The Edmonton Oilers have turned on their head coaches pretty frequently in their history. Do those short-lived decisions hinder the Oilers' chances at the Stanley Cup?
NHL teams make coaching changes more frequently than any other major professional sports league, with the average coaching tenure lasting just 2.3 years.
Since joining the NHL in 1979-80, the Edmonton Oilers have employed 18 head coaches.
The Oilers have come as close as a team can get to winning the Stanley Cup without actually lifting it since their last championship in 1990.
Along the way, coaching changes have provided necessary adjustments, stabilized players, and helped maximize roster talent. While the next bench boss will become the 19th individual hired to coach the team, it will represent the organization's 21st coaching change due to Glen Sather's three separate stints behind the bench. Of those 21 coaching tenures, 10 lasted one year or less.
Since the Oilers last won the Stanley Cup, has the strategy of changing coaches worked in the team's favor?
Ron Low (1995–1999)
Following the dynasty years of the 1980s, the Oilers were forced to learn how to compete with less star power and a smaller budget. Ron Low embraced an identity-driven approach, establishing a "never-say-die" culture within the organization.
A two-time Stanley Cup champion as an assistant coach with Edmonton, Low led the Oilers to three playoff appearances. He is best remembered for guiding the underdog Oilers to first-round upsets over the Dallas Stars in 1997 and the Colorado Avalanche in 1998.
Kevin Lowe (1999–2000)
Although he coached for only one season, Kevin Lowe transformed a loosely run dressing room into a disciplined, high-accountability environment. His departure from the bench was not a dismissal; instead, he was promoted to GM in 2000.
During his lone season as head coach, Lowe guided the Oilers to an 88-point finish, their highest point total since the 1990 Stanley Cup championship season. He also established a strong coaching foundation for assistant coach Craig MacTavish, who would eventually take over behind the bench.
Craig MacTavish (2000–2009)
The last NHL player to play without a helmet, Craig MacTavish, brought extensive experience to the role. Over eight seasons behind the bench with the Oilers, he accumulated 301 wins and led Edmonton to Game 7 of the 2006 Stanley Cup final.
MacTavish built the Oilers into a defensively responsible team, particularly during the pre-salary-cap era from 2000 to 2004. His defense-first system helped guide Edmonton to consecutive 90-point seasons and playoff appearances in 2001 and 2003.
Following the magical 2006 playoff run, however, the Oilers failed to qualify for the post-season in each of the next three seasons. MacTavish was relieved of his duties in April 2009 and was later inducted into the Edmonton Oilers Hall of Fame in 2024.
Pat Quinn and Tom Renney (2009–2012)
As the Oilers entered the Taylor Hall and Jordan Eberle era, Pat Quinn and Tom Renney focused on teaching fundamental NHL habits to a young core.
Quinn brought veteran leadership and stability to the locker room during what became known as the "Decade of Darkness." Despite a difficult season that ended with a 27-47-8 record and a last-place finish in 2009-10, Quinn helped establish accountability and structure within the rebuilding organization.
That finish ultimately allowed Edmonton to select Taylor Hall first overall in the 2010 NHL draft. Renney then assumed the head coaching role, focusing on the development of Hall, Eberle, and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins while continuing to build the foundation of the franchise's future core.
Todd McLellan (2015–2018)
Todd McLellan was hired as the Oilers began transitioning back toward Stanley Cup contention.
During the 2016-17 season, Edmonton improved by 33 points in the standings, finishing with 103 points and recording its first 100-point season since the 1980s. The dramatic turnaround earned McLellan recognition as a finalist for the Jack Adams Award.
He also ended the organization's 10-year playoff drought by leading the Oilers to the post-season in 2017.
Tasked with developing generational talent Connor McDavid, McLellan helped the superstar capture his first Art Ross Trophy and Hart Trophy during the 2016-17 campaign. He also brought future head coach Jay Woodcroft into the organization as an assistant coach.
Ken Hitchcock and Dave Tippett (2018–2022)
During his brief interim tenure, Ken Hitchcock once again emphasized defensive responsibility. He consistently preached that the Oilers could not simply outscore their mistakes and needed a committed 200-foot game.
Known as a stabilizing presence, Hitchcock implemented a structured defensive system. He also coached Leon Draisaitl to his first 50-goal, 105-point season.
Dave Tippett became the first head coach hired by GM Ken Holland, signing a three-year contract from 2019 to 2022. His teams emphasized special teams excellence, and under his watch, the Oilers posted a 29.5 percent power-play success rate, the highest conversion percentage of the modern NHL era.
Jay Woodcroft (2022–2023)
Woodcroft quickly transformed Edmonton from a fragile playoff team into a legitimate Western Conference contender.
Compiling a record of 79-41-13, he orchestrated an immediate turnaround that resulted in the Oilers finishing second in the Pacific Division. He also guided Edmonton to its first Western Conference Final appearance since 2006.
Under Woodcroft, the Oilers' power play reached historic heights, setting an NHL record at 32.4 percent. His familiarity with the organization's developmental system proved valuable, particularly in unlocking the potential of Evan Bouchard and creating a roster loaded with offensive weapons capable of generating matchup nightmares for opponents.
Kris Knoblauch (2023–2026)
Taking over another Oilers team in crisis, Kris Knoblauch became the first coach in more than 55 years to lead his team to the Stanley Cup final in each of his first two seasons behind the bench.
Across 233 regular-season games, his 135-77-21 record ranks among the highest winning percentages by a coach through his first 150 games in NHL history.
After inheriting a team that stumbled to a shocking 3-9-1 start, Knoblauch guided Edmonton to a remarkable 46-18-5 record the rest of the season, the best mark in the NHL during that span.
His calm demeanor and previous experience coaching McDavid in junior hockey helped maximize the talents of Edmonton's star players while maintaining a composed locker room.
During his first season, the Oilers recorded multiple winning streaks of eight games or more, including a franchise-record 16-game winning streak that finished just one victory shy of the NHL record.
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