal. While Pickard was able to stop the initial shot, the rebound came out to the middle of the ice, with Jets captain Adam Lowry making no mistake in scoring in his 800th game.
The Winnipeg Jets give themselves a lifeline, making it 2-1.
— Oilersnation.com, Oily Since ‘07 (@OilersNation) December 30, 2025
The Oilers sealed it with 83 seconds left on the clock, as they won the faceoff, Connor McDavid passed to Zach Hyman, and Hyman was able to put it into the back of the net.
Zach Hyman buries the empty-net, 3-1 Oilers.
— Oilersnation.com, Oily Since ‘07 (@OilersNation) December 30, 2025
Takeaways…
I don’t think Calvin Pickard wants to leave Edmonton. He was the biggest reason that the Oilers won this game. Overall, he stopped 41 of 42 shots for a .976 save percentage. This was the second time where he’s had this type of performance, the other game in a 2-1 overtime loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning earlier this season. In that game, he stopped 33 of 35 shots. He’s definitely earned another look.
It took an empty-net goal, but Connor McDavid extended his point streak to 13 games thanks to an assist on Zach Hyman’s empty-net goal. He’s returned to earth (somewhat) in the last two games, as he just has two assists.
It doesn’t happen often, but Ryan Nugent-Hopkins dropped the mitts in this game. It was a nice little tilt with Neal Pionk for seemingly no reason, but I think Nugent-Hopkins got the better of the Jets’ defender in what was the fifth fight of his career.
For some reason, this game had more scrums than the Oilers’ most recent game on Saturday night against the Calgary Flames. Granted, these two teams had a chippy game in a pre-season matchup earlier this year, so it’s not totally surprising.
This was the second time the Oilers have played the Jets this season, and there was far less scoring than that game. On Dec. 6, the Oilers defeated the Manitoban team 6-2 in their cream-coloured alternate jerseys. They’ll play again on Jan. 8.
The Oilers’ final game of 2025 is on New Year’s eve, as they return home to host the Boston Bruins. That game has a start time of 7:30 PM MT, with the Oilers getting the better of the Bruins in their most recent matchup earlier this month.
Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for Oilersnation, FlamesNation, and Blue Jays Nation. Follow her on Twitter @Ryley__Delaney.
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The Edmonton Oilers gutted out a 3–1 win over the Winnipeg Jets last night, doing so without forward Andrew Mangiapane, who was a healthy scratch.
Perhaps the scratch was simply a reflection of his recent play, or it could signal something more. As Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman noted on a recent episode of the 32 Thoughts podcast, Mangiapane’s first season with the Oilers may be nearing its end, with the forward potentially willing to waive his no-trade clause if Edmonton can find him a larger role elsewhere.
Mangiapane signed a two-year deal worth $3.6-million annually last offseason and carries a no-trade clause. Through 39 games, he’s produced 11 points while playing most of the past month in the bottom six. Overall, Mangiapane has struggled to find consistency or a defined role in the lineup and to me, I’d just chalk it up to some bad juju — being a former Calgary Flame with years wearing the flaming C — who just hasn’t found the right fit while donning the blue and orange silks.
Also, while Mangiapane’s team-worst –16 plus/minus is hard to ignore, once more, perhaps it’s more a reflection of not being the right fit in Oil Country, as he hasn’t had a negative plus/minus rating in the last seven years before this season.
That said, as it appears Mangiapane is open to waiving his no-trade clause for a better opportunity, and despite a down season, he’s been productive offensively in the past, recording 40 points in three of the last four seasons. A change of scenery could make all the difference, and below we’ll take a look at three teams that could swing a deal for the 29-year-old.
The Winnipeg Jets
The Winnipeg Jets have gone 1-6-3 over their last ten games. Beyond their top line of Mark Scheifele, Kyle Connor, and Gabriel Vilardi, the team has faced big challenges in generating secondary scoring, and it seems like a shake-up is needed.
Having said that, Mangiapane’s current nine 5v5 points would rank fifth on the Jets, which would be an upgrade over what they have now, and despite a down year offensively himself, his 11 points are still more than ten of the Jets’ forwards, and his five goals this season would place him ninth on Winnipeg.
With Mangiapane’s rumoured to want a bigger role with another team, the Jets — currently tied for last place in the NHL — seem like a good fit. Again, for whatever reason, his tenure with the Oilers hasn’t worked out as planned, but with Winnipeg’s scoring struggles, he could get a chance in the top six. The team could experiment with mixing and matching its players to see if they can find chemistry and help Mangiapane regain the offensive form that saw him record a career-high 55 points in 2021‑22.
The Jets have just over $7-million in cap space and could easily absorb Mangiapane’s $3.6-million cap hit, and it’s noteworthy that, before the Oilers signed him in the offseason, David Pagnotta mentioned that the Jets had Mangiapane on their free-agent target list.
The Dallas Stars
The Dallas Stars are one of the powerhouses in the Western Conference, and while Mangiapane might not get a top-six opportunity with them, the chance to have a change of scenery and play for a legitimate Stanley Cup contender could make it an appealing destination for him to waive his no-trade clause.
As mentioned, Mangiapane hasn’t played lights-out this season, but his offensive track record speaks for itself, scoring 80 goals over the previous four seasons. The hope, of course, is that he regains his scoring touch, but what would make him appealing to the Stars is adding veteran experience to their lineup for a deep playoff push, as Mangiapane brings more veteran savvy than bottom-six players like Justin Hryckowian, Mavrik Bourque, and Oskar Back.
Also, at 5-foot-10 and 183 pounds, Mangiapane may be undersized by NHL standards, but when he’s at his best, he plays bigger than his frame suggests and has shown a feistiness to his game —though he hasn’t displayed that consistently in his 39 games with the Oilers. According to Natural Stat Trick, Mangiapane is averaging 3.53 hits per 60 minutes this season, compared to nearly 8.03 per 60 in last season’s playoffs, meaning perhaps the 29-year-old reserves his intensity for the postseason, which could make him a good fit for the Stars.
And who knows, if they face the Oilers again in the postseason, the team that knocked them out of the Western Conference Final the past two seasons, they might be trading for a player with a chip on his shoulder who would be highly motivated to take on his former team. That said, with just over $3-million in cap space, the Stars would need to send a player back to Edmonton or perform some cap gymnastics to make the deal work.
The Toronto Maple Leafs
Much like the Jets, David Pagnotta noted last June that the Toronto Maple Leafs were interested in Mangiapane before he signed a two-year deal with the Oilers.
Any trade for the 29-year-old would require him to waive his no-trade clause, but one appealing aspect of a move to the Leafs is that he’d be returning home to his hometown of Toronto.
For the Maple Leafs, just like the other teams mentioned in this piece, the main hope is that a change of scenery would help Mangiapane find consistency, and for them, a near one-for-one trade for another inconsistent forward, Matias Maccelli — who was a healthy scratch for ten games between Nov. 22 and Dec. 20 but has three points in his last three games — could be a deal both teams would be willing to make.
Mangiapane and Maccelli have similar traits: left-shot, both under six feet, roughly around 185 pounds, and both have shown they can eclipse the 40-point mark in the past, though they’re having down seasons with their current clubs. Maccelli has produced 13 points — two more than Mangiapane — in 12 fewer games, and they earn roughly close to the same per season (Maccelli at $3.425-million compared to Mangiapane’s $3.6-million annually). However, Mangiapane has one more year on his contract after this season, which likely means the Oilers would need to include a draft pick if a deal were to happen.
In addition, considering how former Oiler Troy Stecher has performed for the Leafs — averaging over 20 minutes a night and posting six points in 19 games, just one point shy of his total last season with the Oilers in 47 fewer games — perhaps the Maple Leafs would take another gamble and try their luck at acquiring another player from the Northern Alberta squad, in Mangiapane.
From the Oilers’ perspective, trading Mangiapane could open a spot for a youngster like Quinn Hutson or Isaac Howard, who are playing well in the AHL, but bringing in a proven past point producer like Maccelli, who has tallied 57 NHL points in a season, is never a bad move, and it’s one they might be open to, considering it was rumoured they were interested in him last offseason. In the best case, he regains his scoring touch; in the worst case, he finds himself in the press box.
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The Alec Regula experiment has hit a stumbling block recently with the Edmonton Oilers, so much so that Kris Knoblauch opted to play Riley Stillman, a career AHLer, in his spot against the Winnipeg Jets on Monday night.
Regula was a mystery coming into the season. He was claimed off waivers last December but never played a game due to a knee injury. Edmonton gave him a new two-year contract in May with an average annual value of $775k. Taking the chance on a right shot, 6’4″, mid-20-year-old defenceman is well worth the risk, especially for a team in Edmonton that is actively trying to get younger.
The Jake Walman injury has given Regula extra minutes alongside Darnell Nurse on the Oilers’ second pair. With Walman in the lineup, Regula averaged 12:05 in time on ice in nine games, but that shot up drastically from November 21st onwards. He has now averaged 17:18 in the 14 games since, and with that, mistakes have started to trickle more frequently into his game.
Regula played 13:06 against Calgary on December 27th. That was his lowest time-on-ice since Tampa Bay on November 20th, which was the last time Walman was in the lineup.
I took a look at Regula’s game, shift by shift, and broke down where things went right and wrong for him. To preferce, I am no tactician, so don’t expect to hear much about fancy terminology. Instead, it’s a vision of what the average viewer would see when watching Regula and the Oilers play.
Also, I graded each shift with a positive, neutral or negative, which is tallied later on, along with where his shifts started and who he played with.
First Period
Shift 1
Zone Start: OZ on the fly.
Linemates: Nurse and the Oilers’ third line.
He was able to help maintain zone time with a couple of plays on the blueline. He has offensive instincts, like coming off the blueline and getting pucks on net. Should’ve attacked Backlund more with this stick at the Oil blueline, but Backlund dumped the puck.
Result: Positive.
Shift 2
Zone Start: OZ on the fly.
Linemates: Darnell Nurse and Oilers fourth line, then third line.
Morgan Frost attacked him with speed, but he stayed with him, preventing the shot. It felt unorthodox, but the job was done. He also made a good stick on puck defensive play, neutralising the Calgary attack.
Result: Positive.
Shift 3
Zone Start: Defensive zone start on the fly.
Linemates: Ty Emberson and the Oilers second line.
1-0 Calgary – The puck got by him twice on the boards, then Emberson wasn’t able to handle it. He made an effort to get in front to block the shot, but wasn’t quick enough. He struggled on the boards throughout this game. He needs to be more alert and get to pucks first, especially on the first attempt. On the second try, you’ve got to bring that puck down and clear it.
Result: Negative.
Shift 4
Zone Start: Neutral Zone.
Linemates: Nurse and the Oilers’ second line.
Starts right after the goal and doesn’t touch the puck. Jack Roslovic draws a penalty.
Result: Neutral.
Shift 5
Zone Start: Neutral Zone.
Linemates: Nurse and the Oilers’ fourth line.
A mistake was made when Ryan Lomberg put him under pressure at the Oilers blueline, which then kept his line in the zone. Lomberg continues his heavy pressure, knocking the puck loose from Nurse, then Regula puts up the boards to two other Flames forwards, causing a turnover. Calgary then kept the puck in the OZ for the next 30ish seconds until Connor Ingram made the save.
Result: Negative.
Shift 6
Zone Start: Offensive zone start on the fly.
Linemate: Evan Bouchard and the Oilers’ top line.
Nothing happens. The shift ends after Zach Hyman and Adam Klapka both receive minor penalties.
Result: Neutral.
Shift 7
Zone Start: Offensive zone start on the fly.
Linemates: Darnell Nurse and the Oilers’ third line.
Calgary had one shot, but a low-event shift. Regula did well, making a couple of passes under pressure, with one resulting in the Oilers breaking the puck out before he went to the bench.
Result: Positive.
Shift 8
Zone Start: Neutral zone on the fly.
Linemates: Darnell Nurse and the Oilers’ second line.
He got caught in no man’s land when Nazem Kadri attacked him with speed. It looked like he expected Leon Draisaitl to handle him, so he moved his stick out of the lane to worry about the winger. Kadri had a great chance one-on-one, but Ingram made the stop.
Result: Negative.
Shift 9
Zone Start: Defensive Zone.
Penalty killing shift with just under 30 seconds to play in the first period. Nothing happened.
Result: Neutral.
Second Period
Shift 10
Zone Start: Offensive zone start on the fly.
Linemates: Darnell Nurse and the Oilers’ second line.
He made a couple of good stick plays, getting his length in lanes, preventing a pass, then deflecting a shot. The shift ended after McDavid hit the crossbar.
Result: Positive.
Shift 11
Zone Start: Offensive zone start on the fly.
Linemates: Darnell Nurse and the Oilers’ third line.
Calgary Goal. The shift started well for Regula, preventing Jonathan Huberdeau from exiting the defensive zone. He followed that up by getting to a puck quickly and breaking out efficiently. However, once it came back into the defensive zone, he fumbled under the pressure and passed the puck directly to Lomberg, who made it 2-1 Flames.
Stepped up on Huberdeau to knock the puck back into the OZ. Quick to puck on back well and good breakout. Panicked with the puck under pressure and passed it right to Lomberg.
Result: Negative.
Ryan Lomberg takes advantage of Alec Regula's turnover and gives Calgary the lead.
— Oilersnation.com, Oily Since ‘07 (@OilersNation) December 28, 2025
Shift 12
Penalty kill shift. He didn’t touch the puck.
Result: Neutral.
Shift 13
Zone Start: Offensive zone.
Linemates: Darnell Nurse and the Oilers’ second line.
Regula touched the puck once before his shift ended.
Result: Neutral.
Shift 14
Zone Start: Offensive zone.
Linemates: Darnell Nurse and the Oilers’ fourth line.
Limited puck touches. He did get checked heavily by Ryan Lomberg, but he did win the race to the puck, so no harm done.
Result: Neutral.
Shift 15
Zone Start: Offensive zone.
Linemates: Darnell Nurse and the Oilers third line.
Regula had a quick shot off the faceoff win from Adam Henrique, but the first man blocked it. Later, he lost a footrace to the puck he should’ve likely won, and then wasn’t able to tie up his man on the boards. Nothing resulted from the Flames’ possession.
Result: Negative.
Third Period
Shift 16
Zone Start: Offensive zone.
Linemates: Darnell Nurse and the Oilers third line
Basically played the whole shift in the offensive zone. He had a couple of shot attempts that didn’t get through. Reloaded possession from the blueline once and, when the puck came out, made a good stretch pass to Andrew Mangiapane to get the play back into the OZ.
Result: Positive.
Shift 17
Zone Start: Defensive zone start on the fly
Linemates: Darnell Nurse and the Oilers fourth line
There was limited action continuing a good start to the period.
Result: Neutral.
Shift 18
Zone Start: Defensive zone.
Linemates: Darnell Nurse and the Oilers fourth line.
Easily Regula’s best shift of the game. He grabbed the puck, walking it down the wall, and then drove the net for a great chance. He forced Dustin Wolf to make a good save for him. He followed that up with a good stretch pass to Mattias Janmark, which he is good at.
Result: Positive.
Shift 19
Zone Start: Defensive zone start on the fly.
Linemates: Darnell Nurse and the Oilers fourth line.
Regula showed good aggression with his pinching early in the shift. He finished it by forcing another puck to the net from a bad spot. That resulted in a two-on-one against, which faded, then he blocked the shot.
Result: Negative.
Final Results
Positive Shifts: 6
Neutral Shifts: 7
Negative Shifts: 6
After watching the film from the Calgary game, I learned a lot about Regula. About who he is and what he can become.
Today, he is a player who struggles with consistency, which is normal for a player who has played fewer than 50 games in the NHL. The footspeed and stick coordination under pressure need to improve. Additionally, he needs greater awareness of the boards. That’ll help prevent fewer chances against.
He showcased his offensive abilities in this game, too, but he needs to trust himself. No more pointless shots from the point that are getting blocked by the first defender. They’re useless. Instead, Regula needs to use his feet and lift his head. He showed that he can beat a player one-on-one, creating more ice and opportunity for himself.
The Oilers have a player in Regula. They see that, too. The healthy scratching against the Jets was appropriate, and so was dialling back his minutes in Calgary. It’s clear he performs best when he plays around 12 to 14 minutes, not when he’s approaching 20.
Having Walman back will be greatly appreciated, and giving Regula a long leash during this stretch will also prove beneficial.
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The Edmonton Oilers have played the most road games in the NHL through 40 games, with 16 at home and 24 on the road. That is the largest split differential in the NHL, but that will change starting tonight.
Edmonton plays 12 of their next 16 games at home, and by the end of January, they will have played 28 at home and 28 on the road. The next 32 days present a fabulous opportunity for the Oilers to extend their lead atop the Pacific Division.
Before we look ahead, here is a look at the road-home splits of all the 32 teams for their first 40 games. Some teams have yet to play 40 games, but I simply included their upcoming games to reach the totals.
[td]TEAM[/td][td]ROAD-HOME[/td][td]EDM[/td][td]24-16[/td][td]UTA[/td][td]23-17[/td][td]NYR, VAN, WPG[/td][td]22-18[/td][td]BUF, CBJ, CGY, COL, LAK, NJD[/td][td]21-19[/td][td]ANA, CHI, DAL, MTL, OTT, PHI, PIT, SEA, TBL, VGK[/td][td]20-20[/td][td]BOS, CAR, DET, NSH, NYI, SJS, WSH[/td][td]19-21[/td][td]MIN, STL[/td][td]18-22[/td][td]TOR[/td][td]16-24[/td][td]FLA[/td][td]15-25[/td]
It is interesting to note the difference between Edmonton and Utah compared to Toronto and Florida. I’d argue the heavy road schedule will benefit the Oilers and Mammoth in the second half, while Toronto and Florida have a much tougher second half of the season as they battle for playoff spots in the Eastern Conference. Starting January 4th, the Panthers enter a stretch where they play 14 consecutive games in 14 different cities. They start in Florida, then have six road games, home for one, on the road for three, home for one, in St. Louis and then back home.
Meanwhile, the Oilers don’t have another road game in the Eastern Conference this season. Edmonton plays five road games in the Central time zone, four in Mountain and eight in the Pacific. They also have 25 home games, which means they are only out of their time zone for 13 of their remaining 42 games. Not only do they play significantly more home games in over their next 16 games, but they also face three teams currently ahead of them in the standings. They host Philadelphia this Saturday, the New York Islanders on January 15th and the Minnesota Wild on the 31st.
The Oilers currently have 46 points, Philly has 47, the Islanders have 48 and the Wild have 54. The Oilers other 13 opponents are below them in the standings and eight of them are currently not in a playoff position. Granted, many of them are within two-four points of the second Wildcard spot, but the Oilers don’t face many top teams in the next 16 games.
An abundance of home games combined with average to below average opponents present a wonderful opportunity for the Oilers to create some space between them and Anaheim, Vegas and Los Angeles in the Pacific Division. From today to the end of January the Ducks have five home games and 10 on the road and 10 of their games are against teams in a playoff spot. Meanwhile the Kings play 16 games, split evenly at eight at home and eight on the road, but they play 11 games v. playoff teams. Vegas has a heavy schedule with 17 games, but only five are against playoff teams with eight at home and nine on the road.
With a victory tonight the Oilers can finish off the 2025 calendar on a 10-4-1 run. And the schedule and quality of opponent suggest they could have a very similar record in January.
SNAPSHOTS…
— Connor McDavid has already set a new career high with 33 points in one month, which ties him with Steven Stamkos for the most in the 2000s. Mario Lemieux had 34 points in December of 1995. If McDavid scores two points tonight and reaches 35 points in a month, he’ll become only the 7th player to do it.
Wayne Gretzky did it 20 times, Mario Lemieux nine while Pat Lafontaine, Jari Kurri, Bryan Trottier and Bobby Clarke did it once.
— Zach Hyman has 11 goals and 19 points in his last 15 games. His empty net goal in Winnipeg was his 155th as an Oiler and tied him with Craig MacTavish for 15th most in franchise history. He needs 11 more goals this season to pass Doug Weight (157), Shawn Horcoff (162) and Jordan Eberle (165) and that would mean the current Oilers would have four of the top 12 goal scorers in franchise history. Hyman, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (8th with 282), McDavid (6th with 385) and Draisaitl (3rd at 417).
— Boston’s Morgan Geekie and Nathan MacKinnon are the only players with 50 goals in the 2025 calendar year. Jason Robertson has 49, while Draisaitl and David Pastrnak have 45. Geekie has quietly emerged as one of the best goal scorers in the NHL recently. It will be interesting to see what pace he holds in 2026.
— McDavid (115 in 73 games), Pastrnak (110 in 78 GP) and Draisaitl (106 in 74 GP) are three of the five players with 100+ points.
— Calvin Pickard stopped 41 of 42 shots during Monday’s win in Winnipeg. It was the 10th time in his career he made 40+ saves in a game, but only the third time he won. He stopped 41 of 41 against the Penguins in March 2024 with the Oilers and stopped 41 of 43 against Minnesota in November of 2016 as a member of the Avalanche. Pickard needed a big game, and he came through. It will be interesting to see what the Oilers do with their goalies when Tristan Jarry returns. Connor Ingram needs to play 10 games and be on the roster for 24 days before he requires waivers. He’s been on the roster for 12 days, and he’s played in three games. Ideally, the Oilers would like to keep all three in the organization in case of injury. If they had to choose, I’d assume they’d expose Pickard to waivers before Ingram, but if Ingram has only played eight or nine games, when Jarry returns, would they opt to send Ingram down just to save him from being claimed, but also keep him playing in the AHL, while the NHL takes three weeks off for the Olympics? Some interesting strategies could occur.
— The Oilers are 17-1-3 when scoring first. They have the 5th best winning% (.810). They’ve won 11 in a row when scoring first.
— Maybe I shouldn’t be surprised, as many like to overreact to decisions, but it was amazing to see how many claimed the Oilers losing Noah Philp on waivers was horrible asset management. Philp has played 30 NHL games. This season, he had the worst GF% among any forward and the worst expected GF%. He is 27 and has yet to find a consistent role in the NHL, yet some acted like he was a proven NHLer who was a huge loss. I hope for Philp’s sake that he becomes a regular in the NHL, but at this point, that is big if.
— Some have asked why the Oilers haven’t honoured Leon Draisaitl’s 1000th point yet. They wanted to wait and do it when Leon’s parents, Sandra and Peter, and his sister, Kim and her family could attend. It will occur on Saturday, January 10th, against the L.A. Kings and Leon’s family will be there to celebrate with him. It is important for his family to be there, and if you missed it, I did speak to his family about Leon’s journey from Germany to becoming an NHL superstar. You can read it here.
LINEUPS…
Oilers…
RNH – McDavid – Hyman
Podkolzin – Draisaitl – Mangiapane
Janmark – Roslovic – Savoie
Jones – Henrique – Frederic
Ekholm – Bouchard
Nurse – Regula
Stastney – Emberson
Ingram
Andrew Mangiapane returns to the lineup and gets a boost up to the top six. Interesting. Alec Regula will draw back in and face his former team tonight while Connor Ingram will start in goal. The Oilers are 6-2-1 against the Bruins over the past five seasons. They are 5-0 in Boston, but oddly only 1-2-1 on home ice.
Bruins…
Steeves – Lindholm – Geekie
Khusnutdinov – Minten – Pastrnak
Mittelstadt – Zacha – Arvidsson
Eyssimont – Kuraly – Kastelic
Zadorov – McAvoy
Lindholm – Aspirot
Lohrei – Peeke
Swayman
The Bruins limp into Edmonton winless in six games going 0-4-2. They lost at home to the Oilers on December 18th, lost to Vancouver in a SO, then lost to Montreal and Ottawa, and after the Christmas Break they lost in Buffalo and lost in OT in Calgary two nights ago. They’ve struggled to score lately with 11 goals during the six-game winless streak.
TONIGHT…
Photoshop by Tom Kostiuk
GAME DAY PREDICTION: Oilers continue their strong play at home in December and improve to 6-0-1 in their last seven games with a 5-2 victory.
OBVIOUS GAME DAY PREDICTION: McDavid extends his point streak to 14 games and has another multi-point game.
NOT-SO-OBVIOUS GAME DAY PREDICTION: Hyman produces his second multi-goal game of the season.
ARTICLE PRESENTED BY bet365
Death, taxes and the Edmonton Oilers struggling in matinee games.
The Oilers welcomed the Philadelphia Flyers to Rogers Place on Saturday afternoon for Game 42, officially kicking off the second half of their season. But much like the Oilers started the first half, they were flat, falling 5-2.
Matinees haven’t been kind to the Oilers in recent years, as with Saturday’s lost, they’ve fallen to 5-10 in weekend afternoon games.
Let’s take a look at what happened.
Despite the Oilers having a solid first few minutes of the game, Flyers rookie winger Denver Barkey would be the one to open the scoring just over seven minutes into the game, notching his first NHL goal. He found some space in the middle of the ice on a Flyers breakout, sneaking past Darnell Nurse, and a lethargic Jack Roslovic wasn’t able to catch him as he cashed in a quick feed from Owen Tippett.
The Flyers open the scoring as Denver Barkey gets his first NHL goal against the Edmonton Oilers.
— Oilersnation.com, Oily Since ‘07 (@OilersNation) January 3, 2026
Just over three minutes later, defenceman Travis Sanheim would make it 2-0, wiring a shot past Calvin Pickard.
Travis Sanheim extends the Flyers' lead to 2-0.
— Oilersnation.com, Oily Since ‘07 (@OilersNation) January 3, 2026
That lead would extend to 3-0 with five minutes left in the period, the Oilers forwards were caught up the ice when Bouchard’s breakout pass was picked off, leading to a four-on-three going back into Edmonton’s end. Cam York found a soft spot in the middle of the ice, shovelling the puck towards the net as it bounced off Bobby Brink’s skate and in.
A minute later, Nurse finally got the fight he’s been looking for for weeks, dropping the gloves with tough guy Garnet Hathaway where the pair rag dolled each other without much damage being done. You can see the scrap on HockeyFights.
The scrap lit a bit of a fire in the Oilers’ bellies, as Connor McDavid would get sprung on a breakaway, letting a shot go that beat Dan Vladar clean.
THE OILERS SCORE THEIR FIRST GOAL IN 2026, FROM CONNOR MCDAVID!
— Oilersnation.com, Oily Since ‘07 (@OilersNation) January 3, 2026
Edmonton pushed in the second generating some of their best looks, and with Flyers winger Matvei Michkov in the penalty box for high-sticking Mattias Janmark, Evan Bouchard let a Bouch Bomb go from the point that found its way home for his eighth of the season.
EVAN BOUCHARD ON THE POWER PLAY!
— Oilersnation.com, Oily Since ‘07 (@OilersNation) January 3, 2026
Speaking of shots from the point, Nick Seeler scored the Flyers’ fourth of the night nine minutes into the third period. Rodrigo Abols won a faceoff back to the point and a soft shot from Seeler found its way into the back of the net.
Nick Seeler has scored against the Oilers.
— Oilersnation.com, Oily Since ‘07 (@OilersNation) January 3, 2026
Owen Tippett would add an empty net goal to seal it.
Takeaways…
- That was nothing short of a lifeless performance as a whole from the Oilers, who once again come up flat in an afternoon game. Two of the Flyers’ goals came off the rush and transition game — an area the Oilers just can’t seem to clean up.
- Nurse’s scrap came at a great time and gave the group some jump. He’s been itching for one for a while, and was on the ice for the first two Flyers’ goals. He said during a first intermission interview with Gene Principe that he wasn’t doing much out there, and wanted to provide a spark. You could say that again.
- The Kid Line played 6:42 together at five-on-five, getting outshot 7-1, and outscored 1-0. They spent their minutes against the third and fourth lines, and that fourth line is a handful with a few big bodies there. The second line of Leon Drasiaitl, Jack Roslovic and Vasily Podkolzon, meanwhile, had a tough day, getting outshot 7-3 and outscored 2-0.
- Edmonton will have a chance to get back in the win column Tuesday when the Nashville Predators roll into town.
Zach Laing is Oilersnation’s managing editor, and The Nation Network’s news director. He also makes up one-half of the Daily Faceoff DFS Hockey Report. He can be followed on X at @zjlaing, or reached by email at [email protected].
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