Oilers' management blamed for the team's lack of ultimate success

When Connor McDavid was drafted in 2015, the Oilers had missed the playoffs in 8-stright seasons, dating back to 2007. They would then would miss the two years since Connor was drafted. Finally, in 2017, the Oilers qualified for the playoffs, but promptly missed the next two.

Between the years 2016 - 2020, Edmonton drafted Jesse Puljujarvi, Kailer Yamamoto, Evan Bouchard, Phillip Broberg and Dylan Holloway in the first round of the draft. Though these players were all developed by Edmonton, only Evan Bouchard still remains with the team.

In fact, since 2016, Ryan McLeod was the only non-first round pick to play more than 13:00 TOI with the Oilers - he now plays with Buffalo.

Another example of management's futility was not signing Dylan Holloway and Philip Broberg, both of whom were lost to other teams by way of an offer sheet last August.

And instead of signing the two young prospects, management decided to secure veteran forwards Jeff Skinner and Victor Arvidsson, essentially making the roster slower and older - again, neither player is with the Oilers today.

Two of the worst Oiler contracts to which analysts refer as examples of bad management are Darnell Nurse and Jack Campbell, both of which values impede the Oilers moving forward.

Darnell Nurse signed an 8-year deal with a monster cap hit of $9.25M, including a no-movement-clause until 2027. Though he's a good defenseman, Nurse is not elite, as his inflated cap hit would suggest.

Then there's Jack Campbell, an example of trying to make the best of a bad situation. Jack signed a 5-year, $5M cap hit deal in 2022, but was bought-out in 2024 because of his poor performances. In 41 games played with the Oilers, Campbell recorded a 3.53 GAA and a .886 SV%, well below league average.

The combination of these moves has had a cumulative affect on the Oilers' current roster, which some analysts believe would be younger and more-balanced were it not for mismanagement.

With the season set to begin in October, we will have an opportunity to rate some of Scott Bowman's more recent moves.