Mike Babcock: Oilers receive serious warning as major changes loom in Edmonton

The Oilers are about to get the full Mike Babcock, and nobody from Connor McDavid down will be spared the message.

After Tuesday's 6-5 overtime loss to Vancouver, one analyst put it simply: "There's nothing left for him to wait for."

The coach has seen it firsthand now. The highs, the lows, and the flaws that have plagued Edmonton.

What comes next could be a full meeting, with some commanding and some demanding. The analyst expects players to be verbally stripped down and told exactly what has to change.

The hardest part is mentality. "They're so driven towards offense. It affects how patient they are."

That impatience shows up in odd-man rushes. When the offence doesn't come, they force it, and that's when the other team gets loose going the other way.

Babcock's own aggression mantra clashes with a defend-first fix

Here's the twist. Babcock said this week there's no such thing as too much aggression.

David Staples had the Oilers over-aggressive and out of position on all six goals against. The analyst's diagnosis lines up almost perfectly with that tape.

Edmonton won the Grade A chances 20 to nine, by Staples' count. The offence isn't the problem, because this group is so talented at the top that "they just expect it to come."

Babcock has to pick a side. He can't preach unlimited aggression and ask for patience in the same breath, and right now his message is working against itself.

Telling this group to defend first is like asking a sports car to obey the speed limit. It can, but everything about it wants to go faster.

Tristan Jarry wore the result, with 17 saves on 23 shots. Goalies rarely look good behind a team that leaves this many doors open.

The rematch is tonight in Vancouver. Stan Bowman will be watching whether the full Babcock shows up on the bench, or only in the meeting room.

If the Oilers give up odd-man rushes again, the meetings get longer. And the patience Babcock wants from his players starts running out on his own end.

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