Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl begin their eighth season as Edmonton Oilers teammates feeling as close as they've been to the end of their Stanley Cup chase, yet knowing they have a long road ahead that starts with their season opener against the Vancouver Canucks at Rogers Place on Wednesday (10 p.m. ET; SN, ESPN+, SN NOW).

The Oilers took a significant step last season by reaching the Western Conference Final for the first time since their run to the 2006 Stanley Cup Final. But there is no button McDavid and Draisaitl can push to fast forward back to that point so they can apply what they learned and get past it.

"There really is nothing in this League that happens for free, and you do have to build it back up," McDavid said. "There's no carryover from season to season. Every year starts fresh and we've got to build it back up to where we were last year and beyond that."

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McDavid, Edmonton's captain, speaks from experience.

The Oilers appeared poised to be Stanley Cup contenders after losing to the Anaheim Ducks in seven games in the 2017 Western Conference Second Round, but they failed to qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs the next two seasons. A disappointing loss to the Chicago Blackhawks in the 2020 Stanley Cup Qualifiers was followed by a four-game sweep against the Winnipeg Jets in the 2021 first round.

There were lessons in those losses, though, and more in their series victories against Los Angeles Kings and Calgary Flames last postseason that preceded the Oilers being swept by the Colorado Avalanche, the eventual Stanley Cup champion, in the conference final.

"I think success goes a long way," Draisaitl said. "When you're always losing in the first round or you don't even make the playoffs, it seems like you're so far away from it. Now you're in the top four, one of the four best teams in the League, and you're like, 'OK, we're there. We're right there.'

"I think we got better this offseason too. I think our time is now."

McDavid and Draisaitl have been through it all together, often as linemates, since McDavid arrived as the No. 1 pick in the 2015 NHL Draft after Edmonton selected Draisaitl with the No. 3 pick in the 2014 NHL Draft. Although forward Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, the No. 1 pick in the 2011 NHL Draft, and defenseman Darnell Nurse, the No. 7 pick in the 2013 NHL Draft, have longer tenures and also are important parts of Edmonton's core, there is no mistaking that McDavid and Draisaitl are the faces of the Oilers and the inexorable forces behind their push for Edmonton's first championship since 1990.

"I think both are driven by team success and they're pushing every single day to be the best they can be and to set a standard for our team to help move the needle forward here in Edmonton," Oilers coach Jay Woodcroft said. "For me, I'm lucky because I get a front-row seat to all the things that happen behind the scenes and all the work that gets put in. They're two great young men, two really good hockey leaders, and they're pushing each and every day."