Oilers Cold Streak Foreshadows Postseason

The Edmonton Oilers are in a rut. The team’s offense is sputtering after the NHL Trade Deadline, and aside from Leon Draisaitl’s pursuit of multiple individual scoring awards, there are few bright spots recently.

The Oilers hope their recent showing against the Utah Hockey Club broke them out of their slump. They defeated Utah by a final score of 7-1 and their offense looked dominant start to finish.

The biggest issue facing the Oilers over their recent slump was their lack of depth scoring. As per usual, Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl are carrying the load, but the rest of the forward group is unable to measure up.

Against Utah, however, they received a quality group effort. Wingers Valeri Podkolzin and Viktor Arvidsson, two of the team's most important middle-six players, recorded a goal. It was the second game in a row that Arvidsson scored and Podkolzin broke a 23-game goalless drought with his seventh of the season.

They even secured the win without any production from Draisaitl, which unfortunately snapped his 18-game scoring streak. He registered 27 points over that span, but failed to appear on the scoresheet in their latest victory.

That type of performance could fuel a team, but there remains one massive, unresolved issue for the Oilers: inconsistency.

On paper, this Oilers team is deeper than years prior. Their defense is vastly improved with the addition of Jake Walman to round out the left-side of their blue line. The additions of middle-six players like Arvidsson, Podkolzin, Jeff Skinner, and Kasperi Kapanen were meant to address their lack of depth scoring in the postseason.

Kapanen has gone 11 straight games without a point. Skinner is pointless in seven straight. Prior to scoring in two straight games, Arvidsson had one goal and one assist in his previous 10 games. Their other big Trade Deadline acquisition, rugged forward Trent Frederic, hasn't suited up for the Oilers yet due to injury.

The offensive explosion from the Oilers was huge. Stuck in a rut, they needed a game like that to break out. It's hard to see this continuing, however. This feels less like the team turning over a new leaf, and more like a one-off performance.

The Oilers can silence the doubters with a few more strong showings. With 14 regular season games remaining, there's plenty of time to get the entire team clicking. Until then, it seems their offensive inconsistencies are a sign of what's to come in the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs.