Welcome to my annual player review series, where I dive into the Edmonton Oilers season player-by-player. We’ll look back at the season that was, what kind of impact each player had, and what we could see from them next season. You can read about the analytics behind my analysis here.
The Edmonton Oilers really hoped for more from Viktor Arvidsson.
When they signed him to his two-year, $4-million AAV contract in free agency a year ago, they hoped to be getting the Viktor Arvidssson who was putting up 50-60 points as he had with the Los Angeles Kings and Nashville Predators before. Instead, they got 27 points and a lot of disappointment.
Arvidsson struggled to find his game for much of the season, and while he was still able to chip in some offence, largely playing on the second line with Leon Draisaitl, there could’ve been so much more. And while he played in all of the Oilers’ first-round series against the Kings, as the playoffs wore on, he began to find himself either as a healthy scratch or playing on the fourth line.
The biggest issue for Arvidsson all year long was his lack of consistency. The flashes were there of the productive player he had been before, but the frequent lows were outweighed by the highs.
He found his way to contribute, driving offence at a seven percent rate above league average, but his defensive game struggled to the tune of contributing at a five percent rate below league average, according to Hockey Viz. Ultimately, his efforts were those of a low-end second-line player.
He worked with the Oilers on finding a trade partner to get around his no-trade clause, ultimately getting sent to the Boston Bruins in exchange for a fifth-round pick in 2027.
VIKTOR ARIVDSSON’S CAREER SO FAR
2014-2015
6 0 0 0 0 0 0.00 0 0 0 9 0.0 10:15 2015-2016
56 8 8 16 -8 35 0.29 1 0 3 139 5.8 12:24 2016-2017
80 31 30 61 16 28 0.76 4 5 6 246 12.6 17:09 2017-2018
78 29 32 61 20 36 0.78 3 3 6 247 11.7 17:45 2018-2019
58 34 14 48 12 26 0.83 3 2 7 195 17.4 19:09 2019-2020
57 15 13 28 -4 26 0.49 4 0 1 127 11.8 16:12 2020-2021
50 10 15 25 9 21 0.50 2 0 2 151 6.6 16:36 2021-2022
66 20 29 49 1 22 0.74 4 0 3 227 8.8 16:59 2022-2023
77 26 33 59 -4 24 0.77 10 1 2 228 11.4 17:06 2023-2024
18 6 9 15 4 14 0.83 1 0 1 59 10.2 16:42 2024-2025
67 15 12 27 -3 24 0.40 1 0 2 158 9.5 15:00 OTHER PLAYER REVIEWS
Zach Laing is Oilersnation’s associate editor, senior columnist, and The Nation Network’s news director. He also makes up one-half of the DFO DFS Report. He can be followed on Twitter, currently known as X, at @zjlaing, or reached by email at [email protected].
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It’s amazing what a difference a year makes. When Jeff Skinner signed a one-year deal with the Edmonton Oilers on July 1, 2024, hopes were high for the veteran forward, who had scored 30 or more goals six times in his career. I remember seeing point projections all over — some had him hitting 70 points with the Oilers, others had him returning to the 35-goal mark. And honestly, those predictions didn’t seem far-fetched. After all, he was set to play alongside one of the league’s elite centers in Connor McDavid or Leon Draisaitl. Even my low-end point prediction had him at 55 points, because with his skill and the chance to play alongside superstar talent, how could he not reach at least that mark?
Yet, Skinner finished just one point shy of the 30-point plateau last season, was in and out of the lineup, and rather than skating regularly with the dynamic duo, his most frequent linemate in 2024–25 was Adam Henrique. If there were a soundtrack to his stay in Edmonton, it’d likely be Trooper’s “We’re Here for a Good Time (Not a Long Time),” because after just one season in Oil Country, we say so long to the small forward with the big smile, who recently signed a one-year, $3 million deal with the San Jose Sharks. And as we bid adieu to him, let’s look back at his time with the Oilers.
The former 40-goal scorer began the 2024-25 season playing on Draisaitl’s line, but the chemistry wasn’t there, leading to him getting a look with McDavid by the third game, in which he scored his first goal as an Oiler against the Calgary Flames.
However, with Edmonton losing their first three games, it felt like the coaching staff had already made up their minds about Skinner. That perspective — likely rooted in concerns about his defensive game — seemed to follow him throughout the season, as Skinner was never really given an extended opportunity in a top-six role and was bumped down to the bottom six after just the third game.
The 5-foot-11 forward played between the third and fourth lines until December, with only brief stints in the top six. Things worsened after Christmas, when he was a healthy scratch for the first time on Dec. 29 against the Anaheim Ducks — the first of six healthy scratches over the next month.
While Skinner’s time in Edmonton didn’t pan out as hoped, two things stand out about him — his infectious smile and his willingness to do whatever was asked of him. He never complained about being benched or demoted, nor did he speak poorly about the situation in the media. Rather, he focused on improving his all-around game, especially on the defensive side of things. Following a series of scratches in late January, his 200-foot game took a clear step forward.
An example of this came when he was inserted back into the lineup against the Detroit Red Wings on Jan. 30. Not only did he score in the game, but he also made one of the best backchecks by any Oiler in the 2024–25 season — hustling to break up a 2-on-1 during a Red Wings attack and followed it up with a series of excellent plays in the games that followed.
Overall, it seemed like Skinner had turned the page from late January onward, adding a more defensive mindset to his game. Additionally, with injuries piling up down the playoff stretch, he played some of his best hockey of the season, tallying eight points in the final 14 games and finished the regular season with 16 goals and 13 assists.
Skinner’s Playoff Debut Finally Arrives
One of his biggest highlights during his time with the Oilers was when he made his long-awaited playoff debut. After playing 1,078 regular-season games, the 15-year NHL vet finally played in the postseason when he suited up against the Los Angeles Kings on April 21.
In just over 11 minutes played in Game 1 against L.A., he registered an assist and tied for second on the team in hits with five. However, the Oilers lost the game 6-5, and he was on the ice for three goals against at 5-on-5. Just like that, he was scratched for the rest of the series and more.
The veteran forward sat out the next 14 playoff games, and it looked like he wouldn’t see the ice again for the rest of the postseason — until Zach Hyman suffered a season-ending injury in Game 4 of the Western Conference Final against the Dallas Stars. This created an opportunity for Skinner to get back into the lineup, and he was given the nod for Game 5, where he made an impact almost immediately playing on the third line against the Stars.
JEFF SKINNER FIRST CAREER PLAYOFF GOAL#LetsGoOilers pic.twitter.com/LTFE6vGI5N
— Edmonton Oilers (@EdmontonOilers) May 30, 2025
In the first period, after a tough battle in front of the net, he kicked the puck to his stick and slid it between the pads of Casey DeSmith, who had replaced Jake Oettinger, scoring his first-ever playoff goal and helping the Oilers secure a 6-3 win to advance to the Stanley Cup Final.
With Skinner scoring his first-ever playoff goal and having a great Game 5 against Dallas, naturally, you’d expect him to be in the lineup for Game 1 of the Cup Final against the Florida Panthers, right? Nope. As we saw all last season, big games from Skinner didn’t guarantee anything. With Connor Brown returning from injury, Skinner was the odd man out once again and was scratched for the first three games against Florida. That said, when the Oilers dropped Game 3 against the Panthers 6-1, a shake-up was needed, and the 15-year NHL vet was inserted into the lineup for the final three games of the series.
Jeff Skinner giving Dmitry Kulikov a pat on the back after the Oilers second of the nightpic.twitter.com/soAIYvJ7FZ
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) June 13, 2025
The Toronto, ON native averaged 12:15 minutes of ice time in the Stanley Cup Final but went pointless in three games, yet one of his most memorable moments came in Game 4, when he gave D-man Dmitry Kulikov a light, pest-like pat on the back and flashed his big wide grin after an Edmonton goal. But like many Oilers, his impact fell short when it mattered most in the Finals, and after being eliminated, the team chose not to re-sign him.
Did the Oilers Give Skinner a Fair Shot?
At 33 years old, he’s still got the hands — evident in the 16 goals he scored during the regular season, some of which were highlight-reel finishes. However, being undersized in today’s NHL is manageable if paired with speed, and that’s where the concern lies with Skinner. NHL Edge data showed his top speed last season was 21.96 MPH, ranking below the 50th percentile league-wide. In the playoffs, it dipped further to just 19.77 MPH, suggesting he never really quite hit his stride when it mattered most.
Still, despite the lack of footspeed the skill was clearly still there, and years from now, when we look back on Jeff Skinner’s time in Edmonton, we’ll likely remain puzzled as to why it seemed the coaching staff didn’t give him a fair shake. Moreover, the lingering question will be whether he deserved a longer look in the top six. I think of the example from Feb. 5 against the Chicago Blackhawks, when, after several games of playing well, he was finally rewarded with an opportunity to play alongside Draisaitl again — his first chance in a few months.
Skinner scores after some pristine passing#LetsGoOilers pic.twitter.com/6FimGvo9K3
— Edmonton Oilers (@EdmontonOilers) February 6, 2025
They connected for a beautiful goal, and Skinner picked up two points in the game, yet just two games later, he was back on the fourth line with Mattias Janmark. Or consider the stretches where he’d have a strong game, even score, only to be healthy scratched the very next night.
Overall, Skinner had some bright spots in Edmonton with nice finishes, and he seemed like a heck of a human being during his time with the Oilers, always smiling and laughing with his teammates. That said, I feel Zach Laing summed up the veteran forward’s stint in Oil Country perfectly in his recent article, pointing out that Jeffery Scott Skinner got the short end of the stick last season.
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Kris Knoblauch has been interviewing coaches for the past two weeks to fill four vacancies on his staff.
Glen Gulutzan and Paul Coffey won’t be on the bench next year, while goalie coach Dustin Schwartz and skating and skills coach David Pelletier were not re-signed. I expect the Oilers to announce their new staff this week.
What will Knoblauch be looking for? I asked Craig MacTavish, who was an NHL assistant coach in St. Louis and New York and the head coach in Edmonton, his thoughts on the topic.
Do you think it’s a must to have one assistant coach who used to be an NHL head coach?
What will be Knoblauch’s biggest challenge in the hiring process?
What would you look for in a goalie coach?
Jun 4, 2025; Edmonton, Alberta, CAN; Edmonton Oilers goaltender Stuart Skinner (74) reacts with goaltender Calvin Pickard (30) after defeating the Florida Panthers in overtime for game one of the 2025 Stanley Cup Final at Rogers Place. Mandatory Credit: Walter Tychnowicz-Imagn Images
MacT’s last response about how coaches are often defined solely by their shortcomings and problems, while overlooking what they do well, and their success, is very true. I’d add that it’s often the same with players. Mistakes are magnified tenfold compared to good plays.
My understanding is that Mark Stuart will oversee the defence, replacing Coffey. With that in mind, Knoblauch won’t be hiring a defence coach. The coaches all work together and share their input on the forwards, defence, penalty kill and powerplay, but he still likes to have one person directly responsible for the power play and the penalty kill.
They need a new PP coach, and I’m not sure if the other assistant coach will oversee the PK or work in tandem with Stuart. The PK struggled last year, but it was historically good in 2024. As MacTavish mentioned, you can’t just look at last year’s PK to evaluate Stuart. It would be foolish to overlook the success he had in 2024. I think the Oilers losing Cody Ceci and Vincent Desharnais and being without Mattias Ekholm for multiple months played a huge role in the PK struggling as much as it did in the 2025 playoffs.
The new coaches have lots of talent to work with. Edmonton is a very good team, and new ideas and new voices could help. Of course, there will be high expectations, but every coach would rather have high expectations and a winning roster than the alternative.
Look for the coaching staff to be announced this week.
For the second consecutive off-season, the Edmonton Oilers saw a considerable amount of turnover.
Following last year’s loss in the Stanley Cup Final, Warren Fogele, Sam Carrick, and Vincent Deshanrias left the team as free agents, Philip Borberg and Dylan Holloway signed offer sheets, and Ryan McLeod and Cody Ceci were traded in deals to make the roster younger.
Some of the holes left by those departures were filled in the summer, others during the regular season.
The Oilers inked Jeff Skinner, Viktor Arvidsson, and Josh Brown in free agency and then traded for Vasily Podkolzin and Ty Emberson in August following the offer sheets. The team grabbed Kasperi Kapanen off waivers in November and signed John Klingberg in January. Before the trade deadline in March, they added Jake Walman, Trent Frederic, and Max Jones.
Following this year’s loss in the Stanley Cup Final, the Oilers again saw several roster changes. Connor Brown, Corey Perry, Skinner, and Klingberg departed in free agency, while Evander Kane and Viktor Arvidsson were traded as salary cap casualties.
The freed-up cap space was primarily used to re-sign Evan Bouchard and Trent Frederic. Bouchard signed a four-year contract with an average annual value of $10.5 million, which kicks in alongside Leon Draisaitl’s record-setting $14 million extension from last summer. Edmonton also made a couple of additions in free agency, bringing in Andrew Mangiapane and Curtis Lazar.
Without much cap room available, the Oilers will be looking for young forwards to contribute in 2025-26. More reinforcements will come ahead of the trade deadline later in the season, but the first few months will be about having the likes of Matthew Savoie and Isaac Howard get reps in key situations.
The Oilers acquired Savoie, who was the ninth overall pick in the 2022 NHL Draft, from the Buffalo Sabres in the Ryan McLeod trade. They acquired Howard, the 31st pick from that same draft, from the Tampa Bay Lightning earlier this month in exchange for prospect Sam O’Reilly.
Savoie scored 19 goals and 54 points over 66 games in the American Hockey League last season and picked up one point in a four-game stint with the Oilers in February. Howard was named the Hobey Baker Award winner as the top player in men’s NCAA hockey after leading Michigan State University to their second consecutive Big Ten title.
Having even one of these 21-year-olds hit the ground running as a productive NHL winger would be a huge win for Edmonton’s front office because they would be able to focus their in-season trade efforts on adding to the blueline or finding a goalie rather than the never-ending search for skill in the top-nine.
The Oilers are hoping that Trent Frederic can be a younger, cheaper Evander Kane and that Andrew Mangiapane can do a better job than Viktor Arvidsson as a pesky, skilled winger. Beyond those two, the team also needs to find forwards to replace Corey Perry, Jeff Skinner, and Connor Brown, who combined for nearly 50 goals during the regular season and were often used on special teams.
Nobody can expect rookies like Savoie and Howard to step into the shoes of grizzled, two-way veterans immediately, but the Oilers are going to give them both a shot to show what they can do. It’s a necessary play for a team dealing with the challenges of a tight salary cap situation while trying to maintain a lengthy Stanley Cup window.
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Litco Law has been serving Edmontonians and all of Alberta for over 50 years. A family-owned and operated company, their purpose is to balance the power for people who find themselves having to navigate the complex legal system. They can help with personal injury claims (like car accidents), employment matters (such as wrongful dismissal or severance package reviews), or if you’ve been denied long-term disability benefits. Litco Law is known for being experienced, responsive, and genuinely caring. You might not believe Lawyers You’ll Love™ exist—but they do. To learn more or book a free consultation, visit LitcoLaw.com.
Welcome to my annual player review series, where I dive into the Edmonton Oilers season player-by-player. We’ll look back at the season that was, what kind of impact each player had, and what we could see from them next season. You can read about the analytics behind my analysis here.
From waiver claim to playoff hero, the 2024-25 season was quite a campaign for Kasperi Kapanen.
He joined the Edmonton Oilers in November after the St. Louis Blues waived the winger, and while it took a little while for him to get situated, he had some solid moments for the Oilers. He scored five goals and 13 points at five-on-five in the regular season, bringing a physical element while on the strong side of the penalty ledger.
His individual impacts were particularly strong, driving offence at a 10 percent rate below league average and defence at a one percent rate below league average, according to Hockey Viz, who pegged his overall contributions at that of a high-end fourth-liner.
That’s about exactly what he was for the Oilers, but he showed an ability to jump up the lineup with some solid contributions and in the playoffs, his most common linemate at five-on-five was Leon Draisaitl. Two of Kapanen’s three playoff goals were assisted by Draisaitl, while Kapanen assisted on one of his in the Final.
His biggest moment undoubtedly came in Game 5 of the Oilers’ second-round series with the Vegas Golden Knights, scoring the lone goal in overtime to clinch the series.
Kapanen’s underlying numbers in the playoffs were highlighted by some of the same things as they were in the regular season, with an excellent hits per hour rate and an ability to generate some high-quality looks. His goals against per hour rate were much stronger than his other defensive metrics in the playoffs.
He re-signed with the Oilers ahead of free agency, inking a one-year, $1.3-million extension that some overreacted to at the time. But after looking back at some of the other contracts handed out for bottom-six players, it looked like a steal.
With Edmonton’s additions of Andrew Mangiapane, Ike Howard and with Matthew Savoie expected to take the jump this season into the Oilers’ top-six, Kapanen will head into next season competing for a spot in the bottom-six — right where he belongs.
KASPERI KAPANEN’S CAREER SO FAR
Season Team GP G A PTS +/- PIM PTS/G PPG SHG GWG SOG S% ATOI 2015-2016
9 0 0 0 -3 2 0.00 0 0 0 14 0.0 14:47 2016-2017
8 1 0 1 -2 0 0.13 0 0 0 11 9.1 10:42 2017-2018
38 7 2 9 -1 4 0.24 0 1 1 55 12.7 11:15 2018-2019
78 20 24 44 12 27 0.56 1 2 3 174 11.5 16:37 2019-2020
69 13 23 36 0 22 0.52 0 2 2 121 10.7 15:47 2020-2021
40 11 19 30 15 7 0.75 1 0 3 68 16.2 15:32 2021-2022
79 11 21 32 2 16 0.41 0 0 2 129 8.5 14:32 2022-2023
23 8 6 14 0 10 0.61 0 1 3 47 17.0 16:45 2022-2023
43 7 13 20 -8 8 0.47 3 0 2 69 10.1 12:02 2023-2024
73 6 16 22 -5 14 0.30 0 1 1 99 6.1 14:23 2024-2025
57 5 8 13 -16 14 0.23 0 0 1 55 9.1 12:01 2024-2025
10 1 0 1 -6 2 0.10 0 0 1 11 9.1 11:19 Totals: 527 90 132 222 -12 126 0.42 5 7 19 853 10.6 165:42 OTHER PLAYER REVIEWS
- Evander Kane
- Connor Brown
- Corey Perry
- Jeff Skinner
- Viktor Arvidsson
- Derek Ryan
- John Klingberg
- Trent Frederic
Zach Laing is Oilersnation’s associate editor, senior columnist, and The Nation Network’s news director. He also makes up one-half of the DFO DFS Report. He can be followed on Twitter, currently known as X, at @zjlaing, or reached by email at [email protected].
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There’s a lot of buzz in Oil Country right now about the Edmonton Oilers’ newly acquired prospect Isaac Howard, and rightfully so.
The 2025 Hobey Baker winner has a very quick release, having scored 26 goals and 52 points in 37 games last season as an offensive dynamo with Michigan State University. By all accounts, the former first-round pick from the 2022 NHL Draft looks like he’ll be given every opportunity to fill a role in the Oilers’ top six next season.
With the chance to play alongside Connor McDavid in 2025-26, Oilers fans can’t wait to see the impact Howard might have in his rookie year, as there’s potential for him to rank among the best rookie seasons in Oilers history. Having said that, below we’ll highlight ten of the franchise’s best rookie seasons and explore how Howard’s first NHL campaign could stack up against them.
Jari Kurri
When the Oilers selected Jari Kurri 69th overall in the fourth round of the 1980 NHL Draft, few could have predicted he’d become a Hall of Famer and mainstay on Wayne Gretzky’s wing for years (as a side note, Gretzky isn’t on this list because he wasn’t officially considered a rookie in his first year in Edmonton due to his previous WHA experience).
That said, Kurri played three years prior in Finland’s top league with Jokerit Helsinki and quickly adapted to the North American game. Near the end of the season, he started playing with Gretzky more regularly, finishing with 75 points (32G, 43A) in 75 games. Unfortunately, Kurri wasn’t nominated for the Calder Trophy that season. Peter Stastny took the honour with 109 points, but Kurri’s 75 points still stand as the most by an Oilers rookie.
Glenn Anderson
Hall of Famer Glenn Anderson was drafted 69th overall in the fourth round of the 1979 NHL Draft and made his NHL debut a year later during the 1980–81 season. He recorded 53 points in 55 games, and out of his 30 goals, five were game-winners and three were scored shorthanded. He also stepped up in the playoffs with 12 points (5G, 7A) in nine games. Anderson finished 11th in Calder Trophy voting that season, with the award going to stud D-man Ray Bourque.
Grant Fuhr
Netminder Grant Fuhr was drafted by the Oilers 8th overall in the 1981 Draft, and his Hall of Fame career began during the 1981–82 season, when he took the starter’s job away from veteran Ron Low. He posted an incredible 28-5-14 record and tied for second in the NHL in wins.
His 28 victories set a club record for most wins by a rookie at the time, and he also appeared in the NHL All-Star Game. That season, Fuhr finished third in Calder Trophy voting, behind Winnipeg Jets forward Dale Hawerchuk, who recorded 103 points. In addition to his Calder finish, Fuhr placed second in Vezina Trophy voting, losing out to the New York Islanders’ Billy Smith.
Jason Arnott
The Oilers drafted Jason Arnott 7th overall in the 1993 NHL Draft, their highest selection in 12 years at the time. The 6-foot-5, 220-pound centerman finished the 1993–94 season with 68 points (33G, 35A) in 78 games, ranking second on the team behind Doug Weight (74 points), and also racked up 104 penalty minutes. Of his 33 goals, 10 came on the power play and four were game-winners. Arnott became the first Oiler rookie to finish in the top two in Calder Trophy voting, with Martin Brodeur winning the award.
Sam Gagner
Sam Gagner was drafted sixth overall by the Oilers in the 2007 NHL Draft and made an immediate impression as one of the youngest players in the league during the 2007–08 season.
Gagner finished his rookie campaign with 49 points (13G, 36A), ranking third on the Oilers that season. He developed chemistry on ‘The Kid Line’ with fellow rookie Andrew Cogliano, who posted 45 points, and Robert Nilsson. Gagner played in the NHL Young Stars game and was named Rookie of the Month in February after recording 13 points in 12 games. His efforts earned him a 7th-place finish in Calder Trophy voting, with his former London Knights teammate Patrick Kane winning the award that season.
Jordan Eberle
Edmonton drafted Jordan Eberle 22nd overall in the 2008 NHL Draft and made his debut during the 2010–11 season, and what a debut it was. In his first NHL game, he scored a highlight-reel goal against the Calgary Flames, toe-dragging around a defender and roofing a shorthanded backhander over Mikko Kiprusoff.
6 years ago today Jordan Eberle produced arguably the greatest first NHL goal of all-timepic.twitter.com/egsbnSTUEy
— Gino Hard (@GinoHard_) October 7, 2016
He recorded 43 points (18G, 25A) in 69 games, and despite missing some time due to an ankle injury, he led the Oilers that season in points, game-winning goals (five), and shorthanded goals. He placed 15th in Calder Trophy voting.
Taylor Hall
The 2010 first overall pick by the Oilers, Taylor Hall, made his NHL debut alongside teammate Eberle during the 2010–11 season. A two-time Memorial Cup champion and MVP with the Windsor Spitfires, Hall was seen as the centrepiece of the rebuild and the future face of the franchise and led the Oilers in his rookie season with 22 goals and finished tied for second with 42 points.
Hall was selected to participate in the NHL All-Star SuperSkills Competition and finished second in the fastest skater event behind Michael Grabner. However, his season ended early after he recorded his first Gordie Howe Hat Trick in March, by scoring a goal, recording an assist, but during a fight with Columbus Blue Jackets’ Derek Dorsett, he suffered a high ankle sprain. Nevertheless, he finished 9th in Calder Trophy voting, with former Oiler Jeff Skinner winning the award.
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins was selected first overall by the Oilers in 2011 and made an immediate impact. He was named Rookie of the Month for both October and November, and in November, he tied a franchise record for most points in a month by a rookie with 16.
Overall, he finished his rookie campaign with 52 points (18G, 34A) in 62 games, tying for the rookie lead alongside Gabriel Landeskog, who played 20 more games. His season ended early in February due to a shoulder injury. Nugent-Hopkins finished second in Calder Trophy voting that season to Gabriel Landeskog, who played all 82 games and won the award; however, ‘Nuge’ was named to the NHL’s All-Rookie Team.
Connor McDavid
By winning the Connor McDavid sweepstakes, the Oilers secured the first overall pick and selected him in the 2015 NHL Draft, and the rookie phenom took only a few games into the 2015–16 season to record his first multi-point game — doing so in style with a three-point effort during his first Battle of Alberta on Hockey Night in Canada.
The generational talent put up 12 points in his first 13 games before suffering a clavicle injury after crashing into the end boards against the Philadelphia Flyers in November. He missed nearly three months of action, but returned in February against the Columbus Blue Jackets, where he scored one of his most magical goals of his career. He went on to win Rookie of the Month in his first month back, recording 17 points in 14 games.
He finished his rookie campaign with 48 points (16G, 32A) in 45 games, placing third in Calder Trophy voting. The then 24-year-old Artemi Panarin won the award, despite McDavid having a higher points-per-game average (1.06 compared to Panarin’s 0.96). However, McDavid was named to the NHL’s All-Rookie Team.
Stuart Skinner
After showing promise in limited action during the 2020–21 and 2021–22 seasons, Stuart Skinner broke out in 2022–23, posting a 29-14-5 record, a 2.73 goals-against average, and a .914 save percentage. Despite some prior NHL experience, he still qualified as a rookie, having played fewer than 25 games and being under 26 years old.
His 29 victories set an Oilers rookie record, surpassing the mark previously held by Fuhr. He became the second Oilers netminder since Fuhr to play in the All-Star Game and was named Rookie of the Month in March of that season. Skinner finished second in Calder Trophy voting, losing out to the Seattle Kraken’s Matty Berniers.
Could Isaac Howard become the first Oiler to win the Calder Trophy?
When I think of players from the list who played in the early stages of the ‘Decade of Darkness’ era — such as Gagner, Hall, Eberle, and Nugent-Hopkins — it feels like their rookie seasons came with immense pressure. Their struggling teams desperately needed them to perform because the Oilers back then lacked star-quality players.
With Howard, there will be an expectation for him to perform, especially if he plays alongside the Oilers’ captain. But unlike the other players from the ‘Decade of Darkness’ era, he won’t have to be “the guy,” since that responsibility already lies with McDavid and Draisaitl, which should take some pressure off him.
Also, a huge positive is that Howard is not an 18-year-old rookie — he’s a 21-year-old coming off one of the best seasons in the NCAA last year. While many Oilers fans are crossing their fingers that he can step in and be McDavid’s linemate from day one, expectations should also be tempered, since playing alongside the captain also means facing the other team’s top defensive matchups.
However, there’s something about Howard’s attitude that hints he could set himself apart from the pack. He seems to have that mix of confidence and boldness — you don’t wear a statement-making suit to your draft and already have a nickname like “The Ice Man” before playing an NHL game unless you’re built for the spotlight. That kind of personality might be exactly what helps him thrive in a pressure-filled top-six role.
Additionally, according to Jason Gregor, head coach Kris Knoblauch recently said, “Howard is a very offensive player and we’d like to find him a role on the power play, probably on the second unit.” While the Oilers’ second unit doesn’t see a ton of ice time, the fact that the coach is already talking about giving Howard a spot on the man advantage says a lot about how highly they regard his offensive upside. It suggests he’s going to get a chance to excel in an offensive role right from the start.
That said, I’m still leaning toward a modest projection for Howard’s rookie year, somewhere in the ballpark of what Cutter Gauthier — a former teammate of Howard’s with the U.S. National Development Team — achieved last season. Gauthier, who pushed for a trade from the team that drafted him, the Philadelphia Flyers, now plays for the Anaheim Ducks. He recorded 44 points (20G, 24A) in his first NHL season, playing most of his 5-on-5 minutes alongside Mason McTavish and Robby Fabbri, and finished fifth in Calder Trophy voting.
Overall, I’ll project Howard to score slightly more than Gauthier, posting a 23-goal, 24-assist season for 47 points next season. If he sticks with the big club, he’ll get chances to play with McDavid, but I feel there will be some third-line minutes mixed in there as well. For his rookie campaign, I predict he’ll have a better season than former Oilers like Eberle and Hall, but fall just short of Gagner and Nugent-Hopkins’ rookie seasons.
Yet, who knows — if the stars align and the ‘Ice Man’ plays like he’s got ice in his veins next season, and that quick release translates to the NHL right away, it could put the Oilers in position to claim the franchise’s first Calder Trophy.
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Welcome to my annual player review series, where I dive into the Edmonton Oilers season player-by-player. We’ll look back at the season that was, what kind of impact each player had, and what we could see from them next season. You can read about the analytics behind my analysis here.
It was a tale of two seasons for Mattias Ekholm. One on hand, his regular season was, to the surprise of no one, tremendous. While his offensive game from a boxcars stand point could’ve been better, seeing a noticable dip in his output from previous seasons in terms of scoring per hour, the underlying metrics were solid.
He was among the best Oilers in terms of shot attempt share, scoring chance share and expected goal share, though there were noticable dips in terms of his actual goal share, likely highlighted by low on-ice shooting and save percentages.
Still, his individual impacts were nothing short of tremendous. He drove offence at a seven percent rate above league average, defence at a nine percent rate above league average and penalty kill play at a four percent rate above league average, according to HockeyViz. His overall impacts were double that of a mid-range first-pairing defenceman, being a positive in nearly every facet of the game.
But the injury bug bit Ekholm hard. Shaken up late in the regular season, he returned for an April 11th game against the San Jose Sharks, looking shaky in the three shifts he took before leaving the game. This, all the while, having dealt with some kind of illness from the new year on that took time to shake.
A groin injury would sideline him through nearly all of the first three rounds of the playoffs, returning for Game 5 against the Dallas Stars, as the Oilers advanced to the Stanley Cup Final. Ekholm would play the entirety of the series, but it was crystal clear he was still hurt. It felt as though there were more blunders in his game than Oilers fans had seen since he arrived in February 2023, and his underlying numbers in the playoffs highlight that.
Simply put, the Oilers were caved when he was on the ice.
That’s incredibly unlike what had been seen from Ekholm in years past, and heading into a contract year in 2025-26, there’s no denying he’s going to be a player hungry to make a big impact.
MATTIAS EKHOLM’S CAREER SO FAR
Season Team GP G A PTS +/- PIM PTS/G PPG SHG GWG SOG S% ATOI 2013-2014
62 1 8 9 -8 10 0.15 0 0 0 58 1.7 16:49 2014-2015
80 7 11 18 12 52 0.23 1 0 1 86 8.1 19:01 2015-2016
82 8 27 35 14 44 0.43 1 1 3 114 7.0 20:15 2016-2017
82 3 20 23 4 34 0.28 0 0 1 120 2.5 23:28 2017-2018
81 10 24 34 25 46 0.42 5 1 1 135 7.4 23:35 2018-2019
80 8 36 44 27 47 0.55 2 0 3 146 5.5 23:22 2019-2020
68 8 25 33 -1 32 0.49 0 1 2 154 5.2 23:23 2020-2021
48 6 17 23 19 14 0.48 0 0 2 110 5.5 22:52 2021-2022
76 6 25 31 14 44 0.41 0 0 1 145 4.1 23:29 2022-2023
21 4 10 14 28 4 0.67 0 0 0 36 11.1 20:47 2022-2023
57 5 13 18 0 24 0.32 0 0 0 99 5.1 21:44 2023-2024
79 11 34 45 44 47 0.57 2 1 3 177 6.2 21:03 2024-2025
65 9 24 33 11 30 0.51 3 0 1 143 6.3 22:12 Totals: 881 86 274 360 189 428 0.41 14 4 18 1523 5.6 282:0 OTHER PLAYER REVIEWS
- Evander Kane
- Connor Brown
- Corey Perry
- Jeff Skinner
- Viktor Arvidsson
- Derek Ryan
- John Klingberg
- Trent Frederic
- Kasperi Kapanen
Zach Laing is Oilersnation’s associate editor, senior columnist, and The Nation Network’s news director. He also makes up one-half of the DFO DFS Report. He can be followed on Twitter, currently known as X, at @zjlaing, or reached by email at [email protected].
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Welcome to my annual player review series, where I dive into the Edmonton Oilers season player-by-player. We’ll look back at the season that was, what kind of impact each player had, and what we could see from them next season. You can read about the analytics behind my analysis here.
Time waits for no man.
And for Adam Henrique, Father Time has started to catch up to him. There was a noticable drop off in Henrique’s game this season for the Edmonton Oilers, despite the fact he still chipped in some decent offence from the bottom-six. He scored nine goals and 17 points at five-on-five this season, ranking eighth on the team in goals per hour.
While was a solid contributor in terms of his ability to generate some scoring chances, and high-danger ones, the overall impact of his game wasn’t strong. According to Hockey Viz, he drove offence at a six percent rate below league average, defence at a two percent rate above league average, and penalty kill play at a one percent rate above league average. Overall, his contributions equalled that of a high-end fourth-line player.
Those defensive impacts he had were more apparent in the playoffs than the regular season, where his scoring chance against per hour rate was second highest among any Oilers regular, also posting strong goal against and expected goal against numbers. His biggest goal in the playoffs came in Game 4 of the Oilers’ second-round series against the Vegas Golden Knights, scoring two goals including the game winner in a key 3-0 win.
He upped his physical play in the postseason, as well as the amount of high-danger chances, seeing a slight uptick in his scoring rate. Those were all solid points and a reason why he can still be a contributor for the Oilers, but his play has dropped from that of the second-to-third-line tweener player he was in 2024-25.
Either way, Henrique wants to be in Edmonton. Now entering the final season of a two-year, $3-million AAV contract, the team reportedly approached him this summer about his willingness to waive a no-movement clause, something he declined to do.
ADAM HENRIQUE’S CAREER SO FAR
Season Team GP G A PTS +/- PIM PTS/G PPG SHG GWG SOG S% ATOI 2013-2014
77 25 18 43 3 20 0.56 7 3 4 137 18.2 18:03 2014-2015
75 16 27 43 -6 34 0.57 5 0 3 127 12.6 17:45 2015-2016
80 30 20 50 10 23 0.63 7 2 8 150 20.0 19:50 2016-2017
82 20 20 40 -20 38 0.49 6 2 2 142 14.1 18:10 2017-2018
24 4 10 14 -6 6 0.58 2 0 0 49 8.2 18:15 2017-2018
57 20 16 36 17 14 0.63 4 1 8 102 19.6 17:35 2018-2019
82 18 24 42 -5 24 0.51 8 0 3 122 14.8 16:27 2019-2020
71 26 17 43 -3 22 0.61 5 0 1 169 15.4 16:52 2020-2021
45 12 9 21 -8 11 0.47 1 0 2 77 15.6 16:02 2021-2022
58 19 23 42 -2 14 0.72 6 0 0 141 13.5 17:25 2022-2023
62 22 16 38 -8 22 0.61 4 0 1 132 16.7 18:11 2023-2024
60 18 24 42 3 33 0.70 5 2 3 111 16.2 17:35 2023-2024
22 6 3 9 6 4 0.41 0 0 1 29 20.7 14:50 2024-2025
81 12 15 27 2 16 0.33 2 1 3 104 11.5 14:39 Totals: 876 248 242 490 -17 281 0.56 62 11 39 1592 15.6 241:39 OTHER PLAYER REVIEWS
- Evander Kane
- Connor Brown
- Corey Perry
- Jeff Skinner
- Viktor Arvidsson
- Derek Ryan
- John Klingberg
- Trent Frederic
- Kasperi Kapanen
- Mattias Ekholm
Zach Laing is Oilersnation’s associate editor, senior columnist, and The Nation Network’s news director. He also makes up one-half of the DFO DFS Report. He can be followed on Twitter, currently known as X, at @zjlaing, or reached by email at [email protected].
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Edmonton Oilers GM Stan Bowman, who was hired last July, is nearing the one-year mark with the club. While his first season in Oil Country wasn’t perfect, it could be considered a success overall. After all, his team reached the Stanley Cup Final but came up short against a stronger Florida Panthers squad.
Bowman inherited a roster with core pieces already in place and focused on making depth adjustments to round out his roster. With that in mind, here’s a look at five key moves he made that helped shape the Oilers’ strong 2024–25 season.
Traded for Ty Emberson
Bowman swung a deal with the San Jose Sharks last August, acquiring defenceman Ty Emberson in exchange for Cody Ceci and a third-round draft pick. When speaking about the young blueliner, the Oilers’ GM said,
There was early hope that Emberson could step into a second-pairing role in 2024–25 despite having just 30 NHL games under his belt before the season began. While the Eau Claire, WI, native did start the year on the second pair, he had a rough debut, finishing -3 in a 6–0 loss to the Winnipeg Jets.
He was then moved to the third pair for most of the season, where he looked most comfortable. He played in 76 regular-season games, recording 13 points (2G, 11A), and played the most 5v5 minutes alongside Brett Kulak (573:25).
According to Natural Stat Trick, the 25-year-old had more starts in the defensive zone but still posted a 50.43 scoring chances for percentage and a 54.26 high-danger chances for percentage at 5v5. He also led all Oilers in penalty kill minutes (150:01), ranked third on the team in hits (123), fourth in blocked shots (97), and fourth in takeaways (32) in the regular season.
Despite playing a limited role in nine postseason games, all things considered, Emberson had a strong first season with the Oilers in 2024–25. He was a key asset on the penalty kill and, at times throughout the season, brought a ‘cycle-busting’ physical edge that had been missing on the back end.
Overall, it was a good move by Bowman to acquire Emberson, who is under contract for another two seasons after signing a two-year extension last April, and the blueliner appears poised to take a bigger step in 2025–26.
Traded for Vasily Podkolzin
Last August, Bowman pulled off a trade for Vasily Podkolzin, sending a fourth-round pick to the Canucks, and the Russian winger had a strong debut campaign in Oil Country during the 2024–25 season.
Podkolzin played primarily on the Oilers’ second line and, despite not producing like a true top-six player with only 24 points in 82 regular-season games, he played most of his 5v5 minutes alongside Leon Draisaitl (497:19). He also led the Oilers by a wide margin in hits (210), nearly 50 more than second-place Darnell Nurse, who had 161. As well, the 6-foot-1 and 190-pounder showed he packs a solid punch when he knocked Jeremy Lauzon to the ice with a strong right hand on Halloween night.
That said, despite a modest point total last regular season, the ice tilted in the Oilers’ favour when he was on it. Among forwards who played at least 200 minutes last season in the NHL, he ranked:
• 8th in shots for percentage (58.40% SF%)
• 14th in expected goals for percentage (58.68% xGF%)
• 15th in high-danger chances for percentage (59.64% HDCF%)
On top of that, the rugged winger was very effective in the playoffs, recording ten points in 22 games, and was one of the best Oilers in the Stanley Cup Final, tallying four points (2G, 2 A) in the final six games.
Podkolzin recently turned 24, and there’s still room for improvement — something the young Russian strives for, showing last season that he’s willing to put in the work before and after practice.
Bowman’s trade for Podkolzin, giving up only a fourth-round pick, was an absolute steal. We saw last season that he can effectively get the puck to Draisaitl, but if he improves his shot by next year and finishes off passes from his centerman more consistently, the trade for him will be even more lopsided in Edmonton’s favour.
Claimed Kasperi Kapanen Off Waivers
When the St. Louis Blues placed Kasperi Kapanen on waivers, Bowman quickly jumped at the opportunity to claim the 28-year-old on Nov. 19, injecting much-needed speed into the lineup. The Oilers’ GM said at the time, “When you think of Kapanen, you think of speed,” which proved accurate. Last regular season, according to NHL Edge, Kapanen reached a top speed of 23.09 MPH, ranking in the 87th percentile in the NHL, and he hit an even higher top speed of 23.26 MPH in the playoffs, placing him in the 97th percentile league-wide.
The Finnish forward also flashed his versatility throughout the 2024–25 campaign, seeing time on the top two lines but mostly playing in the bottom six. He also filled in at center when injuries occurred and played the sixth-most minutes among forwards on the PK (45:15). He finished the regular season with 13 points (5G, 8A) in 57 games, but his biggest impact came in the postseason. After sitting out the entire first round, he scored the game-winning overtime goal in a 1–0 Oilers victory in Game 5, a tally that sent the Vegas Golden Knights packing, and finished with six points in 12 postseason games.
Bowman picking up Kapanen off the waiver wire was a major win — he didn’t give up any assets and added a player who scored a series-winning goal. Moreover, the speedy winger recently signed a one-year deal worth $1.3 million annually, and with a younger Oilers squad projected for the 2025–26 season, the 28-year-old NHL veteran, with 527 regular-season games under his belt, might see an increased role.
Signed John Klingberg as a Free Agent
When Bowman signed D-man John Klingberg to a one-year contract in January, after he had missed almost a year of hockey, my thoughts were summed up in just one word: ” Why?”
The 32-year-old had played only 81 regular-season games combined over the previous three seasons and was nowhere near the offensive stud on the blueline that he had been during his time with the Dallas Stars. However, Bowman made a small gamble by signing the Swedish blueliner who was recovering from hip surgery, and it paid off, though not immediately.
While the D-man posted four points in 11 regular-season games, his play had its ups and downs as he worked to shake off the rust, and he also missed the final 10 games of the regular season due to an ankle injury. Given the combination of inconsistent play and missed time, expectations weren’t exactly high for Klingberg heading into the postseason.
However, he was inserted into the lineup in Game 2 of the first round against the Los Angeles Kings, and his puck-moving from the back end was a difference-maker for the Oilers in the postseason.
KLINGBERGDRAISAITL
Oilers are on the board!pic.twitter.com/9lkxayaAy7
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) April 24, 2025
He formed an effective pairing with defence partner Jake Walman for most of the playoffs, and threaded several 100-foot stretch passes that led to goals. Overall, he picked up four points in 19 postseason games, being most effective in the first three rounds, where he posted a +6 plus/minus. Unfortunately, it seemed like he ran out of steam in the Stanley Cup Final, playing in only four of the final six games.
Klingberg recently signed a one-year deal with the San Jose Sharks worth $4 million annually, which was far too rich for the Oilers. However, Bowman did well picking him up from the bargain bin last season, as Klingberg was a solid piece for most of the Oilers’ playoff run, with the GM noting he wasn’t surprised by how well he performed.
Traded for Jake Walman
Heading into the trade deadline, the Oilers had an obvious need to bolster their blue line, and Bowman made a deal with San Jose that caught many off guard, trading for Jake Walman in exchange for forward Cal Berglund and a conditional first-round pick in 2026.
His impact was felt almost immediately. In his first game donning the orange and blue against the Dallas Stars, Walman nailed Mikko Rantanen with an open-ice hit and, in the same game, sprung Zach Hyman with a flip pass that led to a breakaway goal, showing an early taste of his mix of toughness and skill.
Jake Walman just NAILED Mikko Rantanen in open icepic.twitter.com/Qfm6KfqzOj
— Gino Hard (@GinoHard_) March 9, 2025
Walman finished the regular season with six points in 15 games down the stretch and emerged as one of the Oilers’ best blueliners in the postseason, as Baggedmilk noted during the playoffs, “He’s quietly turning into one of the Oilers’ best defencemen right before our eyes.” He recorded ten points (2G, 8A) in 22 playoff games and led the entire NHL in blocks with 66. Additionally, Walman made several key plays throughout the postseason, with his biggest goal coming in Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Final, where he ripped a one-time blast past Sergei Bobrovsky.
JAKE WALMAN GIVES EDMONTON THE LEAD IN GAME 4
THEY WERE DOWN THREE GOALS AFTER THE FIRST PERIODpic.twitter.com/tnfmzDe7Uo
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) June 13, 2025
By far, acquiring Walman for a first-round pick and a C-level prospect was Bowman’s best move for the 2024–25 season, and on top of that, they have the D-man under contract for another season, and I’d like to see the team lock him up long term.
About the Trent Frederic Trade…
Another big trade that Bowman made during the 2024-25 campaign was acquiring Trent Frederic and Max Jones, while sending out Max Wanner, Scott Lachance, a 2025 second-round pick, and a 2026 fourth-round pick.
Jones played in 19 regular-season games, mainly in a fourth-line role, but the big piece was Frederic, who played in all 22 playoff games, posted four points (1G, 3A), and threw 85 hits, ranking sixth in the NHL. He also had some memorable moments, including his second-round tilt with Nicolas Hague and breaking his stick over the back of Panthers’ Sam Bennett, which led to a full-blown melee on ice.
That said, we didn’t see the best of Frederic in the playoffs due to a lingering ankle injury, so while the trade didn’t pay off in a big way last season, it has the potential to be significant in the coming years as he enters his prime with the Oilers — especially since they were able to negotiate a new eight-year, $30 million contract before he hit the open market.
As Bowman continues to shape a younger Oilers roster, highlighted by the recent addition of Isaac Howard and the potential for both him and Matt Savoie to crack the lineup next season, there’s clear value in having a bigger body like Frederic, a power forward who’ll stick up for his teammates, and score 15–20 goals a season.
With that in mind, how would you assess the moves Bowman made to strengthen the roster last season?
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We’ve officially reached the point in the NHL off-season where the news has mostly dried up and the excitement of free agency is long behind us. Even so, the Edmonton Oilers still have plenty of burning questions surrounding them at this point in the summer, and today’s article will walk through the five biggest thoughts I have on my mind with the new NHL season only 81 days away.
WHAT’S HAPPENING WITH THE GOALTENDING?
When Stan Bowman spoke to the media during his post-season availability, he mentioned that forwards and goaltending would be his primary focus this summer. Now that we’re through free agency and into the off-season dead zone, we’re still rocking Stuart Skinner and Calvin Pickard as our goaltending tandem, and there’s not much happening in the way of rumours or names associated with the Oilers. No movement, no news, nada. Logically, you’d assume every other team wants to charge the Oilers a premium for any goaltending swap, but finding a way to overcome the cost of acquisition is part of the gig. Does that mean Bowman won’t be able to get a goalie before the start of next season? Is he happy to run it back for a third straight season?
Of course, not having a new goalie locked in on July 19 doesn’t mean a whole lot when there are still two-plus months to go until the 2025-26 season starts, but that doesn’t mean the situation in net isn’t at the forefront of everyone’s minds. Given that we’ve just had three consecutive playoff runs with sub-.900 goaltending, the noise isn’t going to stop until some kind of solution or adjustment is made. The question I have isn’t necessarily about whether or not the Oilers need an upgrade in net, but whether we can reasonably expect different results going forward, even though we have a healthy sample size of results to draw from. Are we getting a new goalie at some point, or are we really going to run it back and expect that this time will be different?
HOW EXCITED CAN I GET ABOUT HOWARD AND SAVOIE?
With the Oilers being in their Stanley Cup contention window over the last handful of years, it’s been a minute since I’ve really gotten excited about prospects. Drinking the Kool-Aid on prospects was what we lived on during the Decade of Darkness, but we haven’t had to do that much over the past few seasons. This season, however, is different. This season, we have two young players in Matthew Savoie and Isaac Howard who will be expected to not only play with the Oilers, but to make a difference while they’re at it. While they don’t necessarily face the same pressure as Taylor Hall or Ryan Nugent-Hopkins did when they were first drafted, the reality is that these are two names everyone will be watching with great anticipation.
The question I have is: how excited am I allowed to get about these two young men? I mean, I’ll be the first to admit that I haven’t exactly kept track of what’s going on in the minors since the NHL club has been competitive, and that has me in the dark on what are reasonable expectations for these two. We all know the Edmonton Oilers have never had a Calder Trophy winner, so I’m wondering if this is the year we can expect the drought to end. Is that too much? Are these two young men even going to stick with the Oilers for the full season for reasons beyond the simple fact that we kinda need them to? I need your help understanding how much Kool-Aid I’m allowed to crush here because it’s been a long time since we’ve had two young first-round picks poised to make the jump to NHL hockey.
ARE WE DONE HERE?
Outside of maybe finding a new goaltender, are the Oilers done with their roster construction changes for the summer? Is there still a tweak or two yet to come? Yesterday on Oilersnation Radio, Tyler Yaremchuk asked everyone if we thought Stan Bowman is done with the roster pieces already, and the thought that they’re done hadn’t really occurred to me. Are we done? I know there are enough players to fill every spot on the roster, there are scratch tickets like David Tomasek we need to understand, and that the Oilers only have $225,000 in cap space, but we can’t actually be done looking for improvements this early — can we? I mean, the job’s not done, is it?
While I personally believe the roster as it’s constructed today is good enough to get the Oilers into the playoffs, it certainly seems like we have more unknowns heading into the season than we did a year ago. Instead of having supposed sure things like Viktor Arvidsson, Jeff Skinner, and Adam Henrique coming to town, we’re going into 2025-26 with two rookies in prominent forward roles and a goaltending tandem that’s taken us to the Final but hasn’t been able to get the job done. Maybe it’s just me, but I think there’s more coming and that there will be at least one other minor move. Sure, I’m basing that guess on absolutely nothing but vibes, but I also can’t help but think we’re going to need more than this if the team is going to get back to the Stanley Cup Final for a third consecutive season.
HOW WILL THEY NAVIGATE THE EARLY ROAD GAMES?
I don’t think I’m talking out of school when I say that the Oilers have had messy starts to their seasons over the last two years, and I’m fascinated to see how they’ll avoid the trend for a third time, given how tough the start of their 2025-26 schedule is going to be. Not only are seven of their first 10 games on the road, but that turns into 17 out of 26 games on the road by the time the calendar flips to December. Almost half of their entire road schedule will happen in the first two months of the year, and that’s going to be a tough slog for the Oilers to get through while keeping their heads above water.
Then again, maybe kicking off the year with a few extended road trips is exactly what the team needs to gel and get everyone on the same page. There’s nothing like bopping around airports and hotels with the boys to get the group chemistry building up, and maybe having two-thirds of their games happening away from home is the remedy we’ve been looking for to get everyone engaged earlier than the Christmas break. Am I overthinking this, or is anyone else wondering how the Oilers are going to avoid a third straight slow start with this many games on the road? Just me? Can’t be.
DOES ANYONE HAVE MORE PRESSURE THAN THE GOALIE COACH?
Do other fanbases know the name of their goalie coach, or is that mostly an Edmonton thing? It has to be an “us” thing, right? The stories of the goalie coach in this market have been happening for years, and there would be no end to the noise until changes were made. Many of us were hanging our goaltending frustration on Dustin Schwartz since he came aboard in the role for the start of the 2015-16 season. Coaches came and coaches went, but our man Schwartzy hung around like a Teflon Don. For better or worse, his spot in the org was locked in. Of course, I don’t really know what the goalie coach does or what types of things they change with the players, but in our minds, Dustin Schwartz had to be part of the problem.
So, now that Stan Bowman brought in Peter Aubrey to work with the goalies after Schwartz’s contract expired, we’re going to get a look at what difference a new guy can make. In Gregor’s interview with Kevin Woodley from InGoal Magazine, we learned that Aubrey is a strong communicator who connects well with his goaltenders and works to understand them on a human level. We also learned about some of the holes in Skinner’s game that Aubrey will want to work on, but only time will tell whether this new goalie coach can affect the results we get on the ice. It’s all well and good to be a coach everybody loves — maybe that was the case with Schwartz — but there’s also tremendous pressure on the guy to help turn things around. I don’t know how many other markets care who the goalie coach is, but we certainly do here, and there are a lot of eager eyes that will be watching to see what the new guy can do. Tick tock, Pete.
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One of the earliest moves that the Edmonton Oilers made this off-season was re-signing forward Trent Frederic, and it was somewhat of a controversial one.
Frederic is a 27-year-old forward who was traded from the Boston Bruins to the Oilers at the 2025 Trade Deadline. But, Frederic had been dealing with a high-ankle sprain since before the trade and missed the following weeks after the trade deadline. He started in a regular-season game with the Oilers against the Kings on April 5, but wound up re-aggravating his ankle injury just six seconds into his very first shift with the team. That would be the only game he would play in the regular season with Edmonton.
Frederic did return in the playoffs, playing in all 22 of Edmonton’s post-season games, but he accumulated a mere four points in total, three of which came in the first round alone. On multiple occasions, he played just 7-8 minutes in a game. Then, on June 27, it was officially announced that the Oilers signed Frederic to an eight-year deal with an average annual value of $3.85M. The deal also carries a full no-move clause for the first four seasons, which shifts to a 10-team trade list in years 5-6 and then a 20-team trade list in years 7-8.
Considering Frederic’s status as mainly a bottom-six or middle-six player, combined with his relatively short and underwhelming performance in Edmonton, there has been criticism towards giving him eight full years on his contract. Was this the right decision? Can Trent Frederic be an impact player for the Oilers moving forward? Let’s take a closer look.
Firstly, here is a career timeline of Frederic’s 5-on-5 production rates in Boston:
Drafted 29th overall in the 2016 NHL draft, Frederic became a regular NHL player in the 2020-21 season. He primarily played as a fourth-line grinder that season, putting up just 5 points in 42 games, though spending a lot of time in the penalty box. But his production steadily increased over the next three years until his peak in 2023-24.
That season, Frederic produced 18 goals and 40 points in 82 games, averaging 2.1 5-on-5 points per 60 minutes. For context, the average NHL top-six forward produces roughly ~1.8-1.9 points per hour at 5-on-5; put differently, for three straight seasons from 2021-22 through 2023-24, Frederic’s production rates were that of a very solid second-liner. It should be noted that Frederic’s 5v5 production rates were superior to Ryan Nugent-Hopkins in that span.
However, Frederic did see a significant dip in 2024-25 with Boston, with his production rate going down all the way to 1.02. He had just 15 points in 57 games. But, it should be noted that Frederic’s on-ice shooting percentage in 24-25 was just 6.38. Comparatively, it was at 10.3 percent in the prior two seasons in a very strong sample of 161 games. It’s quite reasonable to deduce that Frederic simply had some poor puck luck this past season.
In terms of advanced on-ice impacts, EvolvingHockey’s RAPM model ranks Frederic’s impact on generating even-strength scoring chances in the 66th percentile over the past three seasons, while his impact on suppressing scoring chances is in the 61st percentile. In other words, Frederic’s underlying impacts aren’t anything extraordinary, but he’s generally been a reliable two-way player with Boston.
Let’s take an even closer look at Frederic, diving into his microstats with Boston.
This graphic shows some fairly mixed results for Frederic. As a play-maker, Frederic ranks below average in primary shot assists and HD passes, though his overall scoring chance assist rate is quite solid. In terms of zone entries, Frederic is almost exactly league-average, while he has struggled quite a bit at zone exits. He’s had some trouble moving the puck out of his own end without turning it over in Boston.
Still, there are two key things to note that stand out on this graphic: the finishing efficiency and the forecheck pressure results.
For those who’ve followed my articles over the years, you should know how often I’ve mentioned that the Oilers are in desperate need of efficient finishers, players who can consistently capitalize on the chances they create. Lack of finishing has played a key role in many of Edmonton’s playoff losses over the past two years.
Fortunately, it seems that Frederic had been quite the efficient finisher in Boston. This, combined with his strong overall production rates from 2021-22 through 2023-24, suggests there is genuine potential for Frederic to be a very productive middle-six forward in Edmonton, especially if deployed correctly next to linemates that can consistently create more chances for him.
Furthermore, perhaps the best attribute of Frederic’s game is his physicality and tenacity, and it’s evident as his forecheck pressures per hour rate ranks in the 82nd percentile among all forwards. Frederic was consistently able to use his size and physicality to disrupt opposition breakouts and force turnovers in the offensive zone with Boston. So, although Frederic had some issues with getting pucks out in his own end, his excellent forechecking seems to outweigh it, as seen by his net above-average defensive impacts.
Now, what about Frederic’s playoff performance in Edmonton? Let’s take a closer look at that.
Frederic’s on-ice results in the postseason were quite solid, as he boasted a 59 percent goal share and a 51 percent expected goal share. But offensively, he mightily struggled. Frederic’s most notable performance came in Game 6 of the first round against the LA Kings, in which he had an assist and scored the game-winning (and ultimately series-winning) goal, but that game aside, he had just 2 points in 21 games. A large reason is that Frederic ranked as the worst play-maker among Edmonton’s forwards, ranking even behind Mattias Janmark in scoring chance assists per 60. His controlled entry rate was also quite poor.
However, Frederic’s defensive stats are another story. He was on-ice for a mere 1.2 goals against per hour, the lowest (i.e. best!) rate on the team. This is supported by his defensive microstats, as Frederic continued to be a strong forechecker, while also being much better at moving the puck out of the zone with control in Edmonton compared to Boston.
Of course, it must also be mentioned that Frederic was coming off a high-ankle sprain, an injury that many players often take considerable time to fully recover from (unless your name is Leon Draisaitl). I don’t think Frederic was at 100% at all in the games that he played in Edmonton, and his offensive production should be much better than what we saw in the 2025 playoffs.
All things considered, I believe there is potential for Frederic to be a useful player for the Oilers moving forward, possessing some specific skills that can be greatly beneficial to the team. Frederic is also quite versatile, as he’s primarily played as a winger, but he did mention that he’d like to play more time at centre. He could spend considerable time at both 3C and even 2LW next to Leon Draisaitl this upcoming season; it should be noted that Draisaitl has historically played exceptionally well next to tenacious forecheckers, and so there is a possibility that Frederic can be a nice stylistic fit for him.
As for the term, there is indeed a risk in giving Frederic eight years, which is too much in my opinion. I’m not a fan of giving any non-elite players the maximum contract length and/or an NMC, especially without a major discount. It’s also risky considering that Frederic did not decisively prove anything in Edmonton; yes, he played through an injury, but the fact remains that he’s far from a sure bet, which is the concern with giving him eight years. That being said, the AAV isn’t substantially high, especially considering the rising cap-hit, and after his NMC for the first four years, his cap-hit can be easily movable. The potential buyout cost isn’t terrible either.
For Frederic to be fully worth the contract, I would expect ~35+ points per season combined with strong forechecking and defensive impacts moving forward. Granted, if he stays healthy, that could be a reasonable expectation based on his track record.
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Who doesn’t love a good end-to-end rush?
We’ve already covered Connor McDavid’s goal against Utah and all the last-minute postseason heroics, but no goal during the 2024-245 season was prettier than Evan Bouchard’s coast-to-coast marker against the Ottawa Senators.
The Oilers had just thumped Vancouver 7-3 less than two weeks earlier to finally get back to .500. Wins over the Islanders and Predators followed, putting them above the line for good. Then came an OT loss to Toronto and a shutout at the hands of the Canadiens.
That set the stage for a Tuesday night tilt in Ottawa, where the Oilers faced the Sens for the first time that season. Just under four minutes in, Bouchard delivered.
EDM OTT G20. November 19, 2024. Evan Bouchard goal. 1-0 EDM.: Sportsnet pic.twitter.com/AJ9m4mmBVS
— Nation Network Media (@NationNMedia) November 20, 2024
He picked up the puck in his own zone with plenty of ice to work with. He blew past the first wave of defenders, turning it into a one-on-one with Thomas Chabot. And Chabot didn’t stand a chance. Bouchard toe-dragged through him, slipping the puck through his legs with a clean nutmeg.
And to make it even filthier? He pulled the puck to his forehand and roofed it, top shelf. One of the nicest goals of the entire season, and certainly the top of Bouchard’s personal highlight reel.
That year had its share of lowlights for Bouchard, too. More than one brutal turnover led directly to goals against. But as usual, he found another gear in the playoffs. He finished with seven goals and 23 points in the postseason, just a tick below his 2024 numbers when he racked up six goals and 32 points in 25 games.
At $10.5 million annually, his cap hit doesn’t come cheap. But it’s fair value for one of the best puck-moving, offence-generating defencemen in the league, even if the occasional miscue sneaks in.
Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for Oilersnation, FlamesNation, and Blue Jays Nation. Follow her on Twitter @Ryley__Delaney.
