Stuck in middle of the regular season and heading into a two-week break, we need to find a way to spice things up a bit. The trade deadline is coming up shortly for some amazing speculation. But with the team sitting comfortably near the top of the Pacific Division, it’s a great time to start looking ahead to April when the playoffs start.
There are plenty of teams that could find themselves locked in a first-round matchup with the Edmonton Oilers this season. All of whom are worthy opponents in one way or another.
This week, we took to Twitter to ask Oil Country who is the ideal first-round playoff matchup for the Edmonton Oilers.
Want to take part in Sunday Census polls? We send them out every week on our Twitter at @oilrigEDM. Follow along or send in ideas for the next poll!
The #Oilers are hoping for another great Stanley Cup run as they sit atop the Pacific Division. Who would be your ideal first-round opponent?
— The Oil Rig (@oilrigEDM) January 31, 2025
Fourth time’s the charm?
For three straight years now, the Edmonton Oilers have faced the Los Angeles Kings in the first round of the playoffs. Three straight years, the Oilers have beaten the Kings in the first round of the playoffs. They’ve gotten quicker and quicker at ending this series as time has gone on, but would the Kings be the best matchup for the Oilers this time around? Finishing third place in this week’s poll, 10.9% of voters think that they would be.
It is tricky to judge how easy (or difficult) this matchup would be. The Oilers have traditionally been good at countering the Kings’ system and it doesn’t seem that anything major has changed in that regard. But, the Kings are more competitive than they ever have been in this era of the team. And they were missing Drew Doughty for all of it until now.
Moneypuck lists Los Angeles as the only team in the league that is outperforming the Oilers in goals for percentage and expected goals for percentage. In their two games against each other so far, the Kings won the first in overtime and Edmonton just managed a 1–0 victory in the second.
The Kings are as good as they have been in years right now and this might not be the best year to try and keep the streak alive.
McDavid versus MacKinnon: The rematch
Back in 2022, the Oilers made a surprise appearance in the Conference Finals against the Colorado Avalanche. That was not a good series for the Oilers in any way, shape, or form, and the Avalanche swept Edmonton.
Now a few years later, the Oilers have developed their team even more and added depth to levels they haven’t seen in years. They appear to be a much better counter to what the Avalanche can ice at the moment. But, the threat of going against Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar is still too much for Oilers fans as a potential Oilers-Avalanche series was the choice of just 3.6% of fans.
Even though the Avalanche have just made a blockbuster trade to send away Mikko Rantanen, they did bring in Martin Necas and the core of their roster remains. They would still be a formidable opponent, and not one that would be the ideal first round matchup. Although the Oilers have beat Colorado both times they’ve faced off so far this season, the playoffs are a different beast. Although the Avalanche are having their worst season since 2018–19, they have the experience to band together and make noise in the playoffs.
There are better options for the first round for the Oilers.
Take two against the Canucks?
Fresh off of their seeming internal implosion and subsequent trade of JT Miller, the Vancouver Canucks are still in the playoff race and could very easily find themselves going up against the Oilers in the first round this season. Given everything going on for the team, and the Oilers’ ultimately winning the series last year, do the fans think that this would be a good matchup for Edmonton in the first round? Finishing second in this week’s poll, 17.5% of voters would say this is the ideal opponent.
There has been a lot of back and forth in this rivalry the past couple years. Some blowout wins at the beginning of 2023–24 season set the stage for the Oilers to exact revenge in the playoffs. It was a tough series, which will leave some wary for what to expect from them them as an opponent in round one this season, but the Oilers prevailed.
The Canucks have had some noticeable roster turnover since the series. Notably, that Miller trade on Friday. And they may not be done just yet. As of now, however, they do have a competitive roster that could pose some issues for the Oilers.
Is another playoff Battle of Alberta in the making?
For the first time in over 30 years, the Oilers and Calgary Flames faced off in the playoffs in 2022. Edmonton won in five games, and since then the rivalry has quieted down as the Flames go through a retool. But with them being carried to a playoff spot by rookie goaltender Dustin Wolf, would the Flames be the ideal first round opponent this season? An overwhelming majority of fans feel this way, with 67.9% of votes cast going to Calgary.
In terms of team matchup, this is probably best case scenario for the Oilers. Edmonton has the star power to overwhelm Calgary, the depth to match up and exceed what the Flames can offer, and overall a more reliable defence. The Flames may have an upper hand in goaltending if Wolf maintains his level of play.
But in terms of excitement and probably likelihood of winning, the Flames would be an ideal matchup.
Which team do you think would be best for the Oilers to face in round one? Drop a comment down below!
Photo by Curtis Comeau/Icon Sportswire
