Inside look at Edmonton Oilers

NHL.com is providing in-depth roster, prospect and fantasy analysis for each of its 32 teams from Aug. 1-Sept. 1. Today, the Edmonton Oilers.

The Edmonton Oilers remain all in as they continue their quest for the Stanley Cup.

"We're trying to win now," general manager Ken Holland said July 1. "If you look at the window that we're in right now and what we've accomplished the last two years, if you look at the age of the core of our team, they're in their prime."

That core is led by forwards Connor McDavid, 26, and Leon Draisaitl, 27, who once again paced the NHL in scoring last season. McDavid won the Hart Trophy as the NHL's most valuable player after he led the League in goals (64), assists (89) and points (153), the most in a season since Mario Lemieux had 161 for the Pittsburgh Penguins in 1995-96. Draisaitl set NHL career highs in assists (76) and points (128) and scored more than 50 goals for the third time in five seasons.

Despite those numbers, Edmonton was eliminated by the Vegas Golden Knights in the Western Conference Second Round. It was the second straight season the Oilers were eliminated by the eventual Stanley Cup champions; they were swept by the Colorado Avalanche in the Western Conference Final in 2022.

"[McDavid], Leon, [Ryan Nugent-Hopkins], [Darnell Nurse], they're all striving to win," said Jeff Jackson, who was hired as Edmonton's CEO of hockey operations Aug. 3 after being McDavid's longtime agent. "That's going to be the biggest driver. I have a very close relationship with Connor. It's going to be a different relationship now, but I think ultimately the goal is to keep this team, the core group, together, and I think there is a lot of runway for success for a number of years."

The biggest move Holland made this offseason to bolster the supporting cast around McDavid and Draisaitl was to sign forward Connor Brown to a one-year, $4 million contract July 1.

Brown only played four games last season with the Washington Capitals because of a torn ACL in his right knee, but McDavid has stated that his friend and former teammate is the "perfect addition" for the Oilers.

With the Erie Otters of the Ontario Hockey League in 2013-14, Brown (128 points; 45 goals, 83 assists) and McDavid (99 points; 28 goals, 71 assists) combined for 227 points as linemates. The opportunity to possibly reunite on a line with McDavid was too good to pass up for Brown.

"I loved playing with him (in Erie) and who wouldn't, and he liked the way I thought out there," Brown said. "I think I learned a lot from him playing when we were young, and I think I'll learn a lot from him playing with him again."

Brown's addition should only help an already high-powered offense that led the NHL in goals per game (3.96) and had the best power play in League history (32.4 percent) last season. However, some questions remain on the defensive side after Edmonton ranked 17th in goals allowed per game (3.12) and was 20th on the penalty kill (77.0 percent).

The first key in that area will be signing defenseman Evan Bouchard, who is a restricted free agent, though Holland said the two sides are close on a contract.

The second key will be getting better performances out of goalie Jack Campbell, who struggled during his first season in Edmonton in 2022-23, ultimately losing the starting job to rookie Stuart Skinner. Having defenseman Mattias Ekholm, who was acquired in a trade with the Nashville Predators on Feb. 28, for a full season should help, too.

"From the [2023 NHL] Trade Deadline when we acquired Ekholm, I think we were top 10 in the League in goals against," Holland said. "So, certainly he had a big impact on our team. That was only a quarter of a season, but we're going to have Ekholm on our team all year next year."