Edmonton Oilers: 5 factors behind fast start to the season

We consider five factors which have contributed to the Edmonton Oilers’ encouraging but surprising 7-1-0 start to the 2019-20 season.

Hockey fans around North America will be rubbing their eyes and shaking their heads in disbelief, after viewing the NHL standings on Saturday morning. Sat right there at the top of the perch with 14 points, are no other than the Edmonton Oilers.

That would be the same Oilers team which has only made the playoffs once in the previous 13 seasons. However, things seem to be changing for the better in Edmonton.

The latest example of this came on Friday night when the Oilers ground out a hard-fought 2-1 win over the Detroit Red Wings. In fairness to the team, the game arguably wasn’t as close as the scoreline suggests, as they actually hit the iron four times.

Regardless, the Oilers improved their record to 7-1-0 in eight games, with fans around Canada and the United States wondering how they’ve managed to achieve this. Let’s look at that right now, with five factors that have contributed to the fast start in Edmonton.

1. Comeback Kids

There are plenty of hockey media analysts who remain unconvinced by the Oilers’ excellent start to the season, with some pointing to the first five games as evidence. More specifically, the fact the team had to overcome a deficit on each occasion to win.

However, we would argue that this actually proves Edmonton is a good team. Surely it’s a sign of mental fortitude hard work and togetherness when a team can repeatedly overcome adversity to succeed?

Perhaps the best example of this never-say-die attitude came in the second game of the season, at home to the Los Angeles Kings. Consider that the Oilers came from behind four times during the course of the 60 minutes, to secure a dramatic 6-5 win.

No doubt critics will point to the Kings being an average team, but to repeatedly recover from deficits throughout a game is a good sign. And in this respect, Edmonton’s ability to continually come back after falling behind in contests should stand them in good stead during the coming months.

2. Special teams

Last season, the Oilers were actually pretty decent when it came to the power play, ranking ninth in the league with a 21.2 percent success rate. However, they’ve taken it to another level so far in 2019-20, leading the NHL at 41.7 percent.

Of course, we have to remind ourselves it’s still early in the season; no one would expect Edmonton to keep up such an eye-popping level of success. Regardless, the signs are extremely encouraging at this stage of the proceedings.

Talking of which, let’s also look at how the Oilers are performing when they are short-handed. Following Friday night’s slate of games they are sixth-best in the NHL, at 88.9 percent.

Now contrast this to last season, when Edmonton had the second-worst penalty kill unit in the league, at 74.8 percent. Even if they don’t sustain their current level of effectiveness, they’re going to finish in a much healthier position.

3) Connor McDavid

What more can you say about Connor McDavid? Well…..it turns out quite a bit. He already has a ridiculous amount of awards and statistical achievements from his first four seasons in the NHL, but he seems to have become even better in 2019-20.

After tying a career-high with five points in the 6-3 win over the Philadelphia Flyers, McDavid became just the second player in Oilers history to have 17 points through the first seven games of the season. The other player is a certain Wayne Gretzky, who achieved it five times during his time in Edmonton.

Even if McDavid doesn’t maintain his early pace, he still looks all but certain to once again reach 100 points and challenge for yet another Art Ross Trophy. He would become just the ninth player to win it three times. More generally speaking, his all-around game and confidence continue to grow, which is a scary proposition for the rest of the league.

Of course, the 22-year-old will tell you all he cares about is winning, something which the rest of the team is helping him achieve with more consistency so far in 2019-20. Make no mistake about it though, the Oilers won’t be making the playoffs without the contributions of arguably the best player in the NHL.

4) Leon Draisaitl & James Neal

McDavid sits tied at the top of the NHL points chart following Friday’s slate of games. Just a point behind in third place is Leon Draisaitl, continuing his form from last season when he had a career year and finished with 105 points.

Draisaitl has an almost unhealthy obsession with continually wanting to become a better player, and in the process has proved the Oilers made the right choice in drafting his third overall in 2014. Critics have previously pointed at his lack of consistency, but this is becoming less of an issue and will only mean good things in Edmonton.

Another player worthy of mention is James Neal, who leads the NHL with nine goals entering Saturday’s action. After a terrible season in 2018-19, he appears rejuvenated and showing once again that he is a quality sniper.

In truth, it shouldn’t be expected for Neal to perform at such a high level for the duration of this campaign. In the meantime, however, the Oilers must take advantage of his play as part of their quest to continue racking up the wins.