Concerning info from Oilers put Coach Knoblauch's future in doubt

Now with a 9-8-4 record and outside of a playoff spot, alarm bells are truly starting to ring around the Oilers. There's issues with their usually reliable forwards and defence, which is causing some blame toward Coach Knoblauch.

Signed to a 3-year contract extension earlier this season that doesn't kick in until 2026-27, it's very unlikely the Oilers would make the decision to move on from Knoblauch - but the issues are undeniable. Something needs to change fast.

The Oilers are currently playing a very defensive style of hockey paired with an awful breakout system relying on stretch passes. The end result has seen the Oilers struggle to generate any offence, while still being hemmed in their own zone.

Last night the Oilers only managed 10 shots halfway through the game, and only one high-danger scoring chance through the majority of the game. This is an Oilers team known for its offence completely neutered.

Fans see these offensive issues, breakout issues, and are rightly pointing at the Coach. It's not just last night either, it's trends from all season.

More than ever, when the Oilers find themselves down by 1 goal Coach Knoblauch will begin loading up McDavid and Draisaitl together, and ice the rest of their players.

The Oilers bottom six has struggled massively to generate offence. Some of that is on the players, but the coaching staff has handled their roles terribly all year. In total, this is the worst offensive year in Edmonton since 2014-15.

The Oilers rush offence used to be one of their most lethal weapons, but that's been taken out of their game entirely. This year, the Oilers are on pace to have only 9(!) rush chances, down from a total of 158 last year.

The single most perplexing issue from Knoblauch this year might be the point shots.

Inexplicably, every Oilers defenceman is shooting the puck at a rate higher than any other team in the NHL - and it kills their offensive zone play most times with an easy save or turnover.

It seems like this season the Oilers coaching staff has sacrificed everything the team excels at in favour of implementing a system that will limit scoring chances against. Unfortunately, it's resulted in a team without strengths, still being burned by weak goaltending.

Coach Knoblauch needs to change everything fast, or there is real reason to fire him - despite his contract situation and previous successes.