 The Oilers would fail to make the playoffs in the 2003–04 season.The Oilers struggled with their small-market status for several years, but after the wiped-out 2004–05 season, they were aided by a Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) between the NHL owners and players.This included a league-wide salary cap that essentially forced all teams to conform to a budget, as the Oilers had been doing for years.