The Edmonton Oilers didn’t start the 2024-25 season off on the best foot. It wasn’t as bad as last year, but it was nowhere close to where we all expected the Stanley Cup finalists to be. However, after a couple months of adjusting to new roster changes, the Oilers appear to be back to their elite ways. A big part of this is a return to form on both sides of special teams.
The Edmonton Oilers power play
There are two very distinct splits on both sides of special teams: the start of the season until one month ago, and the last month.
Here’s how the Oilers power play looks across this split:
| Date Range | PP% | League Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Oct 4 – Nov 15 | 15.9 | 24 |
| Nov 16 – Dec 16 | 31.3 | 5 |
| Season total | 22.4 | 14 |
For the first six weeks of the season, the Oilers power play was near the bottom of the league, clicking at only 15.9%. Just eight teams had a worse power play than the Oilers during this time period.
Since then, the Oiler are clicking at almost twice that rate at 31.3%. This is good for fifth in the NHL, and much more consistent with the elite power play they had last year, and just shy of their NHL-leading 32.4% success rate two seasons ago.
Overall, the Oilers sit 14th in the NHL in terms of power play percentage, which is deceiving when you consider the stark contrast between the first six weeks of the season and the past four. With this type of power play, the Oilers are an incredibly difficult team to beat.
It’s important to note that the Oilers have not been not drawing very many penalties at all this season. In the first six weeks, they ranked 30th in the NHL with just 3.14 penalties drawn per 60 minutes, and in the past month they’ve drawn even fewer penalties at 2.92 per 60 minutes. They’ve just been much more efficient at capitalizing on their power play chances.
The Edmonton Oilers penalty kill
On the other side of special teams, it’s an even bigger improvement from the Oilers.
| Date range | PK% | League Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Oct 4 – Nov 15 | 62.8 | 32 |
| Nov 16 – Dec 16 | 89.3 | 2 |
| Season total | 73.2 | 26 |
In the first six weeks of the season, the Oilers were dead last in penalty killing with an absolutely pathetic 62.8% success rate. It was one of the biggest concerns for the Oilers as a strength from last season seemingly evaporated overnight.
In the past month, the Oilers have rebounded in a big way. Over this period, they have the second best penalty kill in the NHL, clicking at 89.3%. Their net penalty killing percentage, which takes into account shorthanded goals, is at a whopping 96.4% over the past month.
The Oilers have also done a fantastic job staying out of the box recently. They’ve been shorthanded just 28 times the past month, the second fewest in the NHL.
This is truly elite stuff, and a big reason why the Oilers have rocketed up the standings.
The Edmonton Oilers overall special teams
In close games, it’s often special teams that determines the winner. For the Oilers, a team destined for the playoffs and with Stanley Cup aspirations, it was critical that they sorted out their special teams and brought them back to near the top units in the NHL.
Over the past month, they’ve done exactly that. Like last season, time is their friend, and the Oilers are looking more and more dangerous with each week that passes.
