The lingering sentiment around the Edmonton Oilers exit interviews was the team must improve because the goal is to win the Stanley Cup next year.

No one tried to pull the wool after a frustrating season, not Stan Bowman, not Connor McDavid, and certainly not Leon Draisaitl. But what changes will be made in terms of player personnel?

General manager Stan Bowman said on Saturday that he doesn’t think the team would be much different. Some growth from within the organization, a few moves here or there perhaps?

Such is life in the Connor McDavid timeline of two years.

His extension at the same dollar of $12.5 million for two seasons amplifies the pressure on management, as the franchise still searches for their first Stanley Cup in this era. McDavid will turn 30 in January and Leon Draisaitl will turn 31 in October.

That means decisions aren’t being made about the team being good four years from now, a quick retool as it were. You can argue this season was the retool with young players like Vasily Podkolzin and Matt Savoie making a greater impact, solidifying themselves as top-six wingers in the Oilers lineup to come for years.

But the noise will be loud if the Oilers don’t win in 2026-27, where again McDavid will be eligible to re-sign, but the team is still pursuing a Stanley Cup.

While the moves at the Trade Deadline, the additions of Jason Dickinson and Connor Murphy gelled in useful roles as a third-line centre and second pair right-shot defenceman, despite not being household names.

Signs that speak to Bowman’s claim that a couple of players can make the difference and the core might not be altered.

Part of the myriad of issues during this last season, was the team hardly ever played together. The Oilers lineup in Game 1 of the Anaheim Ducks series was a unique lineup, never once all suiting up for a game with the return of Leon Draisaitl. It wouldn’t last a period, either.

But are key unrestricted free agents Bowman and management will have to decide on. Murphy, in particular, could be a hot candidate due to the dearth of right-shot defenceman available to sign.

Leon Draisaitl didn’t beat around the bush when he said this year represented a “concerning” trend for the Oilers long-term.

A year that started with captain’s skates before training camp, all in the hopes of being ready for a much better start, never took off in the fall, winter, or early spring.

There’s nothing saying that McDavid couldn’t extend for another contract next summer, or once his terms expires. He’s been consistent that as long as he believes the Oilers give him a chance to pursue a Stanley Cup, he’ll stay.

But the lower than expected dollar figure does send a message that he’s doing his part, taking less for more to spread around to fill roster holes. McDavid wrote in the Players Tribune that he wants to win in Edmonton.

He repeated those words to Oilers fans on Saturday.

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