The 84-game NHL schedule is finally out, and Oilers fans can start circling the dates that matter. With a longer offseason than they’ve had in three years, Edmonton has plenty of time to stew on where things stand: no longer Stanley Cup Finalists, now a team trying to claw back into contender status with a new coach, new goalies, two new defensive pairings and the same core group trying to make the most of a championship window that keeps narrowing.
The early part of the calendar already offers a few games with real bite.
The season begins on Tuesday, Sept. 29 against the Vancouver Canucks, and it comes in a familiar format: a home-and-away set to open the year. Edmonton saw the same setup in 2023, when Vancouver rolled to an 8-1 win at home before the Oilers answered with a 4-3 win at Rogers Place.
That was three coaches ago by Edmonton’s count, and a lot has changed since then. Given how things have gone for the Oilers on the west coast lately, this looks like a spot where they could return the favour.
A month later, on Thursday, Oct. 22, the Carolina Hurricanes come to town. That one carries a different kind of angle.
New Oilers goaltender Frederik Andersen will face the team he helped to the Stanley Cup for the first time since signing with Edmonton in free agency. The crease situation is still unsettled for now, with Connor Ingram’s contract not being renewed, but Andersen has the inside track to see the most action after Edmonton finally brought in the proven veteran goalie the fan base has been asking for.
There’s also the sting of last spring still hanging around. A first-round exit against the upstart Ducks landed with a thud for an Oilers team that wanted to make it third-time’s-a-charm in the Cup Final. And if you need a reminder of how uneven things got, Edmonton’s 5-1 loss in Buffalo came in the same month as a pair of brutal beatdowns: a 9-1 loss in Colorado and an 8-3 loss in Dallas.
That’s the backdrop as the new season gets set to begin. The schedule is here, and now the wait really starts.
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Canucks Fans Will Hate Part Of This Schedule And Love It Too
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For the home crowd, the most appealing part may be the return visits from familiar faces, with several former Canucks set to come back through Rogers Arena during the season. Those games always carry a little extra edge, especially when the names on the other side still mean something around here, and this schedule has enough of them to keep fans circling dates long before the puck drops. [Read more 🡒]