The prospect of the week is none other than Macklin Celebrini. The 2024 projected first overall pick is dominating the NCAA. Connor McDavid [https://thehockeynews.com/.image/c_fit,h_600,w_600/MjAyMDQ5MjMzMTMyNDYzNzI5/usatsi_21838193_168400847_lowres.jpg] Connor McDavid The Edmonton Oilers began this season considered among the favorites to win the Stanley Cup. Those hopes are at risk of derailing as the club stumbled to a 2-8-1 record. That poor start has prompted some pundits to call for changes before it's too late to salvage their season. Sportsnet's Mark Spector [https://www.sportsnet.ca/nhl/article/everything-on-the-table-as-oilers-soft-again-in-loss-to-predators/] said “everything should be on the table” in Edmonton. That includes replacing coach Jay Woodcroft as Spector pointed out his “noncompetitive, lackadaisical team” is similar to the one that cost former coaches Dave Tippett and Todd McLellan their jobs. Spector cited the Oilers' high goals-against as the result of “a group of skaters with insufficient attention to defensive detail, a top-heavy lineup and bottom-tier goaltending.” Meanwhile, The Athletic's Daniel Nugent-Bowman [https://theathletic.com/5039088/2023/11/07/oilers-goaltending-woes/] wrote the Oilers are running out of time to address the poor goaltending they've received from Jack Campbell and Stuart Skinner. While he acknowledged Woodcroft has his faults, firing the coach won't improve their issues between the pipes. THN Edmonton's Caleb Kerney [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/edmonton-oilers/latest-news/oilers-coach-shouldnt-worry-about-his-job] wrote that Woodcroft shouldn't need to worry about his job yet after having an overall impressive record since he began coaching the team, but he must focus game by game. The Edmonton Journal's Robert Tychkowski [https://edmontonjournal.com/sports/five-things-mostly-bad-about-the-bottom-feeding-edmonton-oilers] felt they must address the lack of production among their bottom-six forwards. He called for “trades, demotions, anything to shake some life into the third and fourth lines.” Tychkowski pointed out that Ryan McLeod, Dylan Holloway, Derek Ryan, Connor Brown, Mattias Janmark and Adam Erne combined for 52 man games with just two assists. He said any member of that group would've been healthy scratches by now if not for the Oilers' lack of cap space making it difficult to bring in substitutions. With just over $440,000 in cap room, there's little that GM Ken Holland can do to shake up the roster unless he can swing a dollar-for-dollar swap. Otherwise, any changes at this stage of the season will have to come from within the organization.
