The Edmonton Oilers have lit up the scoreboard to start the 2026-27 season, but the early returns still look awfully familiar. Through two games, they’ve scored 14 goals and given up 13, which tells the whole story: the offense is humming, and everything else is a mess.
That was on full display in their opening back-to-back against the Vancouver Canucks. Edmonton dropped the first game 6-5 in overtime, then turned around and beat Vancouver 9-7 on Thursday. Neither result came with much polish.
The offseason was supposed to change the script. Instead, the Oilers are starting to resemble the team that was knocked out by the Anaheim Ducks in the first round of last season’s playoffs.
The hope in Edmonton was that additions like Devon Levi and Frederik Andersen would push this group back to the Stanley Cup Final and beyond. So far, that vision looks shaky.
The top end is still doing the heavy lifting. Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, and Evan Bouchard continue to drive the attack, and that part of the roster remains elite. But the support behind them is thin, the blue line is still a problem, and the goaltending situation has already gone sideways.
General manager Stan Bowman made plenty of moves in the offseason, but the roster doesn’t look dramatically different in the places that matter most. Edmonton signed defenceman Ryan Shea and sent Darnell Nurse to the San Jose Sharks in a deal that brought back Shakir Mukhamadullin. Up front, the Oilers added Alex Formenton and Mathieu Joseph, while also bringing back Kasperi Kapanen and Max Jones.
The biggest swing was in net, where Edmonton signed Frederik Andersen and traded for Devon Levi. On paper, that was supposed to give the team a better answer in goal. In reality, it’s already turned into a concern.
Andersen was expected to miss time because of injury before training camp, though the team never said exactly what the injury was. The only clue is that he was hurt during the Stanley Cup Final with the Carolina Hurricanes. Now the Oilers have said Andersen will be out until at least December, which leaves Levi and Tristan Jarry to carry the load for the time being.
That doesn’t look like an upgrade. In fact, one could make the case that Connor Ingram was better last season than Levi will be in 2026-27.
And even when Andersen does come back, there’s no guarantee the situation gets cleaned up quickly. He’s 37, he’s starting late, and there’s always the risk that a return like that comes with more health issues down the road.
For all the offseason movement, Edmonton still hasn’t fixed the problems that sunk it last year. The stars can pile up points, but they can’t be expected to cover for everything else. And right now, the Oilers are giving up far too much to make that a workable formula.
Thirteen goals against in two games is the kind of number that gets your attention fast. The Oilers might settle down, and the new pieces might eventually find their footing. But after this start, Bowman’s changes haven’t done much to convince anyone that this roster is ready for another deep run.
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Oilers Roster Crunch Could Force A Move Sooner Than Expected
Edmontons early-season roster picture has already started to look a little crowded on the blue line and a little thin up front. With several forwards banged up, the Oilers are reportedly weighing their options for a roster move that would bring in more help at forward, even if the injuries themselves are not expected to linger.
Sportsnets Elliotte Friedman said during a game broadcast that the club is exploring a lateral trade to rebalance the group, and the pressure point is clear: Edmonton has a pile of defensemen who could be exposed to waivers if the team keeps carrying them all. The situation does not sound like a long-term crisis, but it could still force the Oilers into making a move sooner than they would prefer. [Read more 🡒]
Oilers Face Another McDavid Question They Cannot Ignore Early
The NHLs early 2026-27 season has already produced a run of unusually high-scoring games, and some of that has been pinned on a shortened preseason that left teams with less time to get their structure in place. For Edmonton, though, the bigger conversation keeps circling back to Connor McDavid, because every national drift toward leaguewide turbulence seems to invite fresh questions about the Oilers long-term footing around their franchise center.
Sid Seixeiro has once again fueled the speculation that McDavid could eventually leave Edmonton, even though there has been nothing from McDavid to suggest dissatisfaction or a desire to move on. He has stayed invested through the Oilers recent rough patches, which is exactly why the renewed chatter lands as more noise than evidence, even as the leagues cap outlook and team-building strategies start to shift around the edges. [Read more 🡒]
Oilers Finally Found A Different Way To Win Against Seattle
For a team that has often needed a little flash to separate itself from Seattle, Wednesdays 3-1 win at Rogers Place looked a bit different. Owen Michaels got the Oilers on the board, Leon Draisaitl kept the pressure on, and Edmonton leaned into a physical, penalty-filled game that felt more like a grind than a showcase. Devon Levi handled his end cleanly enough, turning aside 19 shots as the Oilers improved to 2-0-1 and kept their strong home run against the Kraken rolling.
The part Edmonton will likely like most is that it did not have to chase the game the way it sometimes has against Seattle. The Oilers stayed patient through a tight third period, with Draisaitl and Connor McDavid eventually supplying the separation and finishing touch when the margin was still there to be claimed. It was the kind of result teams talk about wanting in the fall, a different route to the same two points, even if there was still plenty of bite in the game along the way. [Read more 🡒]