There’s a lot to talk about once more regarding the Edmonton Oilers, given what’s already been a roller coaster quarter-way mark of their 2024-25 season. With it has come plenty of surprises regarding players who have been both productive and unproductive, contrary to what we would have thought before the season.

One of the duds so far has been Zach Hyman, who has just eight points and three goals in 20 games and has further struggled with injuries. But, there are a couple of players who have surprisingly exceeded expectations. That’s the good news, as I can name another three who haven’t been so hot at many points through the first quarter of 2024-25.

Mattias Janmark

If there’s been a good surprise this season, it starts with Mattias Janmark, who looks like he’s well on his way to recording a career-high in points. Last year, he ended the season with 12, and four goals in 71 contests. But with 10 points and nine assists so far in 2024-25, he’s been quite a playmaker early.

You’ll have to go back to 2017-18 to find Janmark’s personal best, which was a 34-point, 19-goal season with the Dallas Stars. If he can get a little more consistent finding an open skater to drive one home for goals, there’s no reason he won’t top his previous career-high this season.

Jeff Skinner

Okay, this one’s bad, way bad, almost as bad as a newly-acquired free-agent signing could go. Kudos to the Buffalo Sabres for knowing when to buyout Jeff Skinner’s contract, and shame on the Edmonton Oilers for thinking he still had another decent season or two.

Alright, I’ll be real: I thought Skinner had another good year or two left, too, so I guess I’m every bit as wrong here. Still, Skinner has been so bad, that you may need to read an entire article on the subject just to fully grasp the magnitude of what’s gone awry.

Stuart Skinner

Why not follow up Jeff Skinner with another player named Skinner? I was convinced Stuart Skinner would make a jump this year, but it hasn’t happened and it wouldn’t be surprising if the Oilers packaged him in a trade and tried to acquire someone more consistent.

No, Skinner hasn’t been terrible, but with a 2.97 GAA, an 0.889 save percentage, and a so-so 0.529 quality starts percentage, he’s probably not the guy you want to trust leading the Oilers back to a Stanley Cup Final appearance. Nope, we need to see someone better man the net in Edmonton if the Oilers plan on making a deep playoff run.

Adam Henrique

Adam Henrique has been disappointing in the points-producing realm, having put up just two goals and seven points. But that’s where the disappointment ends, as he’s still effective in the faceoff circle, and he’s still willing to do the dirty work despite finding himself well into his age-34 season.

Henrique’s also clocking in a solid plus-4 rating in what’s been an up-and-down season in Edmonton. You may not like the way he’s been producing from a points perspective, but he’s been one of the better utility players for his team, following what I felt might have been his last decent year in 2023-24.

Viktor Arvidsson

Okay, it’s been a trying time for Viktor Arvidsson, having landed back on injured reserve after he missed most of last season for the Los Angeles Kings. Still, he looked good when he was back in action last year, so I thought it foreshadowed a bounce-back campaign with the Oilers.

That hasn’t been the case, as Arvidsson had generated just five points and two goals in 16 games. Yeah, disappointing, even for a player who, while I didn’t expect him to light up the scoreboard as a surefire depth player in Edmonton, something better than what he’s given the Oilers so far didn’t seem like much to ask.