Connor McDavid’s thermonuclear start to the season has been the top story in Edmonton, and for good reason. At this rate, the Oilers captain will secure his 10th career 100-point season two and a half weeks before Christmas and break Wayne Gretzky’s single-season record by a mere 45 points.
But the Oilers’ stylistic transformation under new coach Mike Babcock has also played a part in the team’s 8-1-1 start. Specifically, Edmonton has ditched the run-and-gun approach and started dumping in pucks at a much higher clip, which in turn has improved its defensive play.
“We want to limit turnovers, obviously,” McDavid told reporters earlier this week. “We’re talking about playing better defence, and part of that is being responsible with the puck and managing the puck. I think you’re seeing that throughout the lineup, understanding when’s the time to attack and when’s the time to get on the forecheck. We want to be a heavy team. We want to forecheck pucks back. (We’ve) done that at times. We’ve gotten away from it at times, and we don’t have success. We’re trying to find the right formula.”
Across the Oilers’ first two seasons under previous coach Kris Knoblauch, they were one of the NHL’s top defensive teams, finishing sixth and fifth, respectively, in expected goals against per game en route to back-to-back Stanley Cup Final appearances.
Those defensive details slipped last season, however, as the Oilers fell to 19th in that category. Combined with goaltending that ranked 28th in total goals saved above expected, that ultimately cost the Oilers, who lost in the first round of the playoffs.
A major issue for the Oilers last season was their transition defence. They had success generating odd-man rushes and offence off the rush, but so did their opponents. At five-on-five, Edmonton allowed the third-most rush scoring chances and fourth-most odd-man rushes per game.
Babcock has pulled the reins on his high-octane team. The Oilers are dumping in the puck at a rate of 61.9 per cent, second highest in the league at five-on-five and way up from last season’s 46.4 per cent (31st).
As a result, Edmonton has shaved 43 seconds off the amount of time its opponents possess the puck in the offensive zone at five-on-five, putting less strain on goaltenders Devon Levi and Tristan Jarry. Opponents are also averaging around three fewer rush scoring chances per game. Overall, the Oilers have jumped up to fifth in expected goals against per game in all situations.
“Sometimes, (it) doesn’t matter how good you are, you’ve got to make the (defence) turn every time down the ice,” Babcock told reporters. “If you’re less skilled, sometimes you put in more often. If you’re more skilled, you don’t have to as much, but you’ve still got to make the right play. They can’t be leaving the zone with the puck because you made a hope play, so that’s just our focus.”
McDavid, whose individual dump-in rate at five-on-five has risen from 14.6 per cent to 29.3 per cent this season, and fellow superstar Leon Draisaitl (24.3 per cent to 35.2 per cent) have bought into Babcock’s plan. Although the Oilers’ attack is not as breathtaking because of their more conservative approach, McDavid and Draisaitl are still getting their points. On Thursday against the Carolina Hurricanes, McDavid and Draisaitl each recorded five points in the same game for the fourth time in their careers.
“We want to play in the offensive zone, obviously,” McDavid told reporters. “That’s the point of the game — to spend more time in their zone and score more goals. Part of that’s checking the puck back and finding different ways to get in the (offensive) zone. It’s nice to carry it in every now and then, but teams are good. Neutral zones are tough. Guys are always above. When you’ve got to put it in, you’ve got to put it in.”
Edmonton’s shift in style is reminiscent of when Paul Maurice took over as coach of the Florida Panthers in 2022-23. The Panthers won the Presidents’ Trophy the previous season by leading the league in goals (4.11) and finishing second in rush scoring chances (7.35) per game, but the offence completely dried up in the playoffs. Maurice implemented a dump-and-chase style of play that paid off on both ends. Florida was a top-four defensive team by expected goals against per game in each of its Stanley Cup-winning seasons in 2024 and 2025. (The Panthers are the only team with a higher dump-in rate at five-on-five than the Oilers this season.)
The Oilers would certainly welcome similar results.
“I think the team’s just playing well,” McDavid told reporters. “Anytime the team plays well, you’re going to have guys have success. … It’s not necessarily on the stat sheet for everybody, but everybody’s playing really well, doing things detailed, structured, really hard, a lot of really good things.”
All stats via Sportlogiq
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