Edmonton Oilers first playoff game start date and time revealed

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Liam McCormick
April 18, 2024 (11:52)

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Some teams have had their playoff dates already set, but the Oilers playing so late into the season has delayed their start. According to Oilers insiders, the team is scheduled to begin their series on April 22nd.

»It sounds like the Oilers will be one of the last teams to start their playoff series this season, as Sports 1440's Jason Gregor reported last night that it sounds like Game 1 in Edmonton is set to go on Monday night.
He also reported that Game 2 would be played three days later on Thursday night.»

Additionally, because the Oilers have had such a heavy schedule in the last week, game two will be played three days after game 1, on Thursday night. The series will likely entirely be played to the Pacific Time Zone, meaning 10-10:30 starts for fans in the East. The start time of the west coast games has always been a hot topic amongst national fans, especially when the Oilers have a generational talent in Connor McDavid who should be seen by as many people as possible. Oilers Writer Jim Matheson argues that the late start times don't help to reach the audience the Oilers could potentially draw.

However, there's many more reasons why the playoff games are always set to start at 7:30 Pacific Time. The later start allows the broadcast to account for long playoff overtimes, allows fans to watch the eastern games in entirety, and allows local fans the later time slot to ensure maximum turnout. If a true hockey fan wants to watch Connor McDavid and the Oilers in the playoffs, they'll stay up a bit later at night to do it.

Whatever your opinion is on the start times, at least us fans finally have the facts and can start making preparations for playoff hockey. The Oilers will kick off Monday night, likely against the Vegas Golden Knights, at 8:30 Mountain Time.