If you’re wondering what exactly is going on with the Edmonton Oilers right now, you’re not alone. After coughing up three separate leads in Anaheim and turning a winnable game into a 6-5 mess, the Oilers rolled into Los Angeles for the second half of a back-to-back, looking less like a contender and more like a team trying to figure their lives out. If the boys were going to beat a Kings squad that thrives on structure and patience, there was no room for another night of chaos. Thankfully, the Oilers understood the task at hand. While there was no chaos from an Oilers perspective, there was a flurry of offence that left Kings fans fleeing for the exits long before the final buzzer. Final score: 8-1 Oilers.

If there’s one thing I love more than anything, it’s depth players coming up with big goals at key moments, and I would certainly say that happened on Thursday in Los Angeles. Just before the midway point of the first period, Edmonton got goals from Ty Emberson and the eventual game winner from Vasily Podkolzin to not only open the scoring but give the team a small dose of insurance. After blowing three leads against the Ducks, the boys needed a quick start and it was great to see someone other than the usual suspects getting that job done. Goals like those ease the pressure on the big boys, and it’s nauseatingly frustrating that the team hasn’t been able to find more consistent depth scoring to compliment the heavy hitters. Either way, you love to see the goals by Podz and Emberson.

Of course, as we saw on Wednesday in Anaheim, building an early lead doesn’t necessarily mean you’re going to win the hockey game, and I’d be lying if I didn’t mention the deja-vu we all felt when Warren Foegele scored to narrow the gap. And when Darnell Nurse took the double minor for high-sticking late in the first, I thought it was all but a sure thing that the Hockey Gords would slap us with another blown two-goal lead. Thankfully, the Oilers‘ PK killed the penalty off and made it to the intermission with a 2-1 lead intact. That’s the beauty of depth scoring coming through. When the big dogs are held off the board, it’s on the supporting squad to come through in the clutch. I know we’re talking about one period, but I still thought two goals early in the game were worth mentioning.

At this stage of the season, I think it’s a fair assumption that most Oilers fans expect Andrew Mangiapane to get traded between now and the trade deadline. For whatever reason, things just haven’t worked out between the team and the player, and it seems we’re set for a split before his two-year contract even hits the midway point. Like Viktor Arvidsson and Jeff Skinner before him, Mangiapane will be the latest in a line of mid-priced forwards that couldn’t make it work in Edmonton. Whether it was the role, the usage, the inability to make good on opportunities, or a mix of the above, what started out as a hopeful beginning will end as another disappointing trade out of town.

What makes the whole situation even more frustrating is when he has games like last night against the Kings. Despite playing only 12:11 in TOI, Mangiapane tallied a goal and an assist, along with three shots on goal and a +2 rating.  Not that you’d expect him to put up multi-point nights every game — this was literally his first of the season and first since last February with the Capitals — but I did honestly believe we’d be getting a guy who would chip in more than he has. I was excited when he signed here on July 1st, and it’s a bummer that a guy we expected to have around for a couple of years is likely counting the days until he can get out of here. Say what you will about how he played in his time in Edmonton, it still sucks to see the same story play out again.

If you were looking for yet another reason to love Connor McDavid, then how about adding a sixth-straight 100-point season to your list? With the assist he picked up on Draisaitl’s third-period coffin nailer, McDavid reached the century mark for the ninth time in his career, making him only the third player in NHL history to do so. McDavid joins Wayne Gretzky (15x) and Mario Lemieux (10x) as the only players to hit triple digits at least nine times. That’s a wild stat to think about, considering Connor McDavid has only been in the league for a decade. Had it not been for his injury-shortened rookie season and the COVID wipeout, our captain probably could have had another two under his belt already.

All I know for sure is that this seems like another good time to mention how lucky we are that we get to watch Connor McDavid do his thing on a nightly basis. As much as his brilliance might seem normal to us at this point, having the numbers he’s stacking ranking up there with Gretzky and Lemieux is anything but normal. It’s fun facts like this that are absolutely fun to celebrate, but should also act as a reminder that No. 97’s career is a finite resource that the organization needs to respect. The Oilers owe him a championship-calibre team that he deserves, and with the trade deadline only a week away, it will be fascinating to see if Stan Bowman can pull off some magic that actually improves the team. After a night when Connor McDavid scored a goal that tied the Kings up in pretzels and added a helper for his partner in crime, it’s hard to argue that he doesn’t deserve it.

The 2026 Trade Deadline Special is going LIVE March 6th. Join the Daily Faceoff crew on Friday, March 6th from 9 AM-1:30 PM MT for wall-to-wall coverage of every single move as it happens. Get instant reaction, expert analysis, and exclusive insights from special guests throughout the day. Tune in LIVE on the Daily Faceoff YouTube channel and don’t miss a second of deadline day chaos.