The Edmonton Oilers are a different structured team than what many have been used to over the course of the Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl era. Those teams had questionable goaltending, but excellent some years, poor defense, not many supporting pieces on the wings, and poor depth.
All of that has generally been cleaned up except the goaltending. But what is surprisingly very good is the defense, including the top-4 that was ranked the best in the NHL this season by The Athletic. Agree with it or not, there are supporting pieces for either side of the argument.
What Makes the Oilers’ Top-4 so Good?
The Edmonton Oilers’ top-4 consists of Evan Bouchard, Mattias Ekholm, Darnell Nurse, and Jake Walman when healthy. Walman hasn’t been healthy or played a game this season. After he and Ekholm recently signed ahead of the season, the top-4 in Edmonton are all now locked into contract for at least the next three years.
Bob Stauffer, Oilers’ insider, spoke with the Spittin’ Chiclets crew about this and said, “Part of that is the ability of Jake Walman to transition the puck…As for the price point, I get it, that’s the cost of doing business.” But price shouldn’t be taken into account whether a group is good or not. Teams are in different positions and have more or less space to work with. Players also get signed ahead of breaking out, in their prime, and later in their careers on the decline.
As for skill, Walman is highly overlooked, especially going back to when the Detroit Red Wings dumped his contract to the San Jose Sharks. Travis Yost of TSN said, “You need puck movers capable of igniting an attack with this collection of forwards, and Edmonton has that in spades – now featuring one of the best trade deadline acquisitions of the 2024-25 season in Jake Walman.”
The Athletic had also praised Bouchard, saying, “Edmonton boasts a balanced mix of offensive agility and defensive reliability, anchored by Evan Bouchard — a clear franchise defenseman.” Despite his mistakes at times that seem to get a lot of attention, he has 32 goals and 149 points in 163 regular season games over the past two seasons, while also playing at well over a point-per-game, performing at Bobby Orr-level offense with 17 goals and 72 points in 59 playoff games over the last three seasons.
“Analysts are falling in love with the play of Bouchard, who, while not perfect, is a franchise defenseman with elite offensive skill…He was and is setting records with his play…He’s become a legitimate star, even if he’s not yet at the level where he’s a shoo-in for conversations about the Norris Trophy,” said Jim Parsons of The Hockey News. They have offense, defense, and everything in between with the top-4.
Should Oilers Be Ranked Lower?
The Oilers’ top-4 defense may be ranked too high for the liking of some, and that’s understandable. There is a lot of attention when Bouchard or Nurse makes a bad mistake, and it’s amplified because of the Edmonton market and the money being paid to each. But when they’re on, they’re on.
Stauffer, who was discussing the ranking of the Oilers’ defense, added, “I think they’re in the top five or six.” He was being realistic, but at the same time, the Oilers’ defense as a whole has had to cover up bad play in net for a while. Being one of the league leaders in shot suppression and pushing shots to the outside, the group has done what it can to limit goals against.
Last season, the Oilers had to deal with a combined -10.61 goals saved above expected from Stuart Skinner and Calvin Pickard. That is mostly on the goalies, but the defense gets more attention than they’re deserving of based on the stats to prove their solid play.
Teams like the Carolina Hurricanes, Colorado Avalanche, Dallas Stars, Florida Panthers, Minnesota Wild, Tampa Bay Lightning, Vegas Golden Knights, and Winnipeg Jets all deserve their praise for being well built, but while stats support narratives for each team, opinions will always be different.
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