Locked On Oilers - Daily Podcast On The Edmonton Oilers

Join host Nick Zararis on this edition of Locked on Oilers for a wide ranging conversation about the Edmonton Oilers' wins over both the San Jose Sharks and Ottawa Senators. Nick explains why both wins show incremental progress in the Oilers season long goals, why Leon Drasaitl should be the Hart Trophy Favorite, why Mattias Ekholm is playing so well and why Evan Bouchard deserves grace for his on...

Join host Nick Zararis on this edition of Locked on Oilers for a deep dive exploring the Edmonton Oilers 3-2, come from behind overtime victory over the Boston Bruins Thursday night. Nick explains why the Oilers finding a way to climb back and win even without the team's best game bodes so well, why goaltender Stuart Skinner deserves some kudos for keeping the Oilers in the game when they were str...

Join host Nick Zararis on this edition of Locked on Oilers for a deep dive into the hypothetical trade of Leon Drasaitl for Nikita Kucherov back in 2019 that was reported by Jeff Marek. Nick breaks down the basics of news literacy and why reports aren't always what they seem, why the trade made sense at the time and explores how the respective organizations would've changed with their potential ne...

Join host Nick Zararis on this edition of Locked on Oilers to re-visit Monday's 6-5 Edmonton Oilers loss to the Florida Panthers. Nick explains why this was more likely just a bad game than part of a larger pattern, diagnoses the breakdowns on the Florida Panthers goals and sets the tone going into Thursday's game against the Bruins Was the Edmonton Oilers loss to the Florida Panthers bad luck or...

Join host Nick Zararis on this edition of Locked on Oilers for a wide ranging conversation about the Edmonton Oilers 6-5 loss to the Florida Panthers Monday night. Nick tackles why this game was a particularly dissatisfying loss, why the Oilers really did play well, how a few mistakes undid their entire game and what the game means in the context of the season at large. Edmonton Oilers one again c...

Join host Nick Zararis on this special crossover edition of Locked on Oilers featuring Armando Velez of Locked on Panthers to preview the Edmonton Oilers vs Florida Panthers Monday night showdown. Nick and Armando tackle how the cup final impacted both franchises, what's changed for both teams since last June and what to expect going into tonight's game. Locked on crossover: Stanley Cup final rema...

Join host Nick Zararis on this edition of Locked on Oilers for a deep dive into the Edmonton Oilers 7-1 win over the Minnesota Wild. Nick dives into why this was such an important victory in terms of the team's season long narrative, what worked for the Oilers so well in this game and what Saturday's opportunity against the Vegas Golden Knights presents Edmonton Oilers avenge another loss, hang a...

Join host Nick Zararis on this edition of Locked on Oilers for a deep dive into the Edmonton Oilers defensive play over the first 28 games of the season. Nick explains why the underlying results aren't all that different over the last 8 games from the disastrous first ten games, how the Oilers have changed minutes to accomodate better play and what can be gleaned going forward. An investigation: H...

Join host Nick Zararis on this edition of Locked on Oilers for a deep dive into the Edmonton Oilers 2-1 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning Tuesday night. Nick explains why low event, defensively responsible hockey was the order of the day, why Jon Cooper was only half right about the results of the game and what tomorrow's game against the Minnesota Wild presents.  Edmonton Oilers beat Tampa Bay Lig...

Join host Nick Zararis on this episode of Locked on Oilers for a deep dive into the 2024-2025 season of defenseman Troy Stecher. Nick tackles Stecher's background and career to this point as to why he hadn't stuck anywhere too long, what the underlying numbers say about his performance this season and what to realistically expect going forward. Is Troy Stecher the Edmonton Oilers long term solutio...

Join host Nick Zararis on this edition of Locked on Oilers for a deep dive into the Edmonton Oilers 4-2 win over the St. Louis Blues Saturday night. Nick explains why even if the Blues aren't a very good team, it was encouraging for the Oilers to put them away so fast, why the fun police over analyzing fans boing Dylan Holloway and Philip Broberg are missing the point and why the next five games a...

Join host Nick Zararis on this edition of Locked on Oilers for a breakdown of the Edmonton Oilers 6-3 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets. Nick explains why getting revenge for an early season loss to Columbus shows signs of improvement, why Zach Hyman may have benefited from his injury layoff to mentally reset and sets the table for a revenge game Saturday night against the St. Louis Blues in Dyla...

Join host Nick Zararis on this edition of Locked on Oilers for a deep dive into the four nations face off roster announcements. Nick tackles why Evan Bouchard and Zach Hyman weren't invited to team Canada, why Canada might have over thought their roster construction and why international best on best hockey is so overdue.  Four Nations Face Off rosters reaction: Evan Bouchard and Zach Hyman snubbe...

Join host Nick Zararis on this edition of Locked on Oilers for a preview of Zach Hyman's return to the lineup against the Columbus Blue Jackets. Nick explains why Hyman's slow start isn't cause for concern going forward, why the defensive pairs the Oilers have settled on are working well and why Kasperi Kapanen deserves to stay in the lineup when Viktor Arvidsson returns. What to expect in Zach Hy...

Join host Nick Zararis on this edition of Locked on Oilers for a deep dive into the Edmonton Oilers 1-0 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights Wednesday night. Nick tackles why this was such an encouraging performance for the Oilers even though they lost, the tight, playoff like vibe within the game, why the Oilers defense was particularly encouraging and why the Oilers should take solace in a strong pe...

Join host Nick Zararis on this edition of Locked on Oilers for a wide ranging conversation about the Edmonton Oilers' looming lineup decisions. While the Edmonton Oilers have managed to win three in a row in the absence of Zach Hyman and Viktor Arvidsson, when both return to the lineup, what does that do to players currently playing well? Nick explores if Kasperi Kapanen can stick around in Edmont...

Join host Nick Zararis on this edition of Locked on Oilers for a deep dive into the Edmonton Oilers wins against the Utah Hockey Club and Colorado Avalanche. Nick explains why the win against Utah was a good sign that the Oilers were climbing out of their Murphy's law season, why dominating an old ghost like Colorado with mostly supporting cast players thriving is confidence building and explores...

Join host Nick Zararis on this edition of Locked on Oilers for a wide ranging conversation about the Edmonton Oilers' week off and developing storylines. Nick explains why the Oilers penalty kill is showing signs of life, explores whether the Rangers rumored shopping of Jacob Trouba and Chris Kreider could help the Oilers and tackles who from the Oilers is going to be selected to represent their c...

Join host Nick Zararis on this episode of Locked on Oilers for a wide ranging conversation about what the Edmonton Oilers should be thankful for on American Thanksgiving. Nick explains why last year's Stanley Cup final run will live on in the collective consciousness, why the Oilers having such high expectations is a good thing and why the best for the Oilers this season is still to come.  What th...

Join host Nick Zararis on this edition of Locked on Oilers for a deep dive into the 2024-2025 NHL season of veteran forward Jeff Skinner. Nick explains why Skinner's reduced role is hitting his counting stats, why his chance creation metrics indicate more meat on the bone and what the optimal deployment for Skinner would be going forward.  Can the Edmonton Oilers unlock Jeff Skinner's game?  Suppo...

Join host Nick Zararis on this episode of Locked on Oilers for a deep dive into what the best potential permutation of the Edmonton Oilers lineup would be when fully healthy. Nick explains why Brett Kulak deserves to stay on the second pair, why Jeff Skinner needs to play lower in the lineup and why Ryan Nugent Hopkins might be key, in the final segment, Nick explains where the Oilers can play bet...

Join host Nick Zararis on this edition of Locked on Oilers for a wide ranging conversation about the Oilers 6-2 win over the New York Rangers Saturday night. Nick explains why the Oilers and Rangers are in similar positions as Stanley Cup contenders, how the Oilers were able to take advantage of the Rangers weaknesses and the value of several days off in the middle of the schedule  Edmonton Oilers...

Join host Nick Zararis on this edition of Locked on Oilers for a deep dive into the Edmonton Oilers 5-3 loss to the Minnesota Wild Thursday night. Nick tackles why the Oilers' season of Murphy's law kept rolling on, why the Wild were so effective and are rolling early in the season plus why the Oilers lineup might not be as good as it looks on paper.  Edmonton Oilers eat a slice of humble pie losi...

Join Nick Zararis and guest Seth Toupal on this edition of Locked on Oilers for a wide ranging conversation about the state of the Minnesota Wild and Edmonton Oilers ahead of their Thursday night showdown. Nick and Seth tackle the changes in their respective teams since last offseason, the start power of Leon Drasaitl, Connor McDavid, Kirill Kaprizov and Matt Boldy as well as shout out some under...

Join host Nick Zararis on this edition of Locked on Oilers for a deep dive into the Edmonton Oilers 5-2 win over the Ottawa Senators. Nick tackles why Evan Bouchard's maligned start might be a bit overblown, why the Leon Drasaitl, Connor McDavid and Vasily Podkolzin line was so dominant vs the Senators and what the Oilers can take away from this win going forward Connor McDavid, Leon Drasaitl and...