Oilers hope to learn from loss in Western Conference Final
Playoff run ends after being swept by Avalanche, strive to be annual contenders
The Oilers were swept by the Colorado Avalanche in the Western Conference Final after a 6-5 overtime loss in Game 4 on Monday.
"Obviously it's still really fresh and not a lot of time has gone by, but obviously it was a step in the right direction," captain Connor McDavid said. "I firmly believe that, but that's all that was."
McDavid won his fourth Art Ross Trophy as the leading scorer in the NHL with 123 points (44 goals, 79 assists) in 80 games and is currently the playoff scoring leader with 33 points (10 goals, 23 assists) in 16 games.
The Oilers were 16-5-0 and first in the West on Dec. 1 but were six points out of a playoff spot after going 7-13-3 between then and Feb. 10, when coach Dave Tippett was fired and replaced by Jay Woodcroft.
They went 26-9-3 (.724) the rest of the way and finished second in the Pacific Division with 104 points (49-27-6). It was the third-best points percentage in that span, behind the Florida Panthers (.757) and Calgary Flames (.731). Edmonton was the sixth-best defensive team in that time, allowing 2.76 goals per game; it allowed 3.32 before then, 23rd in the NHL.
The greater emphasis on structure helped prepare the Oilers for the playoffs. They outlasted the Los Angeles Kings in seven games in the first round and eliminated the Flames in five before running into an Avalanche team that proved to be deeper and faster.
Still, it was a step forward after Edmonton was eliminated from the playoffs in its first series, each as the higher seed, the previous two seasons. The Oilers were defeated in four games by the Chicago Blackhawks in the best-of-5 Stanley Cup Qualifiers in 2020 and were swept by the Winnipeg Jets in the best-of-7 first round last season.
"Those lessons only really matter if you put yourself back in those situations," McDavid said. "So, obviously that's our focus -- to put ourselves back in that position and use the lessons that we learned throughout our little run here, put those to good work for next year."
Forward Leon Draisaitl, who finished second in the regular season with 110 points (55 goals, 55 assists) in 80 games, said he thinks the Oilers have matured over recent seasons. He had 32 points (seven goals, 25 assists) in 16 playoff games.
Draisaitl pointed to how Edmonton thought it was on its way to contending annually five years ago when it reached the second round. The Oilers lost to the Anaheim Ducks in seven games, then missed the playoffs the following two seasons.
"I think we did take a step this season, but we also took a step in 2017 and we missed the playoffs the next season and that shows you how hard it is in this league to do it consistently year after year," Draisaitl said. "It's a hard league and the playoffs are even harder and tougher. We have to make sure we come in next season and learn from what we've accomplished this season but come back next season and be hungrier for more. We want to take that next step. We want to get to the Final and eventually we want to win a Stanley Cup.
"I think we have grown up from [2017]. We were young. Maybe at the time we thought that getting to Game 7 in the second round is an automatic every season, but that's not the case. Clearly, we learned that the hard way."
The lessons include many of the little things, like figuring out a workable defensive structure, defenseman Duncan Keith said. After playing 16 seasons with the Chicago Blackhawks and winning the Cup three times (2010, 2013, 2015), Keith was traded to the Oilers with forward prospect Tim Soderlund for defenseman Caleb Jones and a third-round pick in the 2022 NHL Draft on July 12, 2021.
The details Keith mentioned helped put Edmonton back on the path to the playoffs after the coaching change this season.
"I think there was a lot of growth this year with the team, as a team and as individuals," Keith said. "I think that sets it up for a good season next year. We won (nine of) the first 10 games of the season, and I don't really necessarily think we were playing that great of a team game. Look at how we were winning games by the end of the season and it was a lot of the same guys doing a lot of the damage, but it was a full team effort by the end of the year."
Forward Zach Hyman, like Keith, was also new to the Oilers this season and improved the core group. After signing a seven-year contract as a free agent on July 28, 2021, Hyman had 54 points (27 goals, 27 assists) in 76 regular-season games, and 16 points (11 goals, five assists) in 16 playoff games.
He was in lockstep with his teammates Tuesday, pointing out that any postseason short of winning the Cup means little if the next step isn't taken.
"It only has an impact if you progress on it, you build on it, if you take a step forward," Hyman said. "We have a really good core and then we have a lot of really, really good young players and for those young guys to experience that type of run and that playoff environment and scoring big goals and contributing, I think that's invaluable and those are the guys who are going to take a step over the summer and make our team even better.
"I'm sure Connor said it [Monday] night, we're not satisfied with the final four. And I'm sure that's why he said it's a small step forward and it's only a step forward if we progress on it and we build on it and we come out next year and give ourselves another chance at it."
