Shocking Penalty Kill Stat Explains the Oilers Early Struggles

The Edmonton Oilers’ penalty kill has taken a shocking nosedive to start the 2024-25 season, and the numbers are staggering. After two games, the Oilers have managed an abysmal 16.7% success rate on the penalty kill, conceding goals on five of the six power plays they’ve faced. This stat is especially wild when you consider that the Oilers boasted an outstanding 94.3% penalty kill rate during the 2023-24 playoffs, a key reason they reached the Stanley Cup Final.

The goaltending, in particular, has caught the attention of the popular X.com account @Woodguy55. Stuart Skinner has faced one shot on the penalty kill and allowed one goal. Calvin Pickard, meanwhile, has faced four shots and allowed all four to hit the back of the net. That means, while the Oilers are a 16.7% success rate, the goalies are at 0% when facing shots.

In other words, the Oilers have yet to make a single save on the penalty kill this season, which is an alarming statistic for a team that thrived on shutting down power plays just a few months ago.

The Penalty Kill for the Oilers is Just a Microcosm of Their Early Troubles

The total collapse of the team’s penalty kill is just one example of where things have gone extremely south for the Oilers in two games to start the season. These early struggles come after a rough 6-0 loss to the Winnipeg Jets and a 5-2 defeat against the Chicago Blackhawks, two games that have exposed the team’s defensive shortcomings. It’s not just the defense either.

“You can make all the excuses in the world, whatever you want to say. Everybody’s gotta look themselves in the mirror and start to bear down,” said Corey Perry after the loss to Chicago. “Right now I think we’re thinking about how we need to play, just not making it hard enough on the other team,” added head coach Kris Knoblauch.

The Oilers have struggled on offense and failed to find a level of play and energy to match their opponents. Fans and analysts are sounding the alarm, emphasizing the need for goaltending improvements, more energy, and urgency, and a focus to be the team they know they can be.

Calvin Pickard and Stuart Skinner are having penalty-kill struggles for the Oilers

Pete Blackburn, who was one of the hockey journalists on the Amazon Prime docuseries Faceoff: Insider the NHL tweeted, “I love the Edmonton Oilers’ commitment to being physically and mentally incapable of playing a full regular season.” That echoes how several Oilers fans are feeling right now.

For a team that was so dominant on the penalty kill during their deep playoff run, the Oilers’ early-season collapse is a wild and unexpected development. If they want to turn their season around, they’ll need to fix this against the Calgary Flames on Sunday night.

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