The Oilers have the easiest schedule in the league next year

A fancy stat just came out and you’re all going to want to listen carefully. Just like in the 2016-17 season, the Edmonton Oilers will have one of the easiest schedules in the league this year and I’m really excited about it.

This is based on the games the team plays against tired teams (who played the night before) while rested (who didn’t play the night before), and games the team plays against rested teams while tired. Still with me? Look at this graph!

But actually, please look at this graph below.

The graph is from IneffectiveMath on Twitter. Out of the 82 game schedule, there are 18 games where the Oilers are playing a tired team while rested. They also have only eight games where they are playing a rested team while tired. Cool, right?

It’s cool because the next closest team who plays a tired team while rested, is the Coyotes with 14. There are only eight other teams who play a rested team while tired less than the Oilers. If you ask me, this is very good for the team. We need all the help we can get this season, and not having to play rested teams while we’re tired is a step in the right direction. Is this enough for us to win the Stanley Cup? No. But it’s a start, and an interesting stat as well.