The <a href="https://oilersnation.com/combinations">Edmonton Oilers</a> and Dealing With Adversity. Name a more iconic duo. I&#8217;ll wait.

From a 2-9-1 start to a 3-0 lead in the Stanley Cup Final, this team always finds a way to grab the headlines — often for the wrong reasons. And once again, they’ve found themselves in a pickle.
Their <a href="https://oilersnation.com/standings">6-6-4 record</a> on paper doesn’t look terrible. But peel back the layers, and you realize they’ve only played a handful of genuinely good hockey games. After a humiliating 9-1 loss to the Colorado Avalanche, we’re all left wondering — what exactly is this team?
Changes made over the summer shouldn’t have rocked the roster this much. Corey Perry and Connor Brown signed deals in LA and New Jersey that Edmonton couldn&#8217;t afford, while Evander Kane was moved to make room for the upcoming extensions of Evan Bouchard and Leon Draisaitl. But in doing so, the Oilers lost character and physicality — two traits they haven’t replaced with Trent Frederic or Andrew Mangiapane, yet.
The team&#8217;s personality is unappealing. They give little pushback on a nightly basis and are incredibly frustrating to watch for a team that is supposedly a contender. Phyiscality doesn&#8217;t exist throughout the lineup, ranking 29th in total hits (274) and 31st in hits per 60 minutes (16.78). Even if you didn&#8217;t see the numbers, it&#8217;s clear as day where this team falls on the physical scale. The fan base is agitated, and the players don’t seem equally pissed off.
Then there’s Frederic’s comment: “Who wants to fight a guy that has one goal in 15 games? I wouldn’t.”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
&quot;We’ve got to get going.&quot;
Trent Frederic shares his thoughts on the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Oilers?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Oilers</a> defeat.<a href="https://twitter.com/Enterprise?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Enterprise</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/LetsGoOilers?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#LetsGoOilers</a> <a href="https://t.co/5ZuTc5kPGm">pic.twitter.com/5ZuTc5kPGm</a>
&mdash; Edmonton Oilers (@EdmontonOilers) <a href="https://twitter.com/EdmontonOilers/status/1987408832780509334?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 9, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Excuse me? On the same night, Nikita Zadorov crushed Scott Laughton in the Toronto-Boston matchup and then forced Bobby McMann to answer the bell — while Frederic floated through a 9-1 loss. Fans were hopeful he’d bounce back after an injury-plagued playoff, but through 16 games, he hasn’t shown much fight — literally or figuratively.
Of course, Frederic&#8217;s lack of anything wasn’t the only reason Edmonton lost. But he was one of the three non-captains made available to the media after the team’s worst defeat in 16 years.
There were only two people who needed to speak last night: Connor McDavid and Kris Knoblauch. Frankly, who cares what anyone else has to say? How was McDavid not made available after a 9-1 loss? The Oilers have dropped ten games this season, and McDavid has only spoken to reporters once following a loss against New Jersey. Evan Bouchard owned up after his gaffes versus the Rangers. <a href="https://oilersnation.com/stats/goalies">Stuart Skinner</a> did the same on night one. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins has faced the cameras four times after losses. But the captain? Silent when it mattered most.
Now, about the goaltending. It wouldn’t have mattered if they got the save everyone keeps talking about — because the team in front of the crease was lifeless. Still, the group looked deflated after Cale Makar’s second goal beat Skinner clean. A successful offside challenge briefly delayed more damage, but not for long. Calvin Pickard entered and surrendered another five, leaving the ugly scoreline on his record instead.
Pickard’s been shaky in all but one start (in Vancouver), while Skinner has been fine — not great, but fine. That 9-1 loss was only the second time he’s allowed more than three goals this season. Missed assignments and poor late-game structure have cost him more than his stat line suggests. Still, how long until GM Stan Bowman pulls a Chris McFarlane and shakes things up in net — the same way Colorado did last season with McKenzie Blackwood and Scott Wedgewood? It feels closer by the day.
Right now, <a href="https://oilersnation.com/stats">the Oilers</a> simply aren’t playing like a team. The stars are overextended, the youth barely sees the ice, and the middle six have gone missing. It’s time for Knoblauch to take control again — the same way he did when he first took over behind the bench. Every coach here seems to fall into the same trap: overplaying the top end and underusing the depth.
That depth helped define the 2024 Stanley Cup run. Knoblauch’s structured penalty kill — with Vincent Desharnais, Derek Ryan, and Mattias Janmark — became a strength of that team. Now, McDavid, Draisaitl, and Bouchard each average too much time on the PK, and the Oilers look like a group with no identity beyond “97 and 29 will save us.”
The coaching staff is capable — but they’ve lost their way. Re-establish roles. Recommit to structure. Play like the team you’re capable of being.
Tomorrow will tell us everything. How do they line up? Do they fold when adversity hits? Will someone — anyone — show some life?
A win against <a href="https://oilersnation.com/schedule/2025-11-10">Columbus on Monday</a> isn’t just important. It’s a must. And it has to be their best game of the season.
<hr />
<h2>PRESENTED BY VIVID SEATS</h2>
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter wp-image-182721" src="http://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/VS-Brand_16x9-1.png" alt="" width="571" height="321" srcset="https://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/VS-Brand_16x9-1.png 480w, https://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/VS-Brand_16x9-1-300x169.png 300w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 571px) 100vw, 571px" />
<a href="https://vivid-seats.pxf.io/bOMJ26" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Take $20 off your first Vivid Seats</a> order of $200+ using promo code OILERSNATION (new customers only, $200 USD minimum before taxes &amp; fees).

The <a href="https://oilersnation.com/combinations">Edmonton Oilers</a> and Dealing With Adversity. Name a more iconic duo. I'll wait.

From a 2-9-1 start to a 3-0 lead in the Stanley Cup Final, this team always finds a way to grab the headlines — often for the wrong reasons. And once again, they’ve found themselves in a pickle.
Their <a href="https://oilersnation.com/standings">6-6-4 record</a> on paper doesn’t look terrible. But peel back the layers, and you realize they’ve only played a handful of genuinely good hockey games. After a humiliating 9-1 loss to the Colorado Avalanche, we’re all left wondering — what exactly is this team?
Changes made over the summer shouldn’t have rocked the roster this much. Corey Perry and Connor Brown signed deals in LA and New Jersey that Edmonton couldn't afford, while Evander Kane was moved to make room for the upcoming extensions of Evan Bouchard and Leon Draisaitl. But in doing so, the Oilers lost character and physicality — two traits they haven’t replaced with Trent Frederic or Andrew Mangiapane, yet.
The team's personality is unappealing. They give little pushback on a nightly basis and are incredibly frustrating to watch for a team that is supposedly a contender. Phyiscality doesn't exist throughout the lineup, ranking 29th in total hits (274) and 31st in hits per 60 minutes (16.78). Even if you didn't see the numbers, it's clear as day where this team falls on the physical scale. The fan base is agitated, and the players don’t seem equally pissed off.
Then there’s Frederic’s comment: “Who wants to fight a guy that has one goal in 15 games? I wouldn’t.”
https://twitter.com/EdmontonOilers/status/1987408832780509334?s=20
Excuse me? On the same night, Nikita Zadorov crushed Scott Laughton in the Toronto-Boston matchup and then forced Bobby McMann to answer the bell — while Frederic floated through a 9-1 loss. Fans were hopeful he’d bounce back after an injury-plagued playoff, but through 16 games, he hasn’t shown much fight — literally or figuratively.
Of course, Frederic's lack of anything wasn’t the only reason Edmonton lost. But he was one of the three non-captains made available to the media after the team’s worst defeat in 16 years.
There were only two people who needed to speak last night: Connor McDavid and Kris Knoblauch. Frankly, who cares what anyone else has to say? How was McDavid not made available after a 9-1 loss? The Oilers have dropped ten games this season, and McDavid has only spoken to reporters once following a loss against New Jersey. Evan Bouchard owned up after his gaffes versus the Rangers. <a href="https://oilersnation.com/stats/goalies">Stuart Skinner</a> did the same on night one. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins has faced the cameras four times after losses. But the captain? Silent when it mattered most.
Now, about the goaltending. It wouldn’t have mattered if they got the save everyone keeps talking about — because the team in front of the crease was lifeless. Still, the group looked deflated after Cale Makar’s second goal beat Skinner clean. A successful offside challenge briefly delayed more damage, but not for long. Calvin Pickard entered and surrendered another five, leaving the ugly scoreline on his record instead.
Pickard’s been shaky in all but one start (in Vancouver), while Skinner has been fine — not great, but fine. That 9-1 loss was only the second time he’s allowed more than three goals this season. Missed assignments and poor late-game structure have cost him more than his stat line suggests. Still, how long until GM Stan Bowman pulls a Chris McFarlane and shakes things up in net — the same way Colorado did last season with McKenzie Blackwood and Scott Wedgewood? It feels closer by the day.
Right now, <a href="https://oilersnation.com/stats">the Oilers</a> simply aren’t playing like a team. The stars are overextended, the youth barely sees the ice, and the middle six have gone missing. It’s time for Knoblauch to take control again — the same way he did when he first took over behind the bench. Every coach here seems to fall into the same trap: overplaying the top end and underusing the depth.
That depth helped define the 2024 Stanley Cup run. Knoblauch’s structured penalty kill — with Vincent Desharnais, Derek Ryan, and Mattias Janmark — became a strength of that team. Now, McDavid, Draisaitl, and Bouchard each average too much time on the PK, and the Oilers look like a group with no identity beyond “97 and 29 will save us.”
The coaching staff is capable — but they’ve lost their way. Re-establish roles. Recommit to structure. Play like the team you’re capable of being.
Tomorrow will tell us everything. How do they line up? Do they fold when adversity hits? Will someone — anyone — show some life?
A win against <a href="https://oilersnation.com/schedule/2025-11-10">Columbus on Monday</a> isn’t just important. It’s a must. And it has to be their best game of the season.


<hr />

<h2>PRESENTED BY VIVID SEATS</h2>
<img class="aligncenter wp-image-182721" src="http://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/VS-Brand_16x9-1.png" alt="" width="571" height="321" />

<a href="https://vivid-seats.pxf.io/bOMJ26" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Take $20 off your first Vivid Seats</a> order of $200+ using promo code OILERSNATION (new customers only, $200 USD minimum before taxes &amp; fees).

Nobody welcomes adversity quite like the Edmonton Oilers

Edmonton Oilers Philadelphia Flyers Stuart Skinner

Recent articles from Liam Horrobin

Breaking News