Hunter To The Hunted

It was bound to happen. After starting the 2017-18 campaign with a shutout win over their provincial rivals and media across the league singing their praises, the Edmonton Oilers showed they still have a ways to go in order to reach the lofty expectations of their recent press clippings. Make no mistake, this team is good but it is one that has gone from being the hunter to the hunted overnight and now has to figure out how to deal with it.

Encore Presentation

Expectations can be a funny thing. Heading into 2016-17, it was apparent to anyone paying attention that Cam Talbot would play a key role in the Edmonton Oilers success or failure. If the former New York Rangers backup could come close to repeating his performance from the final four months of the previous year, it appeared as though things might finally take a turn for the better in the Alberta capital.

Little Change Is A Good Sign

Coming off a season that both re-energized and restored faith among their fan base, the Edmonton Oilers could not have asked for a better start to their 2017 pre-season schedule. As inconsequential as a 5-0 exhibition record is, keeping the core of this group intact from a year ago has greatly helped with the inevitable shift in expectation. Transitioning from a conference bottom feeder to one of its favourites is rarely an easy step to take but doing so in such a short period of time is even more difficult.

Take Two For Jesse Puljujarvi

Though his first year playing in North America didn’t go the way Jesse Puljujarvi had hoped, being forced to take the extra time to adjust to his new surroundings will likely serve both he and the Edmonton Oilers well in the not too distant future. You can bet on more growing pains during the 2017-18 campaign but the future for the third overall pick of the 2016 Entry Draft still appears quite bright.