Road Warriors

After kicking off their 2015-16 schedule with five of their first six games on the road, the Edmonton Oilers played seven of their next eight on home ice. That run came to an end on Friday evening when Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins paid their one and only visit of the season to Rexall Place. 

Giving Taylor Hall His Due

Perception can sometimes be a funny thing. While he has been among the NHL’s most consistent point-producers since becoming an everyday player in 2010-11, many hockey observers seemed almost unwilling to give Edmonton Oilers winger Taylor Hall his due. It may still be early, but it looks as though the 2015-16 season may end up being the year in which that finally starts to change. 

No. 4, No. 14 and No. 29

With Connor McDavid unavailable for the foreseeable future and the Edmonton Oilers lack of centre depth being what it is, Todd McLellan has been put into a rather difficult situation. He either moves Anton Lander up to the second line in hopes the hard-working Swede catches lightning in a bottle and starts producing offence or he bumps Leon Draisaitl from what is the hottest line in all of hockey and into a role the 19-year old is truly not ready for.

A Massive Blow

After years of successfully putting together rosters that were bad enough to ensure they would be near or at the very top of every NHL Entry Draft since 2010, the Edmonton Oilers hit the jackpot this summer in having Connor McDavid fall into their lap. While the other 29 organizations in the league and their collective fanbases were understandably disgusted with the outcome of last April’s Draft Lottery, no hockey fan is happy with how thing played out during last night’s 4-2 Oilers victory over the visiting Philadelphia Flyers at Rexall Place. 

Finding The Right Role For Mark Fayne

On a night in which the Edmonton Oilers spotted the Calgary Flames multiple two-goal leads but still found a way to get themselves back into a game they really had no business being in, Cam Talbot picked the worst possible moment to cough up an absolute stinker of a game-winner. While the Flames Michael Frolik may have been the star of the show, with as ugly a three-goal effort as anyone has witnessed in some time, it was the Oilers starting netminder who ended up with the spotlight squarely on him in what was a rather disheartening 5-4 loss.