The Edmonton Oilers have opened the season at 5-0-1, and that hot start has done more than just pile up points. It’s also given Mike Babcock a runway to show a side of himself that Oilers fans may not have expected when the team hired him in the offseason.
For a coach with a well-documented history that made plenty of people uneasy, the early read in Edmonton has been different than the one many were bracing for. So far, Babcock has come across as relaxed with the media and, at times, genuinely playful. The Oilers are still the NHL’s only team without a regulation loss, and that kind of start tends to make everything look a little smoother.
That was obvious after Edmonton beat the Los Angeles Kings on Tuesday night. In a rinkside moment with Paige Martin, Babcock didn’t just answer the questions coming his way. He flipped the script and started firing some back at her, turning the exchange into a light, funny back-and-forth.
“Highlight was interviewing Mike, I would say he gave a bunch of great answers,” Martin said to a laughing Babcock.
Of course, winning makes it easier to keep the mood loose. The bigger question is what Babcock looks like when the Oilers hit their inevitable rough patch, because every team gets one over the course of an NHL season.
For now, though, Edmonton has reasons to feel good. The team’s record is strong, and the early interaction with its new coach has been a little more easygoing than many expected. The real test comes later.
In Other News...
Oilers Linked To Bold Tom Wilson Idea With One Big Catch
The Oilers have a familiar kind of offseason daydream attached to them again, this time involving a player whose style would fit their needs in a very obvious way. Tom Wilson brings size, edge and enough offensive punch to change the tone of a lineup, which is exactly why a right-shot winger of his type gets linked to a team like Edmonton when people start sketching out bold trade possibilities.
The catch is that the path to even making the idea workable runs through another club and another need entirely, with Tristan Jarry and the Rangers entering the picture because of their unsettled goaltending situation. Washington would also have to be open to considering Wilson only if its season went sideways, and even then the framework described is still just speculation, with draft picks and prospects part of the conversation but no confirmed trade talks to hang it on yet. [Read more 🡒]
Oilers Fans Are Dreaming Big About One Rumored Flyers Blockbuster
A trade rumor making the rounds on social media has given Oilers fans plenty to chew on, with one proposed blockbuster sending Isaac Howard, a 2028 first-round pick and a third-round pick to Philadelphia for Matvei Michkov. It is the kind of idea that instantly grabs attention in Edmonton, where any chance to add a young, high-end talent naturally gets a second look, especially when the price appears to involve future assets and a prospect already drawing interest.
Still, the source behind the chatter is unverified, and there is no evidence the Oilers and Flyers have actually discussed anything along these lines. That has left most of the reaction in familiar territory for rumor season, with plenty of skepticism about the credibility of the report and plenty of debate over what such a move would mean for both clubs if it ever moved beyond social media speculation. [Read more 🡒]
Oilers Face An Early Test With One Lineup Choice Looming
The Oilers return to Rogers Place with Utah on the schedule, and the attention is not just on the opponent but on how Edmonton chooses to line up around it. The game brings another chance to sort through the numbers, the recent form, and the possible line combinations that could shape the night, especially with matchups likely to matter early and often.
Edmonton has spent plenty of time weighing how best to deploy its forwards, and this one feels like an early test of how the coaching staff wants to balance skill, pace, and matchup responsibility. Even the broader conversation around the team has been lively, with a recent sports talk show breaking down a range of topics, but for the Oilers the immediate focus is simpler: which lineup choice they make before puck drop, and what it says about how they want to attack Utah. [Read more 🡒]