Connor McDavid has all the firepower in the world, but new head coach Mike Babcock inherits an Oilers team that still cannot lock down its own building.
Edmonton went 22-14-5 at Rogers Place last season. Fine on paper. Not close to good enough for a roster with this kind of talent.
McDavid put up 138 points in 82 games. Draisaitl added 97 in just 65. That's a two-man engine most teams would kill for.
So why does home ice still feel optional some nights instead of an actual weapon?
Babcock was hired back in June, and his job is not to find more stars. Edmonton already has two of the best in the world.
His job is structure. Discipline. The stuff that shows up when McDavid isn't the one bailing the team out.
Because right now, the building reacts to McDavid. It should be reacting to the whole team, every single shift.
Babcock's real test is what happens when the stars go quiet
The Oilers made moves that suggest they know this. Jason Dickinson and Connor Murphy add defensive weight up front and on the back end.
Mathieu Joseph brings speed with real habits away from the puck. Ryan Shea gives Babcock another option on the penalty kill.
None of those names move the needle on a highlight reel. That's the point. Edmonton spent its summer buying dependability, not more flash.
Goaltending complicates things early, though. Frederik Andersen is currently day-to-day and expected out until at least October 20th.
That leaves Tristan Jarry, who posted a .882 save percentage last season, as the guy holding the net while Andersen works his way back.
Jarry doesn't need to steal games. He needs to not lose the ones Edmonton's forwards already control.
McDavid's ceiling has never been the problem in Edmonton. It's what happens on the nights he's held to nothing.
That's the real question hanging over Rogers Place heading into this season, and it has nothing to do with talent.
Both McDavid and Draisaitl played six playoff games last year, evidence Edmonton's talent still gets them into the fight in the spring.
Whether Babcock can turn a loud building into an actual weapon, instead of just a nice backdrop for two superstars, is a different question entirely.
Is Mike Babcock the right coach to finally fix the Oilers' home-ice problem?
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