Edmonton fired Peter Chiarelli on Wednesday in an indictment of his roster moves in three-plus years as general manager Vegas Golden Knights Hats Authentic , with the Oilers in striking distance of a playoff spot during another losing season.The team announced Chiarelli’s abrupt dismissal in the aftermath of its third consecutive loss. Edmonton has lost 12 of its past 16 games going into the All-Star Break. The Oilers are 14-14-2 since firing coach Todd McLellan and replacing him with Ken Hitchcock.CEO Bob Nicholson will oversee hockey operations and the search for Chiarelli’s replacement. Nicholson said at a news conference in Edmonton that Keith Gretzky will assume GM responsibilities for the time being, including the point role ahead of the Feb. 25 trade deadline.Nicholson said the Oilers, who are three points out of the final playoff spot in the Western Conference, still believe they can make the playoffs but won’t sacrifice the future to try to make quick fixes. He said the organizational decision was made this week to fire Chiarelli, who was told at the second intermission of a loss Tuesday night to Detroit so he could quietly leave the arena.Nothing else about Chiarelli’s tenure in Edmonton was quiet. He was hired in 2015 after the Oilers won the draft lottery and selected star Connor McDavid. He was heralded as the right executive to get the Oilers back to respectability.They’ve made the playoffs just once in McDavid’s three seasons despite him putting up 329 points in 258 games, leading the league in scoring twice and winning the Hart Trophy as NHL MVP.“There’s something in the water here in Edmonton that we don’t have right,” Nicholson said at the news conference. “And we got to get that figured out.”Chiarelli is the second GM to be fired this season. The Philadelphia Flyers dismissed Ron Hextall in November and named Chuck Fletcher his replacement.Nicholson said Hitchcock will remain coach for the rest of the season as Edmonton tries to close the gap and qualify for the postseason with 32 games left.Moves made by Chiarelli along the way contributed to the Oilers struggling for much of the first four seasons of McDavid’s career. Chiarelli traded 2010 top pick Taylor Hall to the New Jersey Devils one-for-one for defenseman Adam Larsson. Hall won the Hart last season and led the Devils to the playoffs.He signed Milan Lucic to a $42 million, six-year contract that now appears to be unmovable. The big winger has 96 points in 214 games with the Oilers, including just five goals this season.And he traded 2008 first-round pick Jordan Eberle to the New York Islanders for Ryan Strome, who he sent to the New York Rangers earlier this season for Ryan Spooner. The Oilers put Spooner on waivers Monday.Chiarelli was expected to give the woebegone Oilers steady leadership with McDavid. He won the Stanley Cup with the Bruins in 2011 but made similar personnel mistakes in Boston, most notably a failed trade of Tyler Seguin to the Dallas Stars that contributed to losing his job.Edmonton had missed the playoffs in nine consecutive seasons before replacing Craig MacTavish with Chiarelli. A trip to the second round of the playoffs in 2017 looked like the start of success, but the Oilers finished 17 points out of the final playoff spot in the Western Conference despite McDavid putting up an NHL-best 108 points to win the Art Ross Trophy.Last summer, Chiarelli did little to improve the roster around McDavid.The result was 11 losses in their first 20 games that led to the firing of McLellan and later a series of reactionary moves. Beyond the Strome for Spooner deal, Chiarelli sent 24-year-old forward Drake Caggiula to Chicago for bottom-pairing defenseman Brandon Manning. This week, he signed goaltender Mikko Koskinen to a three-year contract extension worth $4.5 million a season. We're almost at the halfway mark of the 2018-19 NHL season, and we now have a firm idea on which teams look like Stanley Cup contenders - and which clubs will simply hope for the best in the upcoming draft lottery.16 teams make the playoffs every year Custom Vegas Golden Knights Jerseys , but there are really only five teams that have placed themselves in the class of "elite". These are the five teams that look like true Stanley Cup contenders as we head into the new year.Read on for more.5. Calgary Flames Credit: Sergei Belski-USA TODAY SportsThe Flames should have been a Cup contender in 2017 and 2018, but they underachieved to the max - and it led to the firing of bench boss Glen Gulutzan last spring. Well, new head coach Bill Peters has gotten the most out of this talented club - and the Flames are sitting atop the Pacific Division right now.advertisingThough the likes of Sean Monahan, Johnny Gaudreau, Mark Giordano and Matthew Tkachuk continue to perform at their usual standards, there are two other players widely responsible for the turnaroud.Goalie David Rittich has emerged as the starting goalie, compiling a 12-4-1 record with a 2.22 goals against average and .926 save percentage. Now that Calgary has their answer in the crease, they've finally lived up to expectations. Who'da thought?And finally, newcomer Elias Lindholm - acquired in a blockbuster deal with the Carolina Hurricanes - is enjoying a career year with 17 goals and 41 points. He, Gaudreau and Monahan have formed one of the most dynamic lines in the NHL.advertisingThe Flames are loaded with superstar scorers, big-time playmakers on defence and a reliable goalie. This is truly a bonafide Stanley Cup contender, and perhaps the best Flames team we've seen over the past 20 years.4. Nashville PredatorsThe Predators have lost five games in a row, but let's not overlook this team. The defending Presidents' Trophy winners sit pretty at 22-14-6, despite a rash of injuries to key players.P.K. Subban has missed 19 games, Filip Forsberg 12 and Austin Watson 18. And yet, the Predators are still among the elite teams in the Western Conference. At full strength Chris Wagner Jersey Womens , this Nashville squad is arguably the most complete team in the NHL.advertisingSubban, Roman Josi, Ryan Ellis and Mattias Ekholm form the NHL's best defensive unit, while Pekka Rinne looks like the favorite to win the Vezina Trophy once again. Everything is there defensively and in the crease.Keep in mind Nashville is also just two years removed from a Stanley Cup Final appearance. They have more than enough playoff experience and a roster built around speed, skill and toughness. There are few flaws on this team, and they'll be an extremely tough out come playoff time.3. Toronto Maple Leafs Credit: Dan Hamilton-USA TODAY SportsThe Maple Leafs are second in the Eastern Conference, even though Auston Matthews missed 14 games. Even though William Nylander didn't join the team until December after a lengthy contract holdout. Even though their blue line hasn't been very sound defensively in 2018-19.advertisingToronto relies entirely on its high-powered offense and goalie Frederik Andersen, but both sides have answered the call. Only the Lightning have scored more goals this season than the Maple Leafs.Just how balanced is the scoring in Toronto? Newcomer John Tavares is third in team scoring with 24 goals and 42 points. Mitch Marner (50 points) and Morgan Rielly (44 points), lead the way.The Maple Leafs have separated themselves from most other quality teams in the East, including the Pittsburgh Penguins, Boston Bruins and Montreal Canadiens. If they add a reliable rearguard at the deadline, Toronto will have all the makings of a true Stanley Cup contender.advertising2. Winnipeg JetsAfter a sluggish start, the Jets have taken flight and sit atop both the Central Division and Western Conference. That doesn't bode well for the Predators - whose Presidents' Trophy-winning season in 2017-18 went to waste after Winnipeg eliminated them in the second round.The Jets are far and away the most complete team in hockey right now.Mark Scheifele (22 goals, 49 points), Blake Wheeler (48 points), and Patrik Laine (23 goals Alex Galchenyuk Jersey Womens , 30 points), lead the charge. Nikolaj Ehlers and Kyle Connor are both going to post 20-30 goal seasons, too.Winnipeg is 24-11-2 - four points up on the Preds for tops in the division. What's scary is that reigning Vezina Trophy finalist Connor Hellebuyck (2.91 goals against average, .909 save percentage), hasn't even played up to his usual standards. And yet the Jets are the top team in the West.advertisingHellebuyck is going to turn it around very soon, and the likes of Dustin ByfuglienandJacob Troubawill help the blue line play more sound defensively in the second half. Consider the Jets the team to beat in the Western Conference.1. Tampa Bay Lightning Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY SportsWhen was the last time a team has asserted themselves in a class of their own this early in the season? The Tampa Bay Lightning are the team to beat in 2019, because there are simply no weaknesses on this team.They rank first in goals (160), and are holding their own on defense despite losing Andrei Vasilevskiy for several weeks.Just how good are the Lightning on offense? Steven Stamkos is "only" third in team scoring with 43 points. Nikita Kucherov (61 points), and Brayden Point (49 points), lead the way.advertisingReigning Norris Trophy winner Victor Hedman is playing like somebody that doesn't want to relinquish the award. Six players on the Lightning already have double-digit goals. Did we mention Stamkos and Kucherov are both Hart Trophy candidates?Tampa Bay has played in three of the last four Eastern Conference Finals, too, so we know the pressure doesn't bother them a bit. This is a legitimate championship contender with absolutely zero flaws. That is why they've separated themselves from everybody else in the first half of the season.advertising