Report: Edmonton Oilers, head coach Jay Woodcroft nearing three-year contract extension

The Edmonton Oilers and head coach Jay Woodcroft are nearing a three-year contract extension, NHL insider Kevin Weekes reported Saturday.

The news shouldn’t come as a surprise. Both the Oilers and Woodcroft said at the end of the season they would discuss an extension and it was hard to imagine a scenario where it wouldn’t happen.

After a tumultuous stretch in January, the Oilers fired head coach Dave Tippett and promoted Woodcroft from the AHL’s Bakersfield Condors. Under Woodcroft, the Oilers posted a 26-9-3 record securing second place in the Pacific Division all the while getting points in 72.4% of games.

The Oilers met the LA Kings in the first round of the playoffs in a series where Edmonton won game six on the road before closing it out in seven at home. Come the second round, the Oilers got blown out in a disappointing game one to the Calgary Flames, only to come back and win four straight.

The series win gave Edmonton its first berth into the Conference Finals in 16 years — the last being when the team beat the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim in five games. Despite the Oilers being swept by an elite Colorado Avalanche team, the season was nothing short of a success.

Edmonton looked like a different team under Woodcroft and the numbers showed it. From the time he was promoted to the time the regular season ended, the Oilers had the second-best record in the league. At 5×5, the Oilers controlled 52.63 percent of the shot attempts (8th), 56.02 percent of the goals scored (5th) and 52.60 percent of the expected goal share (10th).