'Changes are needed': Edmonton Oilers fire head coach Kris Knoblauch

The Edmonton Oilers feature fired head up train crease Knoblauch on with assistant coach Mark Stuart.

Edmonton Oilers general manager Stan Bowman confirmed the news in a statement Thursday.

“Following a thorough review of this past season, we believe these changes are needed," 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."

There was no immediate word on who will replace Knoblauch and Stuart. Bowman is expected to provide more details during a news conference later Thursday morning.

The decision to remove Knoblauch as bench boss comes after a disappointing 2025-26 season which ended when the Oilers were eliminated in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs in six games by the Anaheim Ducks.

Knoblauch was hired in November 2023 with the club off to an ugly 3-9-1 start and sitting a confounding 31st in the NHL's overall standings despite a lineup led by superstars Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl.

Edmonton turned things around under Knoblauch and then roared through three playoff rounds before falling to the Florida Panthers in Game 7 of the title series.

The Oilers returned to the final 12 months later but again lost to the Panthers, this time in six games. Edmonton bowed out of the playoffs this spring after a Game 6 loss to the Anaheim Ducks.

Knoblauch, who replaced Jay Woodcroft to secure his first NHL head coaching role, signed a three-year contract extension last October, but Edmonton didn't have the same look this past season.

Even with elite talent up front in McDavid and Draisaitl, the group struggled to find traction.

The Oilers' goaltending remained a near-constant talking point. General manager Stan Bowman traded Stuart Skinner to the Pittsburgh Penguins for fellow netminder Tristan Jarry in a deal that flopped, while talent deficiencies up front and a leaky defence corps proved a challenge.

Edmonton finished second in the Pacific Division in a season where it allowed more goals than any other playoff team. The power play ranked first, but penalty killing was an issue at No. 20.

The Oilers opened the conference quarterfinal with a victory over the upstart Ducks before dropping four of the next five games. McDavid and Draisaitl both lamented the organization's current state following the elimination.

"We've been searching for consistency all year, and we didn't find it here in the playoffs," McDavid told reporters afterward. "It's tough. We were an average team all year.

"An average team with high expectations, you're going to be disappointed."

'We have to improve': Oilers react to early playoff elimination

Draisaitl added at an end-of-season media availability that the organization must make drastic improvements

"In what world do you have the best player in the world on your team and you're not looking to win?" Draisaitl said of McDavid. "I know we're looking to win, but we need to be better — we have to be better. There's no way around it. We have to improve.

"[McDavid's] signed for two more years, and God knows where that goes, but we have two years here right now. We have to get significantly better."

Knoblauch, a native of Imperial, Sask., coached McDavid at the junior level with the Ontario Hockey League's Erie Otters. He also spent two seasons as an assistant coach with the Philadelphia Flyers.

He went on to lead the American Hockey League's Hartford Wolfpack from 2019 through 2023 until the Oilers came calling.

Knoblauch had a 135-77-21 regular-season record with Edmonton and a 31-22 playoff mark.

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