It’s only a matter of time before the Edmonton Oilers punch their ticket to the 2026 playoffs.

With just three games left in the season, all the Oilers need to do this Saturday against the Los Angeles Kings is earn a point. If they fail to do that, which wouldn’t be great for their chances to win their first division title in 40 seasons, a Jets win in overtime, or a loss of any kind will also clinch a postseason berth for the Oilers. It’ll be the seventh consecutive year they’ve made the postseason.

It’s anyone’s best guess who the Oilers will play, though. The Vegas Golden Knights are a possibility, which would be the third series between the two teams since the 2023 playoffs. Both the Knights and Anaheim Ducks trail the Oilers by one point, which means that the Ducks are also a possibility.

If the season were to end today, the Oilers would have a first-round matchup against the Utah Mammoth, the first series between the two franchises since the original Jets back in 1990. Technically, the Mammoth are an expansion franchise, but they’re basically a relocated Arizona Coyotes with an arena.

There is also a remote chance the Oilers play the Sharks, which would be the third series between the teams. However, that’d take an incredible series of events, with either the Ducks or Knights losing out and the Sharks winning all four of their remaining games in regulation. Of course, it’s also possible that the Oilers and Kings meet up for the fifth consecutive postseason.

While it’s not as improbable as the scenario that the Oilers play the Sharks, it’s more than likely not going to happen. With 85 points, the Kings have just four games remaining, meaning a maximum of 93 points. If they win all four games, one of the Ducks or Knights finish ahead of the Oilers, and one of the Ducks or Knights finish in the wild card spot, that scenario would be the Oilers against the Kings for the fifth season. So yeah, that probably won’t happen.

That said, in this edition of Flashback Friday, we’ll look at the first round matchup between the Kings and the Oilers in 2025.

Setup

On Feb. 5, 2025, the Oilers had a 34-16-4 record, first in the Pacific Division by four points. They lost their final game before the 4 Nations Face-Off break, then lost their next four games. Then injuries started to occur. They lost Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid in consecutive games in late March. 

On March 22nd against the Seattle Kraken, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins served as their first line centre, with Adam Henrique as their second line centre. The Oilers also lost Mattias Ekholm in late March, with him taking a two-minute shift shortly before the end of the season.

Over their last 28 games, the Oilers were just 14-13-1, limping into the postseason with a record of 48-29-5, good enough for third in the Pacific Division. Of course, the Kings sat in second thanks to 105 points, including a 31-6-4 record at home.

That set up the Oilers against the Kings in the first round for the fourth consecutive year.

Game 1

A big reason why the Oilers made the Stanley Cup Finals in 2024 was thanks to an impressive penalty kill. That wasn’t the case in this first-round match. Receiving a power play early in Game 1, the Kings opened the scoring about three minutes into the game. With 33 seconds........

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