EDMONTON -- If the Edmonton Oilers win their final two games this season, theyll finish with 15 more points than they did last year and the year before that. But before the Oilers can plug those numbers into the equation, theyll have to beat the Anaheim Ducks at Rexall Place on Thursday and the Vancouver Canucks at Rogers Arena on Saturday. Is that progress? Sure. The debate is in the degree. "I think weve already made progress to tell you the truth, regardless of what happens," captain Shawn Horcoff said. "Weve had great leaps and strides forward with our young guys and were going to get another good (draft) pick. Were going to be older and a little more experienced next year. I think experience goes a long way." After finishing 30th overall in back-to-back seasons with 62 points, the Oilers face the Ducks in their final home game with a record of 32-39-9 for 73 points. At worst, the Oilers will be 11 points better when theyre done with the Ducks and the Canucks. The Oilers are locked into 14th place in the Western Conference. Theyll miss the playoffs for the sixth straight season and fall well short of being post-season contenders, which is where GM Steve Tambellini set the bar when the season began. "Our goal is to make the playoffs and thats it, really," said Sam Gagner. "You can talk about improvement or different things like that, but, at the end of the day, that has to be our focus. "You have to have that fire that, you know? We are improving, but we have to continually get better if were going to make the playoffs. Its an exciting challenge for us next year. We want to finish this season as good as we can and focus on the right things." When the Oilers jumped out to an 8-2-2 start and briefly sat atop conference standings, they were the surprises of the NHL and the playoff push Tambellini talked about seemed possible. Theyd win just eight times in the next 29 games and wouldnt recover, hitting the halfway mark of the season at 16-22-3. "Its the long stretches of poor hockey we have to stay away from," Horcoff said. "We had a lot of injuries to significant players during that time, so it would be nice to stay a little bit healthy for one season, too." While the playoff push went bust by the end of December and theres been minimal improvement in terms of moving up in the standings, theres are some obvious signs of progress. Jordan Eberle sits 14th in league scoring with 75 points. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins is tied for the rookie lead with 51 points despite missing 20 games because of a shoulder injury. Taylor Hall had 53 points in 61 games before his second season was ended by a concussion and shoulder surgery. "I know weve made progress as far as being a better team," Eberle said. "A lot of things show it. I know were making progress and thats all that matters. "We wanted a little more. We wanted to be in that hunt for a playoff spot, so the season definitely hasnt gone the way we wanted it. That puts more expectations on next year." The Oilers have scored 210 goals and allowed 233, leaving them minus-23 in goal-differential. Last season, they were minus-76 and in 2009-10 they were minus-70. The power play, ranked second, is greatly improved. The penalty killing has been better. "Everyone in here is a competitor. Thats why we made it to the NHL," Eberle said. "As hockey players, you want to win. "A winning attitude is huge for us. You cant let a losing mentality creep into your game because thats when it really starts to hurt. For the most part, weve kept that out. With inconsistent play and injuries, we havent had the season we wanted. Weve definitely made progress, but we have a lot of work to do." How far the Oilers have come and how far theyve got to go is up for debate. Gagner, without a taste of playoffs as he completes his fifth NHL season, has his own perspective. "Theyre starting to show commercials again for the playoffs at this time of year," Gagner said. "When youre not part of it for another year, to be out of it, its disappointing." Hes hoping next season will be different. "There is progress, but we cant have another year where we look back and say, Theres always next year. It has to be a situation where were ready to go, were focusing on the right things and we dont let the little things get in our way." cheap jerseys . Argentine-born Italy striker Pablo Osvaldo scored with an angled shot three minutes in, while Rodrigo Palacio hit the crossbar with Genoas best opportunity in the 71st. nfl jerseys china . James is being kept out of Miamis final road game -- against the Cavaliers -- as the Heat get ready for the NBA playoffs by resting almost all of their top players. http://www.jerseyscheapnfl.us.com/ . Hamelin clocked 40.821 seconds for his first win of the season. Vladimir Grigorev of Russia was second with a time of 40.854 while Chinas Wu Dajing took third in 41. Cheap Florida Marlins Jerseys . Former No. 1 Roger Federer joined Djokovic in the round of 64 with a victory of his own on Monday. The second-seeded Djokovic had little trouble in a 6-2, 6-1, 6-3 victory over Dutchman Thiemo De Bakker. Cheap Washington Nationals Jerseys . -- After the Anaheim Ducks went on a frantic six-week sprint just to make the post-season, Teemu Selanne thinks its understandable they couldnt maintain that breakneck pace going into their playoff opener.LOUDON, N.H. -- Matt Kenseth made it 2 for 2 in the Chase, holding off teammate Kyle Busch to win Sunday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Kenseth followed his win in the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship opener at Chicagoland with his series-high seventh victory of the season. Kenseth made his 500th career start and maintained his points lead as the series shifts to Dover. Kenseth and Busch made it a 1-2 finish for Joe Gibbs Racing for the second straight week and helped the organization win for the fourth time in the last five Cup races. Chase drivers filled six of the top 10 spots. Greg Biffle was third and Jimmie Johnson fourth. Dale Earnhardt Jr. was sixth and Carl Edwards ninth. Kenseth joins Biffle (2008) and Tony Stewart (2011) as the only drivers to win the first two Chase races. Stewart went on to win the title. Kenseth won for the first time at New Hampshire and moves on in the No. 20 Toyota to Dover, where hes a two-time winner. He led 29 laps there earlier this year before an engine failure ended his day. "For me to win at Loudon, its more than a stretch, more than a dream," Kenseth said. "This is probably one of my worst places. This just shows you how good this team is." JGR, with Busch, in the past has dominated the regular season, but dropped off considerably once the Chase began. NNow theyve carried over their success into the Chase and are a credible 1-2 threat to give Toyota its first Sprint Cup title.dddddddddddd. "Theres somebody faster so it doesnt matter how fast I am," Busch said. " JGR has won five of the last seven races dating to Buschs win at Watkins Glen in August. Kenseth won at Bristol, Busch took Atlanta and Kenseth won the last two. Kenseth has obliterated his season best for wins. His previous high was five in 2002 and Kenseth won only once in 2003 when he won the Cup championship. While NASCAR has been smacked with scandal, Kenseth has quietly gone under the radar doing what he does best: winning races. He has 31 wins in 500 starts. "Its been a great start for JGR," Kenseth said. "I just feel like the luckiest guy in the world to be standing here." Chase drivers took spots 13-17: Kurt Busch, Joey Logano, Jeff Gordon, Ryan Newman and Clint Bowyer. Kevin Harvick was 20th and Kasey Kahne slammed the inside wall with 48 laps left and was 37th. Kenseth took the lead from Bowyer with 92 laps left. Martin Truex Jr., whose future is in limbo after NAPA dropped its sponsorship of Michael Waltrip Racing in the wake of the NASCAR scandal at Richmond, led a race-high 98 laps. Jamie McMurray was the highest non-Chase finisher in fifth place. cheap jerseys wholesale jerseys ' ' '