The Oilers Have a McDavid Problem, But Not What You Think

Connor McDavid is putting together a remarkable start to the season. He's collected 34 points in 12 games and has recorded at least one assist in every game, tying an NHL record for a season-opening assist streak. And yet, the Edmonton Oilers head into Wednesday's Battle of Alberta looking for answers.

That's an interesting place for a team to be. When your best player is producing at that level, you might expect everything else to fall into place. Hockey doesn't work that way, and Edmonton's recent results remind us that even extraordinary individual performances can't guarantee wins.

The Oilers beat Minnesota and Carolina to start their five-game homestand. Then they lost 7-2 to Toronto, followed by a shootout defeat to Detroit after surrendering the lead three times. Those aren't results a team chasing the top of the Western Conference wants. But the response matters more than the disappointment itself.

Adversity Is Only Useful If You Learn From It.

Head coach Mike Babcock suggested that difficult games can help a team improve, warning players against assuming things are going well just because they've enjoyed some success. There's a reasonable point there. A team learns a little about itself when its game plan works. It can learn considerably more when opponents start taking away its favourite options.

The question is what Edmonton does with that information. Can the Oilers tighten up defensively? Can they protect a lead when the other team pushes back? Can they find ways to win when McDavid isn't directly involved in every important moment?

Those questions aren't criticisms of McDavid. They're the questions every good team eventually has to answer. A superstar can lift a team, but a championship-calibre group needs enough players contributing that opponents can't focus all their attention on one line.

Tonight's Rivalry Between the Flames and the Oilers Offers a Fresh Start.

The Calgary Flames arrive in Edmonton with four consecutive wins, so this won't be a comfortable opportunity for the Oilers to get back on track. Edmonton has encouraging signs, though. Jason Dickinson is expected to return after missing six games, while Mattias Ekholm appears ready to come back after sitting out two contests with a head injury. Zach Hyman's status is less certain after he left Monday's game following a hit that sent his head into the glass.

Getting healthy would help, but the larger challenge is establishing consistency. McDavid's scoring pace is extraordinary. Edmonton doesn't need him to become even more spectacular. It needs the rest of the team to turn his brilliance into something more dependable.

The Battle of Alberta offers an opportunity to start doing that. For the Oilers, the next step isn't proving they have enough talent. It's showing they can make that talent work together when a game gets difficult.