How confident are you in your team’s front office?

That&#8217;s the question posed by <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6562358/2025/08/20/nhl-front-office-confidence-rankings-2025/">The Athletic in their annual temperature check</a> of how fans across the NHL are feeling about the direction of their team. Compiled by Dom Luszczyszyn based on over 13,000 responses, all 32 organizations were then ranked and assigned an overall grade based on six categories: roster building, cap management, drafting and development, trading, free agency and vision.
This year, the Edmonton Oilers have come in at 21st, earning a C grade overall. With back-to-back Stanley Cup Final appearances and no trophy to show for it, there&#8217;s an air of frustration, Luszczyszyn writes:
<blockquote>&#8220;Expectations are sky-high given the team’s starting point with two of the best players in the world — and without a championship, it’s safe to say Edmonton’s brass has not met them. While the Oilers have made some good moves in the past, they’ve made enough poor ones to keep them away from ultimate glory.
Last year’s offer-sheet debacle has turned into a full-blown disaster with the leaps Dylan Holloway and Philip Broberg took with the Blues. It’s fair to wonder whether the Oilers might’ve won it all with both on their roster and while it was understandable for the team to let Broberg go at that price, it remains unbelievable that the team didn’t match Holloway’s paltry cap hit. Beyond that, the Trent Frederic deal doesn’t inspire confidence and the team’s continuing goaltending issues are also a sore spot.
With the best player in the world, the Oilers should have been champions by now. An upper-half management team probably could’ve made that happen. Close isn’t close enough anymore.&#8221;</blockquote>
Amongst fans, the team earned a C+ in roster building, C- in cap management, D+ in draft and develop, C+ in trading, B- in free agency, and a C+ in overall vision.
Interestingly enough, despite frustration in the fanbase, it&#8217;s an improvement on <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/5672796/2024/08/06/nhl-front-office-confidence-rankings-2024/">last year&#8217;s 25th place</a> finish, where the team earned an overall grade of C-. Where last year 72% of fans said they had less confidence in the front office, this year it&#8217;s only 25%, with 48% of fans saying they actually now have more confidence. Amongst the general public, 11% say they have more confidence in the Oilers&#8217; management this season, while 49% say they have less.
With Connor McDavid&#8217;s upcoming free agency, Darnell Nurse on a heavy contract, and an unsolved goaltending situation, there&#8217;s clearly work to be done for this front office this year. Considering the pressure to win soon, this year will be a big one for Edmonton&#8217;s management to show they can make the necessary moves to increase confidence from their fanbase.
Unsurprisingly, coming in at number one are the Florida Panthers for a second consecutive year, after winning back-to-back Stanley Cups then putting together a big offseason. The Dallas Stars landed at number two, with the Carolina Hurricanes ranked in third.
So let us know, how confident do you feel in the Oilers&#8217; front office heading into the 2025-26 season, especially compared to other teams across the league?
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How confident are you in your team’s front office?



That's the question posed by <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6562358/2025/08/20/nhl-front-office-confidence-rankings-2025/">The Athletic in their annual temperature check</a> of how fans across the NHL are feeling about the direction of their team. Compiled by Dom Luszczyszyn based on over 13,000 responses, all 32 organizations were then ranked and assigned an overall grade based on six categories: roster building, cap management, drafting and development, trading, free agency and vision.

This year, the Edmonton Oilers have come in at 21st, earning a C grade overall. With back-to-back Stanley Cup Final appearances and no trophy to show for it, there's an air of frustration, Luszczyszyn writes:
<blockquote>"Expectations are sky-high given the team’s starting point with two of the best players in the world — and without a championship, it’s safe to say Edmonton’s brass has not met them. While the Oilers have made some good moves in the past, they’ve made enough poor ones to keep them away from ultimate glory.

Last year’s offer-sheet debacle has turned into a full-blown disaster with the leaps Dylan Holloway and Philip Broberg took with the Blues. It’s fair to wonder whether the Oilers might’ve won it all with both on their roster and while it was understandable for the team to let Broberg go at that price, it remains unbelievable that the team didn’t match Holloway’s paltry cap hit. Beyond that, the Trent Frederic deal doesn’t inspire confidence and the team’s continuing goaltending issues are also a sore spot.

With the best player in the world, the Oilers should have been champions by now. An upper-half management team probably could’ve made that happen. Close isn’t close enough anymore."</blockquote>
Amongst fans, the team earned a C+ in roster building, C- in cap management, D+ in draft and develop, C+ in trading, B- in free agency, and a C+ in overall vision.

Interestingly enough, despite frustration in the fanbase, it's an improvement on <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/5672796/2024/08/06/nhl-front-office-confidence-rankings-2024/">last year's 25th place</a> finish, where the team earned an overall grade of C-. Where last year 72% of fans said they had less confidence in the front office, this year it's only 25%, with 48% of fans saying they actually now have more confidence. Amongst the general public, 11% say they have more confidence in the Oilers' management this season, while 49% say they have less.

With Connor McDavid's upcoming free agency, Darnell Nurse on a heavy contract, and an unsolved goaltending situation, there's clearly work to be done for this front office this year. Considering the pressure to win soon, this year will be a big one for Edmonton's management to show they can make the necessary moves to increase confidence from their fanbase.

Unsurprisingly, coming in at number one are the Florida Panthers for a second consecutive year, after winning back-to-back Stanley Cups then putting together a big offseason. The Dallas Stars landed at number two, with the Carolina Hurricanes ranked in third.

So let us know, how confident do you feel in the Oilers' front office heading into the 2025-26 season, especially compared to other teams across the league?
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 	<li><a href="https://oilersnation.com/news/monday-mailbag-should-edmonton-oilers-prioritize-jake-walman-or-mattias-ekholm-extensions">Monday Mailbag: Should the Oilers prioritize Jake Walman or Mattias Ekholm extensions?</a></li>
 	<li><a href="https://oilersnation.com/news/stuart-skinner-stay-fresh-edmonton-oilers-preparations-next-season">‘I’m really excited to be back’: Stuart Skinner looking to stay fresh as Oilers start preparations for next season</a></li>
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