The light at the end of the tunnel: It looks like the Oilers rebuild is finally coming to an end

It has been a long and difficult road for the Edmonton Oilers, it all started nine seasons ago when the Edmonton Oilers lost in the Stanley Cup final to the Carolina Hurricanes. Since that season the Oilers have struggled to even sniff around eighth place in the Western Conference. It is the longest drought in the NHL currently, and since that season the Oilers haven't been able to find the right combination of veterans and their young talent. They have been a joke of hockey fans everywhere, and have always been at the top of the draft lottery. The Oilers in eight of the past nine season the Oilers have picked in the top ten of the first round, and four out of the last five years they have picked first overall. It would seem that the Oilers would be trending in the right direction with all of these top level picks, but they just haven't surrounded them with the right pieces to help them grow and develop.

But they have started to make better decisions when it comes to their offensive and defensive core, the Oilers have made many moves over the past couple years whether its via free agency or through trades. The Oilers have made a considerable changes to their team and have tried to add leadership to such a young team that will need guidance. Among their signings have been Veterans such as Andrew Ference to captain the team, Mark Fayne to bolster the blue line, Matt Henricks, and goalies Ben Scrivens and Cam Talbot. These acquisitions should be able to help the Oilers to contend for a playoff spot, and should help their young talent start to help develop their young players. The Oilers have a big and bright future ahead of the with number one picks like Taylor Hall, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Nail Yakopov, and this years number one overall pick Conor McDavid.

McDavid in the eyes of many is the future Wayne Gretzky of this generation, and could bring the Oilers back to playoff contention and make them a ligament team in the Western Conference. The biggest disappointment for the Oilers has been Nail Yakopov who was the first overall pick in the 2012 draft, he has struggled to find the fit in the top six and really hasn't lived up to the number one status. Also one of the biggest problems for the Oilers has been their never ending search for the perfect coach, they have had anew coach almost every season and it seems that none of them have been the right fit for their young players.

But with new GM Peter Chiarelli and new coach Todd McLellan, the Oilers are looking to become a respectable and stable team within the next few years. With McDavid locked up for the next three years, Oilers fans should look forward to years of high powered young offense. The fans have longed for the days of Gretzky and Messier winning five Stanley Cups, And it looks like they are finally building for now and not just the future. Things seem to be finally looking up for the Oilers and their fans, and with a generational talent like McDavid coming into the fold it looks like they will finally be back to the playoffs.