Edmonton Oilers fire coach Kris Knoblauch after first-round exit
The Edmonton Oilers fired coach Kris Knoblauch after a first-round playoffs exit, the team announced Thursday. He posted a 135-77-21 in three seasons.
May 14 (UPI) -- The Edmonton Oilers fired coach Kris Knoblauch after a first-round playoffs exit, the team announced Thursday. They also fired assistant coach Mark Stuart. Knoblauch, who led the Oilers to the Stanley Cup Final in 2023-24 and 2024-25, posted a 135-77-21 regular-season record over his three-year tenure with the franchise.
"Following a thorough review of this past season, we believe these changes are needed," Oilers general manager Stan Bowman said. "We are grateful for the contributions both Kris and Mark have made to our organization and we wish them the best moving forward. The Oilers were 49-27-6 in Knoblauch's first season, when they scored the fourth-most goals in the NHL and allowed the 10th-fewest.
They were 48-29-5, with the 11th-most goals and 14th-fewest allowed in 2024-25. The Oilers, led by likely future Hall of Fame forwards Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, lost to the Florida Panthers in the Stanley Cup Final at the end of each of the last two postseasons. The 2025-26 Oilers were 41-30-11.
They scored the sixth-most goals in the NHL, but surrendered the eighth-most scores. Those Oilers won the first game of their first-round series with the Anaheim Ducks. The Ducks won the next three games to take control of the series.