The Edmonton Oilers endured one of their most humiliating defeats of the season, falling 9-1 to the Colorado Avalanche on Saturday at Rogers Place. The lopsided result drew sharp criticism from NHL insider Elliotte Friedman, who dissected the loss on Monday's episode of the 32 Thoughts podcast.

Friedman noted that Colorado continued pressing for a tenth goal in the final minute, refusing to ease off despite already holding a commanding lead.“The Avalanche absolutely wanted that 10th goal,” Friedman said, adding that the effort looked like an outlet for frustrations from past playoff disappointments. He suggested Oilers coach Kris Knoblauch should show the clip to his players as a reminder of how little respect their opponents displayed.

“You have been the beasts of the Western Conference,” Friedman said.“Colorado came in and in your home building, they didn't just embarrass you. They wanted to continue embarrassing you. They wanted to pile drive you to the molten core of the planet.”

Colorado's stars dominated the night. Nathan MacKinnon scored twice and added two assists, while Cale Makar and Jack Drury each netted two goals. Parker Kelly contributed two goals and an assist. Goaltender Scott Wedgewood stopped 23 of 24 shots, with Edmonton's lone goal coming from captain Connor McDavid. The Avalanche improved to 9-1-5, while Edmonton slipped to 6-6-4.

The Oilers' goaltending woes continued. Starter Stuart Skinner allowed four goals before being replaced by Calvin Pickard, who surrendered five more. Edmonton managed only 24 shots, underscoring their lack of offensive push.

Knoblauch Calls 9-1 Collapse 'Rock Bottom' As Friedman Urges Oilers To Treat It As Wake-Up Call

Friedman emphasized that Knoblauch could use the humiliation as a teaching moment.“These guys, they have no respect for you. Teams are laughing at us,” he said, noting that even if exaggerated, the message might spark urgency.

Knoblauch himself labeled the defeat“rock bottom.” He admitted his team lost focus after early goals and failed to play cohesively.“After the first goal, there was a lot of deflation,” Knoblauch said.“That's on the coaching staff, mostly myself, to get that aligned.”

The coach added that past struggles were overcome through effort, but this time he felt players were waiting for improvement rather than creating it.“I hope this wakes up a lot of guys,” Knoblauch said.

The Oilers have now dropped three straight games and are allowing 3.44 goals per contest. With defensive lapses and shaky goaltending, the urgency to rebound has never been greater.

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