Plan the parade route! The Edmonton Oilers are undefeated in February! Too bad for them that they went winless in January. They picked up two points in overtime losses thanks to the NHL’s generous point structure. A 13-game losing streak dropped the Oilers far out of contention and into the basement in the Western Conference. Part of their losses included a pair to the Calgary Flames who, for the first time in history, swept the season series in the Battle of Alberta by easily taking all six games. To say things have never looked bleaker for Edmonton may be an understatement.

The Oilers went 0-10-2 in January. They were outscored 50-23. They allowed three or more goals in all but one game and scored three or less goals in all but one game. They were also shutout once. Their 4-2 victory over the Hurricanes not only ended their losing skid, it also provides a glimmer of hope; a sign that Edmonton can, in fact, put the puck in the net and win. While nobody was expecting them to lose every game from now until the end of the season, things have been looking rather hopeless for the last month.

The state of hockey in Edmonton is a far cry from the glory days of the 80s. Gone are superstars like Wayne Gretzky, Mark Messierm and Grant Fuhr. Now guys like Sam Gagner, Patrick O’Sullivan and Shawn Horcoff are around. To say that the franchise needs some work is an understatement. The Oilers roster is a mess. The good news is that they’re young. They have pieces, but not necessarily pieces to their puzzle. A lot of work needs to be done if the Oilers ever want to become the dynasty they were two decades ago.

But how can the Oilers get there? The short-term answer is to keep losing. Getting the first pick overall in this year’s draft probably lands Taylor Hall, a scoring phenom in the Ontario Hockey League. The Oilers’ problems go beyond offense, but starting with Hall sounds like a good place to start. Building around a young goalscorer can set the foundation for a long-term rebuild, and sadly for Oilers fans, that’s probably what it’s going to take before the Stanley Cup makes it back to Edmonton.