An X-factor heading into the Stanley Cup Playoffs is a player whose impact could tilt a series—someone who may not be the biggest name on the roster but has the potential to come up clutch when it matters most. And as the Edmonton Oilers get set to face the Los Angeles Kings for the fourth straight year in the first round, we’ve seen their core—led by Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, Evan Bouchard, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, and Zach Hyman—previously rise to the occasion.
However, the Oilers have several players on their roster who aren’t the main offensive catalysts but have it in them to be clutch or impactful playoff performers. I like to call those players the next ‘Fernando Pisani’—a role player who came up big for Edmonton during their incredible run to the 2006 Stanley Cup Finals, scoring 14 goals in 24 playoff games. That said, below are my top five X-factors on the Oilers who could emerge as clutch playoff performers and why they might tip the scales this postseason.
Jeff Skinner
Jeff Skinner’s regular season was a rollercoaster, with plenty of ups and downs, finishing with 29 points. Yet, the 32-year-old fought his way out of head coach Kris Knoblauch’s doghouse, bouncing between lines before ultimately finishing the regular season on Connor McDavid’s wing.
The reason I’ve felt all season that he’ll be a difference maker in the postseason is simple—he’ll be incredibly motivated. After 15 seasons and 1,078 games, Jeffery Scott Skinner, with his signature snipes and smiles, will at last be heading to the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
This past regular season, from moving off the first line, dropping to the fourth line, and even being a healthy scratch, he’s done everything asked of him. He was even part of the trade rumour mill before the deadline, which suggests he didn’t waive his no-trade clause if asked. Why? Because, despite all the injuries, the Oilers still have a legitimate chance to win the Stanley Cup, and Skinner wants to be a part of that.
Skinner has made his money—$92,494,445 in career earnings, to be exact—so the bag is secured. Now, it’s time for him to fulfill that lifelong dream of winning a Stanley Cup, and I’m looking forward to seeing the #135th player in all-time NHL scoring bury a big playoff goal—all while flashing that giant grin of his.
Viktor Arvidsson
Viktor Arvidsson didn’t exactly light it up in his first regular season as an Oiler—missing 15 games due to injury and finishing with just 15 goals and 27 points, despite playing over 388 minutes at 5v5 alongside Leon Draisaitl, this season’s Rocket Richard Trophy winner.
Yet, there are a couple of reasons why I feel he can emerge as a playoff hero for the Oilers. For one, he’ll be playing with heightened motivation—he’s facing his former team, Los Angeles, in the first round. And on top of that, there’s the whole ‘unofficial player swap’—the Kings brought in former Oiler Warren Foegele, while Edmonton signed Arvidsson in the offseason. Foegele finished the regular season with 19 more points than the Oiler, which might just fuel a bit of extra competition in the Swede, like a “You outdid me in the regular season, but watch what I’ll do when the stakes are higher” kind of thing.
Additionally, one-third of Arvidsson’s goal output (five) came in the final 10 games, and it seemed like the one-timer he had been trying to get off all season finally started to click, and he should be feeling pretty good about his booming shot heading into the playoffs.
Adam Henrique
All things considered, Adam Henrique, who signed in the offseason with the expectation of bringing veteran savvy to the 3C spot while contributing offensively, had a down year production-wise, finishing with just 27 points, falling short of the 40-point mark I had viewed as a successful campaign before the season began.
However, Henrique might just be a sneaky candidate to be a clutch player in the playoffs, as he’s in the midst of his most productive stretch of the season and should be feeling really confident about his game. With all the injuries the Oilers were hit with recently, someone needed to step up—and the centerman certainly did.
Henrique appears to be one of the players who truly benefited from the increased ice time, averaging 14:39 TOI on the season, but bumped that up to an average of 16:35 minutes over the final 13 games. In that span, he produced 10 points—good for 37% of his total points from the regular season—tying Connor McDavid for second most in that stretch, behind only Evan Bouchard (13 points).
I feel the centerman’s biggest offensive asset is his touch around the net. He can really get off a quick and hard shot, like the one he ripped bar down from the slot against the Dallas Stars on March 26, and I’d expect the Oilers to be leaning on that weapon in the playoffs.
Connor Brown
Connor Brown hit the 30-point mark in the regular season with the Oilers, which is solid value, given his $1 million cap hit.
Why I see him as an X-factor who could emerge as a clutch playoff performer is simple—it’s the way he played down the stretch. He just looks very confident. He scored four goals in his last five games, but what stands out most is his poise with the puck. Over his two seasons in Edmonton, we’ve seen him pass up shooting opportunities or fire pucks right into the goalie’s crest. But lately, he’s been toe-dragging and freezing goalies with slick forehand-to-backhand moves, like his recent goal against the Winnipeg Jets on April 13.
That said, Brown is trusting his instincts and not second-guessing himself.
Also, in combination with his improved play and the chemistry he’s shown with McDavid since the captain returned after missing eight games, there’s also the personal motivation—being a UFA after this season, a strong playoff performance could set him up for a lucrative contract offer.
By and large, the Oilers will be counting on this confident version of Connor Brown come playoff time — the one who broke up a shorthanded play against the Florida Panthers in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final last season, barreled in, and beat Sergei Bobrovsky with a filthy deke.
Corey Perry
With his 19th goal coming in the final game of the regular season—and at a $1.4 million AAV price tag—Corey Perry has given the Oilers exceptional bang for their buck.
That said, an X-factor typically describes a player who could have a significant playoff impact, but also whose contribution is also hard to predict—and I feel that’s Perry heading into the postseason. Why? Because a productive regular season doesn’t always carry over. If you remember, ‘The Worm’ wriggled right out of the spotlight for most of last playoffs, despite a productive regular season. He tallied just three points in 19 playoff games and kept things pretty tame for a guy who’s spent the last 20 seasons getting under the skin of a lot of people.
Having said that, given last postseason’s unproductive run and using that as motivation, along with coming in red-hot after recording seven points in the final six games, the timing is right for Perry—who’s been a playoff hero many times in his career—to be an impactful playoff performer while donning the orange and blue.
In addition, I feel Perry will be fired up right out of the gates against the Los Angeles Kings in the first round, especially after Phillip Danault’s comments about the Oilers on April 14th, when he said, “I think they just have their B squad in trying to hurt us.” To which Perry responded, “What the f*ck, excuse my language, what do you want us to do?” He added, “Did he not look at what’s happened over the last couple of weeks? What do you want us to do?”
Without a doubt, Perry will be in the Hockey Hall of Fame when his career is over, but if there were a Gamesmanship Hall of Fame, he wouldn’t just be a shoo-in—he’d get a wing named after him. In saying that, the Oilers need the former Hart Trophy winner to bring that gamesmanship, stir the pot and create some mischief, right from the get-go when the Oilers face the Kings in Game 1 on April 21.
With that in mind, let’s hear it, Oilersnation—who’s your top pick for the Oilers’ X-factor to tip the scales for Edmonton in the playoffs?
