Welcome to my annual opponent preview series where I will go division-by-division looking at how the Vancouver Canucks match up against the teams they will be facing during the regular season.
Related: More Canucks Season Preview Content
After looking at the Canucks first opponent of the season, the Calgary Flames, we will continue this series with another Pacific Division rival, the Edmonton Oilers.
Edmonton Oilers
- 2024-25 Record: 48-29-5 (101 points, third in Pacific Division, eliminated in the Stanley Cup Final by the Florida Panthers)
- Notable Additions: Ike Howard, Curtis Lazar, Andrew Mangiapane, David Tomasek
- Notable Losses: Viktor Arvidsson, Corey Perry, Connor Brown
- 2024-25 Season Series: 1-2-0
- All-Time Record: 114-123-19-16
The Oilers made it all the way to the Stanley Cup Final last season, but fell short for the second straight year. They got eliminated by the Florida Panthers and will head into the 2025-26 season as a bridesmaid and not the bride again. They lost some key foot soldiers in the offseason in the ageless Corey Perry and utility forward Connor Brown, so it will be interesting to see if their new additions will have a similar impact or flame out like Viktor Arvidsson and Jeff Skinner did. They also still have questions in the crease and, of course, the ongoing drama of Connor McDavid’s future in Oil Country.
Regardless, the Canucks will have their hands full in all four games they play against the Oilers this season, so let’s take a look at how they match up.
How Do the Canucks Match Up?
Forwards: Oilers
The Canucks will always fall behind in the forward department as long as McDavid and Draisaitl wear Oilers colours. With the one-two punch of two superstar centres, the Canucks just don’t have the horses to match them this season. They got close in 2023-24 when they had J.T. Miller, Elias Pettersson and Elias Lindholm down the middle, but the former is in New York and the latter is in Boston right now, so they are woefully behind in that department heading into 2025-26.
As for the rest of the forward group, the Canucks match up okay, but if Nugent-Hopkins centres the third line instead of lining up alongside McDavid on the top line, Aatu Raty/Teddy Blueger aren’t nearly the caliber of centres he is, so they would fall behind there, too.
Basically, it’s the Canucks’ centre depth that makes them lose this battle, because when it comes to wingers, they arguably have the better crop of proven NHLers. Ike Howard and Matthew Savoie, who are projected to play in the top six, are both rookies and have a combined five games of experience (all logged by Savoie), while former Canuck Vasily Podkolzin hasn’t cracked 20 goals in the league yet. The Canucks, on the other hand, boast a 40-goal scorer in Brock Boeser and 20-25 goal scorers in Evander Kane, Jake DeBrusk, and Conor Garland.
The bottom-six is pretty much a wash with a mashup of good, physical utility wingers in Trent Frederic and Kiefer Sherwood, versatile goal scorers that have shown offensive potential in the past in Andrew Mangiapane and Nils Hoglander, and speedy penalty killers in Mattias Janmark and Drew O’Connor. The only thing that separates these forward groups is the presence of star centres McDavid, Leon Draisaitl and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins for the Oilers. Otherwise, they are pretty even.
Defence: Canucks
The Canucks and Oilers both have a mobile defence corps capable of moving the puck and putting up points. They also boast two of the best offensive defencemen in the NHL in Quinn Hughes and Evan Bouchard. Hughes is arguably the better of the two when it comes to defensive play and decision-making, but when it comes to offence, they are equal in how much pain they can inflict on an opponent.
Related: Canucks News & Rumours: Pettersson, Hughes, Prospects Showcase & More
Beyond them, both teams have several two-way options they can turn to, including their partners Filip Hronek and Mattias Ekholm/Jake Walman. They complement each other well and can also produce, with all three posting 30-plus points last season. All in all, the defence corps are pretty even, but what puts the Canucks’ over the top is the presence of Hughes. While Bouchard is definitely a threat offensively, his defence often leaves a lot to be desired, and that sometimes costs his team wins. Hughes is one of, if not the best, two-way defencemen in the league, and that puts the Canucks ahead in this matchup.
Goaltending: Canucks
Even though Stuart Skinner and Calvin Pickard have been in the crease for the Oilers’ last two appearances in the Stanley Cup Final, the team has arguably made it there despite them, not because of them. Skinner has struggled to maintain even average numbers in the postseason over the course of his career, posting an underwhelming 2.88 goals-against average (GAA) and a .893 save percentage (SV%) in 50 starts, while getting pulled in favour of Pickard multiple times. Pickard, while in a much smaller sample size, hasn’t fared much better with a 2.72 GAA and .892 SV% in nine starts, including seven in the 2025 Playoffs.
Even during the past two regular seasons, Skinner and Pickard haven’t provided elite goaltending for the Oilers, prompting many articles and podcasts to discuss the need for an upgrade. Skinner was particularly mediocre last season with a sub-.900 SV% and a career-high 2.81 GAA. He also posted a career-high 12 really bad starts (RBS) and fell into the negative in goals-saved above average (GSAA) at minus-5.3.
The Canucks, on the other hand, have probably one of the best one-two punches in the NHL with Demko and Lankinen anchoring the net. Yes, Demko has struggled with injuries, but at his best, he’s right up there with the likes of Connor Hellebuyck for the top goalie in the league. As for Lankinen, he has always been a solid backup, but he took it to another level last season when he more than held down the fort when Demko was sidelined. With both of them healthy and ready to go for the beginning of the season, the Canucks hold a significant advantage over the Oilers when it comes to goaltending.
Season Series Schedule
- Oct. 11 @ Oilers
- Oct. 26 vs. Oilers
- Jan. 17 vs. Oilers
- April 16 @ Oilers
That’s a wrap on the latest Canucks opponent preview of the offseason. Next up, the Vegas Golden Knights, who will likely fight for the top spot in the division with the Oilers.
