How Much Better Are The Edmonton Oilers Heading into 2017?

With just one game remaining before the start of the New Year the Oilers are 18-12-6 and sit ahead of NHL powerhouses like the Anaheim Ducks and Los Angeles Kings. For the first time since 2006 Edmonton Oilers fans are finally able to continue to hold onto playoff hopes, as they cheer on their team going into the new year. In years past, fans of the Oilers have stopped looking at the standings by the time they turned their calendars to the month of November. This year looks like the team has finally made the change in competitiveness that fans have been desperately waiting for, as the team sits 2nd in the Pacific division heading into 2017 and shows signs that they are really for real...for real. Let’s take a look at how much have the Oilers have improved going into the 2017 half of the season compared to the 2015/16 season.

	2015/16 Oilers	2016 Oilers	Difference
Winning %	.427 (Rank: 29)	.583 (Rank: 12)	+ 0.156 (Rank: +17)
GF/GP	2.43 (Rank: T25)	2.86 (Rank: 8)	+ 0.43 (Rank: +17)
GA/GP	2.95 (Rank: 27)	2.64 (Rank: 13)	- 0.31 (Rank: +14)
PP%	18.1 (Rank 18)	21.2 (Rank 8)	+3.1 (Rank +10)
PK%	81.1 (Rank: 18)	82.0 (Rank:13)	+0.9 (Rank +5)
Shots/GP	29.1 (Rank 22)	30.7 (Rank 7)	+1.6 (Rank +15)
SA/GP	31.1 (Rank 26)	30.3 (Rank 17)	-0.8 (Rank +9)
5v5 CF/60	54.19 (Rank 18)	55.46 (Rank 12)	+1.27 (Rank +6)
5v5 CA/60	56.92 (Rank 25)	53.23 (Rank 11)	-3.69 (Rank +14)
OZFO%	30.25 (Rank 27)	33.29 (Rank 12)	+3.04 (Rank +15)
DZFO%	33.01 (Rank 24)	30.19 (Rank 8)	- 2.82 (Rank +16)

All stats found on NHL.com and Puckalytics.com

Glossary of all stats used can be found on Puckalytics.com

What It All Means

The 2016 Oilers cleared the board for literally every stat. A look at the numbers really shows how much this team has improved in 2016, and why they will be fighting for their first playoff berth since 2006 in the New Year. While the Oilers have improved on every single statistic I used in this article, there are three that stick out to me that help explain why the team has massively improved their winning percentage 2017. Goals For/GP, Shot/GP, and Offensive Zone Faceoff Percentage. These three stats show how much more time the Oilers are spending in the offensive zone, compared to years past.

The Oilers have went from being a bottom 10 team in 80% of the categories in 2015/16, to being a top 15 team in 90% of the categories in 2016. This shows that this team is ready to contend every single night and are a legitimate playoff team. Oilers fans should get ready because this team is going to be in it for the haul this season.

Adam Girard

Founder/Writer - OILERS INSIDERS