The Edmonton Oilers are recognized by most hockey fans as one of the greatest franchises in NHL history. How did a team from Edmonton, Canada, the NHL’s third smallest market, come to dominate hockey? The only possible answer is through winning championships and having one of the greatest – if not the greatest – players in NHL history. The Edmonton Oilers created one of the NHL’s most dominant dynasties of all time when they won five stanley cups from 1984 to 1990. The Oilers have won nine division championships in their history along with seven conference championships and seven appearances in the Stanley Cup Finals. That type of dominance in any professional sports league will never be forgotten, and it’s the reason that Edmonton maintains their place in NHL history.

The other reason is, of course, Wayne Gretzky, the greatest hockey player of all time. In his nine seasons with the Edmonton Oilers, Gretzky achieved nine all-star appearances, eight NHL MVP awards, led the NHL in points seven times and won two Stanley Cup playoff MVP awards. He also set three incredible NHL records that may never be broken: 92 goals in a single season, 163 assists in a single season and 215 points in a single regular season. Gretzky’s greatness was the main reason that the Edmonton Oilers were able to dominate the NHL.

Despite their past success, as you’ve noticed, most of the accomplishments that make the Edmonton Oilers one of the NHL’s great historical franchises happened a long time ago. After the Oilers’ domination in the 1980s, they were able to maintain a solid playoff presence, making the playoffs five straight seasons from 1997-2001. Their most recent deep playoff run occurred in a loss to the Carolina Hurricanes in the 2006 Stanley Cup Finals.

After 2006 though, Edmonton experienced quite a downturn. The Oilers became one of the worst teams in the NHL and an annual laughingstock. The Oilers missed the playoffs for ten straight season from 2007 to 2016, never amassing more than 88 points in any of those seasons. Even worse is that the Oilers made no improvements despite having a top-ten draft pick for nine of those seasons in which they missed the playoffs. Most shockingly, Edmonton received the first overall draft selection for an unprecedented three straight seasons and still made no improvements.

That is, until now. The Edmonton Oilers finally ended their ten-year playoff drought this past spring and made an admirable run into game 7 of the second round despite all of their youth and inexperience. The Edmonton Oilers are about to make their return to greatness using the same formula that worked so well in the 1980’s: winning championships and having one of the greatest players in NHL history.

In terms of potentially winning championships, the Oilers have a balanced and highly talented roster that will be among the best teams in the NHL for years to come. An offense led by Connor McDavid, Milan Lucic, Leon Draisaitl and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins gives Edmonton a unique blend of speed, scoring ability and toughness. Oscar Klefbom, Adam Larsson and Darnell Nurse form a tall, mobile and physically imposing defense. Finally, goalie Cam Talbot is quickly turning into one of the NHL’s best goaltenders. The Oilers’ best players are also very young, meaning this team will only get better.

The second part of the formula that will return the Edmonton Oilers’ to greatness is Connor McDavid. I know that it’s way too early to proclaim Connor McDavid as one of the greatest NHL players of all time, but just look at what he’s already accomplished. In just his second NHL season (after missing 37 games in his rookie season), McDavid tallied an NHL-leading 100 points, earning an all-star appearance, and an MVP selection, as voted by both the players and in official NHL MVP voting. And at only 20 years old, McDavid hasn’t even approached his full potential. His hockey smarts, passing ability and electrifying speed will make McDavid must-watch television and the face of hockey for years to come.

The rest of the NHL should be extremely worried, because the Edmonton Oilers are coming, and they are ready to return to greatness.

The Pittsburgh Penguins are one of the most feared franchises in the National Hockey League. Ever since acquiring Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin in the draft, the franchise has been built for success. Along the way, the Pens have also featured a variety of other star players, such as goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury, wingers Phil Kessel and Chris Kunitz, and defensemen Kris Letang and Justin Schultz. With players of this caliber, an energetic Pittsburgh fan base and several successful seasons with Stanley Cup Playoff runs, the Pens should have no problem repeating their recent cup victory, right? In order to fully answer this question, we must look at a number of determining factors.

They Have Been There Before…

Since the 2007-2008 season, the Pens have been to the Stanley Cup four times, capitalizing on three out of the four appearances. They have also had successful regular seasons in that time period, averaging only 24 losses per season in that span. Since 2007, they have had a great roster which helped them be this successful, with members like Crosby and Malkin. Thanks to their success, more than half of their team has massive amounts of playoff experience in the past two years, and a handful of them have already won multiple Stanley Cups in their careers. With these experiences as well as the recent success they have had, the Pens have a very high chance of raising the cup yet again.

The Roster Speaks for Itself…

As mentioned before, the Pittsburgh Penguins have one of the best rosters in the NHL. Sidney Crosby has compiled over 1000 career points and has collected three cups as the captain of the team, Evgeni Malkin has accrued the same amount of cups and over 800 career points, and other great players and goaltenders provide the Pens with successful seasons. Furthermore, goaltending is one of the most crucial parts in a successful NHL team. Goaltenders like Marc-Andre Fleury and Matt Murray have helped the Pens win games and be successful in the post-season. The defensive lineups from Kris Letang and Justin Schultz to Ian Cole and Trevor Daley have been outstanding in the regular season and postseason. These reliable blue liners led the Pens to two recent Stanley Cups. With wingers like Phil Kessel, Chris Kunitz, Conor Sheary, Carl Hagelin and Patric Hörnqvist, the Penguins have had all of the puzzle pieces up front to be very successful for the past few years.

All factors considered, the Pens clearly have a very good chance at winning the Stanley Cup for the 2017-2018 season. This is not to say that they will be alone in the chase for the cup. Teams like the Chicago Blackhawks, Boston Bruins, Washington Capitals, Anaheim Ducks, Ottawa Senators and many more teams could challenge for the Stanley Cup next season. With the Predators’ hot stretch at last season’s end, we have honestly learned that any team could win the Stanley Cup; however, the aforementioned teams have shown great success in the Stanley Cup Playoffs before, and will continue to make appearances year after year.

Will they Win?

Given the roster and the past experiences of the Pittsburgh Penguins, some will say that the Pens will hoist the trophy at the end of the season. While we need to watch out for injuries, trades and lineup changes for next season before we can get a better read on their prospects, I absolutely believe that they will make a run at the Stanley Cup Finals in the 2017-2018 season. Teams like the Blackhawks, Bruins, Ducks, Caps and Sens will be there too and make it interesting, so it will be anybody’s cup come playoff time. Will the Pens repeat? Don’t bet your house on it, but they will make a run for it.