NHL Notebook: Oilers jump to second in power rankings; Team Canada hires Dustin Schwartz
After dipping to ninth in Daily Faceoff’s power ranking last week, the Oilers have jumped back up to second after a 3-0-1 week to move their season record to 11-2-2. They fell 4-3 in a shootout to the Detroit Red Wings, but responded with a pair of 4-0 victories over the Calgary Flames and New York Islanders before defeating the New York Rangers by a score of 4-1 on Sunday.
“Connor McDavid now has points in 15 consecutive games to start the season,” wrote Daily Faceoff’s Mike Gould, who ranked the Oilers second in his power rankings.
“He’s on pace to narrowly eclipse Wayne Gretzky’s single-season points record, and while McDavid almost certainly won’t maintain this pace over a full 84 games, he genuinely might have a chance to become the second player in NHL history to score 200 points. At this rate, if he doesn’t obliterate his existing career-high of 153 points, it’ll be a bit disappointing.”
“The Oilers aren’t perfect — just ask Jake Walman how he feels about his start — but they’ve certainly got enough star power to make up for their deficiencies. Whether that means they’ll return to the Stanley Cup Final remains to be seen.”
Daily Faceoff’s Scott Maxwell ranked the Oilers third in his power rankings. “You can tell McDavid is off to an incredible start because almost no one is talking about the fact that Evan Bouchard is also on a similarly historic pace.” noted Maxwell.
“He’s currently on pace for 145 points on the season, and the current record for defensemen is Bobby Orr’s 139 points in 1970-71. Bouchard is also on pace for 44 goals, only four short of Paul Coffey’s record of 48 in 1985-86. I wonder if Bouchard keeps this up as well.”
The Oilers rose seven spots and only trail the 12-2-2 Carolina Hurricanes a month into the season. This week, they play the New Jersey Devils on Tuesday, the Anaheim Ducks on Thursday, and the Vancouver Canucks on Saturday.
Hockey Canada hires Dustin Schwartz as head of goaltending
Schwartz, born in Stettler, Alta., served as the Oilers’ goaltending coach from 2014-15 until 2024-25. He joined the team during the 2014-15 season after spending several seasons as the Edmonton Oil Kings’ goaltending consultant. From 2014-15 until 2018-19, Schwartz also served as the Oil Kings’ goaltending coach.
On top of remaining as a goaltending coach in the Edmonton area, he played parts of three seasons with the University of Alberta Golden Bears from the 2000-01 season until the 2004-05 season.
In his decade-long stint with the Oilers, Schwartz oversaw netminders like Cam Talbot, Mikko Koskinen, Mike Smith, Stuart Skinner, and plenty of others.
Cynthia Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for DFOEdmonton, DFOCalgary, and Blue Jays Nation. Follow her on X at @CynthiaRDelaney.
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