Lowe, a defenseman with the Oilers when the team was winning Stanley Cups in the 1980s, guided the club to a 32-34-16-8 record in his only season as head coach but had the misfortune to draw powerhouse Dallas in the first round of the playoffs. The Oilers went down in the first round.

Finances will always be a problem for small-market teams like Edmonton, but Lowe did a good job this summer in re-signing several valuable players: Doug Weight, Todd Marchant, Mike Grier, Rem Murray, Ethan Moreau, Georges Laraque and, most recently, holdout Ryan Smyth to a three-year, $7.2 million contract.

What has to happen

Former checking center and Oilers assistant coach Craig MacTavish must prove he can handle the chores of being an NHL head coach. It doesn't always work out that way.

The Oilers need to find a scoring line behind Doug Weight, Bill Guerin and Ryan Smyth. Maybe rookie Daniel Cleary will emerge as a solid NHL player, but the team already has lost Josh Green to a shoulder injury that will keep him on the shelf indefinitely. Green was acquired from the New York Islanders in a deal that involved defenseman Roman Hamrlik.

What can't happen

Goalie Tommy Salo can't falter because it looks like the Oilers will be banking on a journeyman or untested Joaquin Gage to be the backup. The Oilers are likely to pick up someone in the waiver draft.

Left wing Rem Murray can't get hurt again. Murray has the potential to score 20-25 goals, but injuries limited him to just 44 games last year.

The mental approach

The Oilers had the division lead with less than two months remaining last year, but they slumped badly and finished second behind Colorado.

Worse, they finished seventh in the Western Conference and had to play Dallas in the first round of the playoffs. That was not a good thing. Edmonton has to be mentally stronger down the stretch to finish with a better seed and avoid having to face teams like the Stars in the postseason.

Noteworthy

COMEBACK TRAIL: Defenseman Frank Musil isn't letting a minor annoyance like spinal-fusion surgery wreck his NHL career.

Musil, 35, suffered a compressed vertebra in his neck when he crashed into the boards at a practice a year ago and missed the entire season. He underwent the surgery seven months ago.

"Throughout my whole career I've kind of thrived on being an underdog and proving people wrong,'' he said. "It keeps me motivated that much more. If I can prove them wrong this time, then fine. If not, then I can leave with my head high and live in peace with myself that I did all I could.''

GETTING ANTSY: Forward Ethan Moreau played almost all of last season with an unstable shoulder and is in rehabilitation following his third operation in four years.

"It's not a lot of fun," said Moreau, who probably will miss at least the first month of the regular season. "But it's part of the game. Everybody goes through it at one point or another."

The Oilers obviously believe Moreau will make a full recovery. They signed him to a new, three-year contract worth $3.5 million.