A closer look at the Oilers’ penalty kill struggles |
The Edmonton Oilers have a penalty kill crisis on their hands. After killing off just 54 percent of their penalties over the last eight games, they rank 27th in the NHL in PK efficiency.
Edmonton has been missing one of its best penalty killers this season in Adam Henrique, and cold streaks are bound to happen at some point during a season. Unfortunately for the Oilers, the issues run deeper than that, and the cracks were showing long before this recent mess.
Their penalty kill has declined for back-to-back seasons, and what remains is a far cry from the unit that boasted a 94 percent success rate in the 2024 playoffs. So, what happened? Let’s take a look.
System and personnel changes
For years, the Oilers ran what’s known as a wedge 1 penalty kill. The system is designed to counter a 1-3-1 power play and protect the middle of the ice: two defencemen and one forward form a triangle in the slot, while the “ 1” forward applies pressure to the puck carrier, typically moving downhill. The goal is to deny passes to the middle and force the power play to the outside. This diagram from The Coaches Site provides a helpful visual of how the setup works:
The wedge 1 can be complicated to execute because it requires the two forwards to coordinate their movement and rotate positions based on who has a better chance of getting to the puck carrier. The low forward is responsible for taking away backdoor plays, so if the forwards don’t rotate cleanly, it can cause breakdowns.
If done successfully, however, it is a fantastic system for dealing with the popular 1-3-1 power play setup. The triangle protects well against plays to the slot and low........