The Edmonton Oilers signed impact defenseman Evan Bouchard yesterday, one of the primary players on an outstanding team. You’ll hear all kinds of downbeat takes on him and the contract, but this is a sweet day for Oilers fans. Bouchard is a massive player. he is signed, and if the team can’t re-sign him in the summer of 2028, then a trade will be necessary. Don’t let the naysayers get you down, this is a home run player extended. A big damn deal, is what it is.
Happy Canada Day! I love this country so much! I’m proud to be a Canadian and so proud of all this nation represents.
Oilers depth chart today
Goaltender: Stuart Skinner, Calvin Pickard
Left Defense: Mattias Ekholm, Darnell Nurse, Jake Walman, Atro Leppanen
Right Defense: Evan Bouchard, Brett Kulak, Troy Stecher, Ty Emberson, Alec Regula, Josh Brown
Center: Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, Adam Henrique, Noah Philp, James Hamblin, Josh Samanski
Left Wing: Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Vasily Podkolzin, Trent Frederic, Mattias Janmark, Max Jones, Roby Jarventie
Right Wing: Zach Hyman, Viktor Arvidsson, David Tomasek, Matt Savoie, Kasperi Kapanen, Quinn Hutson
There are rumours about Viktor Arvidsson and Adam Henrique being dealt, I suspect GM Stan Bowman would like to deal them but it depends on market value.
Team Needs
I count scoring forward (doesn’t matter the position) as the primary, Frank Seravalli reporting a Corey Perry deal is still possible.
Most believe the goaltending position is the priority. I’d be more inclined to agree if there was a clear, available and worthy target. For me, I’d keep my powder dry until the deadline or until some real goaltender shakes loose for whatever reason. I would love to see a puck-moving RH defenseman added, but maybe this Atro Leppanen fellow can play his opposite side.
If Bowman can offload Arvidsson and Henrique, then this Brock Boeser rumour makes some sense. He can score goals and that’s the toughest thing to do. If Bowman can make room for Boeser, that eases the worry on right wing. Perhaps a Matt Savoie trade for a LW makes sense at that point in time.
A cautionary note on free agency for Edmonton. As I write this, it’s 7:30am on Canada Day, and frankly the Oilers have enough cap room for coffee or eggs but not both.
For me, that’s a great spot for this organization. Imagine what might have happened if Peter Chiarelli was unable to sign Milan Lucic because he didn’t have cap room? Think of what might have happened in that alternate reality!!! July 1 is a day to celebrate our wonderful country, get excited about new additions to the team. Every day after is a miserable reminder that NHL free agency is often fool’s gold, a mirage in the desert. We would do well to remember that today.
Names I would like to see Stan Bowman pursue include C Christian Dvorak, LW Vitkor Olofsson, D John Klingberg, RW Connor Brown, G Daniel Vladar, G Alex Lyon, RW Taylor Raddysh, RW Brett Leason, G Ivan Prosvetov, LW Arthur Kaliyev, RW Pontus Holmberg.
FREE AGENT FRENZY
I’ll be on the free-agent frenzy 10-1 at Sports 1440 today, we’ll have miles of guests and invite you to tune in.
Bowman doesn’t sit on his hands despite being cautious in silly season. The team now has two players over 33 and 8 over 30. The only inefficient long contract is Nurse, for now
Breadman was a pain in the rear against us, hopefully he carries on against the bad guys. And buyouts suck. 2.3M would have helped allowed a better F or maybe a change at G
Man, with the WILD AAVs (including term) being given out yesterday to marginal players and old players and inconsistent players coming off one good year, I’m shocked the Mangiapane deal came in where it did. I was thinking it was going to be about $5MM.
That is a tidy tidy piece of business by Bowman.
Did we not have 1 year X $4M for John Klingberg?
Too much on this roster because of Nurse.
Would have loved to have him as a #4/5.
But why?
Oilers have 7 NHL d-men without him and, if they added Klinger, unless Ekholm is on LTIR, they would have to waive one of Stecher and Emberson (it would be Stech) – who would be claimed.
Ya, Klinger is probably an “upgrade” to start the season but they need to continue to develop Emberson – he will continue to get used to the speed of the game and move the puck quicker.
Well, maybe.
But you can never have too much depth on D. D-men get injured.
One of the reasons we won 14 playoff games is because we had Walman-Klingberg on our THIRD pairing. We had a first pairing and two second pairings. Why not continue to do that? We have $9M available after getting rid of Kane/Arvy (and more if Rico goes). Add Mangiapane and Kling at $4M, that’s still only $7.6M of that $9M.
Who else are we gonna spend it on? Not sure anybody left out there is worth $4M (other than guys like Ehlers who will go for way more than that).
but it wouldn’t add depth as they’d lose Stecher on waivers – he’s at $775K – can’t see a team not taking him.
Elliotte Friedman
@FriedgeHNIC
Andrew Mangiapane 2 x $3.6M
Edmonton
9:00 PM · Jul 1, 2025
Let them eat bread.
Is there bread at the Gaz Station?
No bread, only Khlav Kalash.
https://youtu.be/4NFv5IGP2uA?si=MytiAv_2Dv0oPgyv
David Pagnotta
@TheFourthPeriod
Mangiapane’s 2-year, $7.2M deal with Edmonton ($3.6M AAV) includes a full NTC in the first year and 5-team trade list in year two.
9:06 PM · Jul 1, 2025
After the Flames and Caps, it’s going to weird seeing him in blue.
Nice – Bowman signed the one guy I was hoping to get today.
It’ll be a tight rope, juggling the cap with these big extensions (hopefully one more) and Nurse. Especially with everyone and their dog wanting a raise with the cap going up.
Begin the season with a decent but flawed roster. Qualify for the post season and patch holes at the trade deadline.
Interesting crop of ’26 UFAs, in terms of pick ups at the deadline, on teams likely not to make the post season. Some may sign extensions, some have trade protection and other teams will be loading up too. No significant goalies.
Ana:
Trouba, Gudas
Cbj:
Jenner, Coyle
Chi:
Foligno, Dickenson
Sea:
Schwartz, Eberle, Oleksiak, Marchment, Tolvanen
Others:
Malkin, Pageau, Tuch, Klingberg
Bowman still grinding is my guess.
Absolutely. I’m looking forward to seeing what he decides to do.
Let us hope this is a more traditional type of transactional grinding and not the “You’re only offering a 5th rounder? I demand a 7th rounder instead!” type of grinding to which we’ve been accustomed.
I can’t remember the last time the Oilers had zero signings of significance after day one.
Of the remaining UFAs that are realistic given the cap space that we have, I’d like Bowman to target the following:
Mangiapane: fast, an agitator, that’s good for 15 goals per season and can PK
Kunin: quick, RH, takes the body, can pop 10 goals per season, and has a lot of experience on the PK
Kaliyev: great shot, good size, not the greatest foot speed; I don’t see the harm in a one year show me deal
Kostin: can skate, hit, shoot and fight but struggles mightily with consistency. Perfect fit for the 4th line during the regular season; maybe lighting strikes twice.
I’d be surprised if Henrique is traded, as veteran centres are going to come at a premium this season.
Quite frankly, I just want Bowman to get guys who can PK and forecheck better. The PP should be better with an incoming assistant coach to bring some fresh ideas to the group … there’s no need to add another top 6 scorer right now; they need to give Savoie a chance to fill the role first, and if he can’t than those players can be found at the trade deadline.
Philp needs to be given a chance to fill the hole at C.
Sadly, it looks like there is not going to be a way to improve the goalie tandem during the off season, though, so improving the PK should the numero uno priority.
Within the division:
Vegas got more top heavy at forward, and have lost some of the size/length that made them so good defensively (Roy, Hague, Pietro).
LA got older and crappier
Calgary did nothing to improve their team.
Vancouver signed their own flawed guys to too much money and term.
Seattle, SJ and Anaheim still suck.
Anaheim may be on the rise if Dostal is the real deal.
Unless we sign Ehlers keepin the powder dry is better then some deals i seen today. There’s a few vets i woulda been happy to see resigned but we cried Oilers need to get younger so that’s gonna happen
I can see why the players aren’t quite so optimistic. That Jeff Jackson era looks like a complete disaster. They lost to the Panthers and learned all the wrong lessons from it
Jackson moves backfired big time, but he’s not the GM. I don’t think the players are looking to him specifically to shape the team.
Jackson’s moves were also nearly universally lauded at the time. Who needs a new GM when Jackson is assembling the most potent offensive group since 1988? Was the refrain. Then problem was, well, the players didn’t execute and the coach didn’t get them to. Misalignment. Some onus on Jackson for sure. Also they also almost won the cup? So hard to call it Jackson’s Disaster.
Almost won the cup, but Arvi, JSkinner were two of Jackson’s July 1 additions that sucked up cap space (leading to the offer sheets) and neither really contributed in the playoffs and finals (player and how they were utilized by the coach).
Who’s telling you that the players aren’t optimistic?
Well Mcdavids press conferences
.
Did Bowman do a presser?
Not yet. Oilers+ says 6:30 now.
Now apparently cancelled for today.
Kinda like the Oilers efforts in free agency,
All kidding aside, if you eliminate the players they could not afford & they players that resigned with their original teams what is left to buy?
Nothing that really fits needs-wise or cap-wise, that’s for sure.
I feel like when Bowman does do a presser he will talk about Frederic being a truculent -big body presence on the top two lines.
Well no sins so far. Ken Holland leads the league this July 1.
Bowman has a target. Could be Patrick Kane or could be Ilya Sorokin. I’m hoping it’s both.
Patrick Kane resigned with Detroit.
Considering Ken Holland signed Ceci and Perry to a combined $8.5m or near ten per cent of the cap this year, I’m happy with a quiet week.
A couple million less I think – Perry’s base is $2MM (I think) – the rest are performance bonuses which will hit the cap at the end of the season (if vested) and, if they create an overage, would then hit next year’s cap.
Would we say that the best offseason moves last year were not Jackson’s free agency moves but Bowman’s acquisition of Podkholzin and Emberson weeks later? We can hope for more of the same this year.
The best news Oilers fans can get would be that an unheralded winger will Patrick Maroon it next to McDavid this year rather than Ty Rattie-ing it.
Would Chris Driedger be an upgrade on Calvin Pickard?
He’s UFA.
I’ll answer that. No, he’s bound for the KHL.
Hindsight is always easier, but we should have qualified Holloway, and signed McLeod to the Frederic contract two years ago. Also would have kept Foegele, we’d be currently a better team, much much faster and obviously a lot younger.
The Oilers did qualify Holloway.
Last year’s team made it to the SCF again – who knows what would have happened if they had done as you suggest.
I will say, I’m VERY happy to have Matt Savoie on an ELC for two more seasons.
Sorry, I misspoke, I meant to say match Holloway.
I really thought Arvi was going to be much better than Foegele, at least short term. He was a guy I had wanted for years, a tough, hard-nosed, playoff-type guy.
Didn’t work out, obviously.
Dead horse alert. Team needs to get younger. JJ spent $10MM on Arvi, JSkins, and Rico a year ago. First two are already gone, Rico may go. Could have used that money to resign Holloway, Foegele and McLeod. Yes, all imperfect players but younger, faster, more upside moving forward.
McLeod was not a playoff type.
He was perfect for Buffalo. Play higher in the lineup, rack up points, don’t have your flaws exposed in playoff hockey.
There are a lot of vets who know how to play playoff hockey, and that’s the direction we went. (One of them does it so well that he just got $3.5M at age 40.)
Anyone else feel like if the Oilers don’t try to win the Stanley Cup so hard they might just do it? Of Mice and Men strategy?
Great movie… recently watched it. Not sure why but I immediately thought of Simple Jack from Tropic Thunder
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=yRuLlCLVda8
Think I accidentally down voted you trying to paste the link… fixed
Which version? The original, or the Sinese/Malkovich remake? Both are very very good and the original has a soundtrack by Aaron Copland IIRC…
Don’t know the reference, but I think they don’t try hard enough once they get to the Final.
I’m referring to a specific part of the story where a character loves something so hard he kills it.
edit: hopefully, obviously somewhat tongue in cheek.
Gotcha.
DNB (“The Other Nuge”) is reporting that Tomkins and Stillman’s contracts are 2-year, 2-way contracts for the league minimum.
I sure hope Pastrnak is signaling to Boston he wants out, while one of his best buddies Draisaitl is a few knuckles deep into Stan’s chest demanding his good buddies addition.
Frank Seravalli
@frank_seravalli
Sounds like #Oilers are also adding goaltender Matt Tomkins to the mix for organizational depth.
So far GMSB is shopping for groceries at the gas station
lmao.
as opposed to the Gaz Station?
Drafted in 2012 by–you guessed it–Chicago.
Bowman getting “his” guys.
Is there any chance these two are intended for the NHL roster??? What say you master of rhymes?
I’ve posted about Tomkins a couple of times. He used to play on the Crusaders with a buddy of mine. Local, and made his NHL debut at 29. Just depth obviously, but an easy guy to root for
Could he be the full-time EBUG? does that start this upcoming season?
My understanding is the new CBA starts Sept 2026.
Elliotte Friedman
@FriedgeHNIC
·
17s
Riley Stillman is joining Edmonton
Who the hell is that?
Journeyman depth d-man. Son of Cory.
Bowman had him with the Hawks.
>163 NHL GP
>4 Career Goals
Depth D-man to stash in the Bake in case of a rash of injuries.
OUT – Evander Kane,Connor Brown,Corey Perry,Viktor Arvidsson & John Klingberg
IN – 2025 4th Rounder,2027 5th Rounder
We absolutely had to get younger and i think the locker room needed another refreshing but we also need you know actual NHLers too. I hope our pro scouts are up to the task of finding some middle 6 gems when these crazy costs come down later this week.
If I’m Berezkin I’m thinking long and hard about coming over. With That winger depth should be easy to crack the roster
hopefully the Oilers are talking to him now.
How is his 2 way play?
He’d be an absolute lock for the roster and likely middle six – from everything I’ve read seen and heard.
We know the org wants to sign him (Bowman on Oilers Now pre playoffs) but I think it’s unlikely.
I also still hold some hope they get Munzenburger under contract before they lose his rights mid August.
With that said, I think he should have been in Bako a week after his season ended in March.
Did Berezkin come over for any development camps or Penticton tournaments?
Don’t think so.
Not sure he would have been able to under contract to Loco and in their system.
Hmmmm interesting, thank you!
I imagine that’s an even tougher decision for a young man. Moving to a new country, new town and not having any past experiences to lean on.
Ryan McLeod signed by Sabes for 5 mil x 4 years.
I have high hopes for Savoie this upcoming year.
JFresh projects him as follows: “Ryan McLeod, signed 4x$5M by BUF, is a speedy second line two-way centre who contributes in transition, passes the puck well, kills penalties, and is very active in his own zone”
Does being active in your own zone happen because you spend too much time n your own zone? Asking for a friend…
No. Its cause his micro stats show lots of D zone touches. He ranks very highly in zone exits. I would interpret this to mean he’s responsible not a liability. https://x.com/JFreshHockey/status/1940157103852986688
If the Hurricanes AGM dubbed RNH a power play witch, maybe McLeod is a PK witch
Fair enough. The way it was phrased generally begs the question…😉
I know everyone is praising keeping the powder dry, but that should have included Frederic.
Some contracts handed out have been dumb, others not so much.
With the 5.1 for Frederic/Kapanen unspent, and 4 for Arvidsson gone, they could have gotten:
1) Tomasino (1.75) and Granlund (7)
2) Tomasino (1.75), Drouin (4), Connor Brown (3)
As examples. Not exactly what I would have done, but just a reminder of how poor the choice was to get Frederic at 3.85 when salary is at a premium and his peak production was/is 40 pts.
Not to mention the extra 3 they can make by getting out from under Henrique’s contract (Staples has him currently listed as the 1st line RW?)
Based on today’s underwhelming performance, I really hope the play is to wait until day 2 onwards to find players who didn’t garner the interest they would have hoped and sign them on the cheap. I doubt VGK and FLA are willing to trade to Edmonton, but they need cap relief
Maybe they can trade for Cody Glass, considering NJ is not sold on him. Or sign Roslovic. Or buy low on Mantha?
But swapping Arvidsson, Perry, Brown, and Kane for Tomasek, Savoie, Frederic, and Philp is undoubtedly a downgrade.
Not sure ‘downgrade’ is applicable when Kane didn’t play a regular season game, and Arvy was scratched most of the playoffs.
Looks more like shedding wasteful cap space to me.
How is Brown at $3mil acceptable and yet Freddy at $3.85 is a “poor choice”?
Both are likely to put up 30 points, one is on the wrong side of 30 years old, the other is more “truculent” and can play all three forward positions, providing flexibility.
Brown’s contract isn’t for 8 years. Brown has better foot speed. He can kill penalties. I am not entirely sure it had to get to 3 if they offered him a better deal before the deadline, and didn’t give that money out to Frederic in front of his nose.
I was trying to project the conscious choices that have been made thus far. I get that the salaries don’t line up at all, but even with the LTIR advantage, the first forward group was at our disposal last year, and 2 of whom I would consider value contracts (Brown, Perry). These were no longer going to be value contracts, but to replace them with perhaps 1 value contract (Savoie), 1 high risk contract (Frederic), and some European/college bets is a clear downgrade, and this management has to do better to procure some tangible forwards.
That’s fair good sir, thanks for not bitting my head off!
With McLeod resigning in Buf for $5M x 4 years makes me feel a bit better about Frederic at $3.85M McLeod will not continue his 20% scoring rate.
This exactly – crazy money gets thrown around this time of year. Better to get out in front of it the way that Bowman did.
If he shot 15%, he would have had 5 less goals and ended with 15 G and 33A for 48 pts. Another year over year increase. Still more than Frederic has ever reached. McLeod is also an elite PK and far better defensively, more established as C or W.
Ryan is clearly a better 3C than Frederic today, and I wouldn’t be surprised if he ends up as a 2C by the time the deal ends. He’s one of the fastest skaters in the NHL, and his finishing has improved.
McLeod will be 30 when this deal ends (Frederic will be 35)
Do you really think that’s a worse deal than Frederic for 8?
Frederic will be better in the playoffs than McLeod, almost guaranteed.
Remember that Freddy was hampered by an injury all playoff long.
I hate the Freddy contract, but I think Freddy does more right now to help us win a Cup.
This lost all credibility by including Drouin in a list.
Granlund at 7 million lol He could really shore up the 4th line though!
Why would we need to shore up the 4th line? Florida barely played theirs and pummelled us with their top 9 forwards.
Not saying Granlund or Drouin were the answers, as I clearly said. The point was that paying 4 mil/season right now for a projected 3rd liner limited us from going after a top 6 forward (both July 1 and beyond), which is harder to procure.
47 goals out the door from Perry, Arvidsson, Brown. Savoie and Tomasek aren’t going to replace them
Why, because he’s got a WAR at above 50% these last 2 years, is a legitimate middle 6 playmaker with excellent finishing over the past 2 years, with wobbly EV D?
Frederic has WAR% that has declined year over year (75->50->25) and that’s regular season, pre-injury. Last 3 years he is at 35%ile for EV defence, Ave TOI of a 4th liner, and can’t PK, and finishing has been in decline year over year. He is described by JFresh as “a physical scoring winger who checks, forechecks, and battles. Scores most of his goals by jumping on loose pucks in the inner slot. Mostly a bottom sixer but can retrieve pucks for skilled linemates.”
It was a quick example to show that you could have gotten Tomasino at half the price of Frederic (a younger version who ticks off all the same boxes), used the savings to lock down Brown, and then replaced Arvidsson with a slightly better player in Drouin to actually improve the forward group.
Perhaps explain to me how your post has any credibility with facts, rather than wise cracks?
I don’t know. Savoie has the highest upside of all the players listed.
Last year the Oilers went into the regular season with Josh Brown, Stetcher and San Jose kid as the teams 2RHD options.
This year the Oilers will undoubtedly need depth forwards. This is a much easier fix than 2RHD.
I think things are fine for now.
Personally, I am more worried about RNH and Hyman than the depth forwards.
If they were depth forwards, that would be OK, but they are needed to fuel the top 6 scoring, and that’s the problem. Having better insurance here, especially with the concern that Hyman won’t start the season, would be great, but I get that they’re in a tight spot.
No doubt I have high hopes for Savoie, but he’s not a McLeod or a Brown on the PK. And we can’t wager on him being an immediate fit on the second line to the point that there is no attempt to find another middle 6 forward or 2
Hard pass on Cody Glass. Got by on talent in juniors but in the pro’s he has never shown the drive or commitment to do what it takes to be successful. There is a reason he keeps bouncing around – because several GM’s had the same thought you did, and were quickly disavowed of it.
We’ll see what’s to come, but interesting to look at which players the Oilers “lost”.
Kane (33y/o) didn’t play last regular season
Arvidsson (32), 67gp 12-15-27 – no PK
Perry (40) 81gp 19-11-30 – no PK
Brown (31) 82gp 13-17-30 – avg PK ability
Skinner (33) 72gp 16-13-29 – no PK
Klingberg (33) 41gp over the past 3 seasons
Some intangibles lost with those players, such as Kane’s presence/intimidation or Klingberg’s passing/new hips, but not a murderers row by any means.
Looking at the intangibles, the one person I’d like back from that list is Perry. We’ll miss his play around the net and his agitating. But I’d rather sell a year too soon than a year to late at this stage. Need to find his replacement.
Klingberg added depth and is a great passer. But he struggled against heavy forecheck teams. Oilers will probably have to replace this at the trade deadline if we don’t see someone else step up.
But the team is younger, they’re going to be faster and they’ll have guys who can PK. The two worries I have about the forward group now is how long will it take Hyman’s wrist to heal and will he have the same touch and who is going to be your net front presence?
I agree with your comments, but it cannot be ignored that the Oilers have lost 6 legitimate NHL players from last year’s roster. The Oilers do not have 6 youngsters waiting in the wings to make the big club.
The Oilers have Matt Savoie, Josh Samanski, Sam O’Reilly, Noah Philp, Atro Leppanen all auditioning for spots in September. They aren’t experienced NHLers but they could be better than the players that left the club. Whatever else, we’ll have as much or more speed that the departures.
The other thing we have is cap room for the first time in years. If no one else is signed, we can hunt in the bargain bin in the next week. Or save it for October when teams have to make decisions on a rising rookie or a quality vet who they can spare. A Ty Emberson + draft pick for solid RHD trade might be available right before the start of the season.
Or save the cap for a trade deadline deal. Flexibility is an asset. One we haven’t had in a long while
For me 1st were the Soviets to revolutionize the game offensively then the Habs-Jets (WHA) next was the greatest team ever in the Oilers followed by Bowman Hawks. Instead of filling out open spots on the roster with burnt out fossils like Holland did Bowman works hard and accumulates young darts for the 82 game grind. Samanski-Tomasek-O’Reilly-Clattenburg-Hudson-Jarventie-Philip-Regula-Marjala- These players would never see the light of day under Holland with Bowman the job is there’s to win. Bowman Hawks always played fast and were relentless on attacking with quick passing and skating.
A lot of the players you list are essentially the likes of Haas, Nygard, Persson et al.
Many won’t even see the NHL this year as they ripen in the AHL. Or CHL.
Bowman is filling out the roster essentially the same as Holland did when he arrived. Finding good pros who will be affordable and have a set of skills that mesh with roster needs. Small bets that can pay off, but not hard to replace at the deadline if it doesn’t pan out.
Holland’s job cleaning up after Chiarelli was exponentially more vast and difficult than what Bowman inherited from Holland.
What the Pontus Holmberg is going on? A 7 goal 4th liner gets 1.55m x 2?
With the canucks locking up both demko and lankinen, what does that mean for silvos?
back to the AHL where he belongs. 15 NHL games with a sub 0.900
he has to be put on waivers in the upcoming year if i’m not mistaken so he could be lost to another team unless traded
Why did Buffalo sign Lyon? They already have Levi and UPL. UPL on the move?
Upgrading on Levi.
does levi have to go through waivers or is he exempt?
Did they mistake a Lyon for a Sabre-toothed tiger?
I’d like Lyon and Levi.
Levi has still played well in the AHL.
But maybe we figure Skinner-Picard got us to within three wins of two Cups. Ride with them until we can’t, or something obviously better (Sorokin?) comes up.
Peeking at national media, I sense a huge amount of incoherence regarding Edmonton’s moves in the last few days. Where to start? Bouchard’s extension a huge overpay, but an over sheet from Carolina almost happened? Frederic a huge overpay for a depth forward but all the other depth forwards are now signing bloated contracts and Bowman is doing nothing? Back to back SCF team sheds cap, is leaner, faster and younger by process of literal elimination, but the window is now closed?
Its almost as if individual media members want the Oilers to behave according to their own particular revenge fantasy. A team that beats everyone except the one team getting everything to magically land in their lap, is rudder and vision -less.
The Cup has gone through Edmonton 4 of the past 4 seasons.This ends in 2026 with a 6th Cup, or someone else has to wrench if out of 97 and 29s hands again and for the reasonable future. Nothing that happened today since game 6 has changed this.
Alex Lyon to BUF for $3MM/2-yrs ($1.5MM AAV) stings.
Really, is he better than Picks?
I’m no goalie whisperer, but I’ve seen him good basically every game I’ve watched him.
Klingberg 1 yr in San Jose
4 mill (!)
Guess Grier can trade him to us at the deadline.
With salary retained!
Taylor Raddysh seems like he might be a good target, somewhat similar to a Connor Brown role. Seems like he did alright with the Caps and they have room for him, wonder why he hasn’t re-signed.
Another Erie Otter!
After the initial free agent frenzy this is how I see things shaking out next season:
1) Oilers win their first division title in decades. With cheaper younger (!) depth and constant competition for the bottom 6 slots, the fresh legs power the Edmonton squad to a top finish. One or two of the Euro signings breaks out in a big way to help on Drai’s line or to power a dangerous 3rd line.
2) Vegas finish 2nd as Marner helps on the top end but the team depth has been cleared to fit under the cap. The squad will now live or die based on the production from the top 2 lines. If you look at the team objectively, they’re getting old with Dorofeyev and Howden being the only forwards younger than 28. They may only have 2 years of competitiveness left to squeeze out. Sadly, McCrimmon is one of the few competent GMs who could re-tool on the fly.
3) LA gets older and slower trying to revamp their squad to get past the Oilers. Loving Holland’s work with the Kings and cheering him on from afar as he does his usual veteran laden team building. LA is basically now Vegas but without the success or the higher end players in the top 6 or a D-corp that can skate. Wonder how long before Byfield asks for a trade to a contender; 2 years?
4) Calgary sneak into 4th with a rebuilding team backed by Dustin Wolf’s heroics. They didn’t bottom out to draft a high end forward or three so they’ll bounce around being first round playoff fodder for a few more years. Until they accept the pain of a deeper rebuild, they’ll never gather enough talent to overcome the top teams.
5)Vancouver is basically 3 years ahead of Calgary on the mediocrity train with older talent. They’ve basically swapped JT Miller for Evander Kane on a team that wasn’t good enough last year to run it all back again. Do it again! And again!
6/7/8 Anaheim/SJ/Seattle Really don’t know which of these bottom teams will pop but I’m guessing Anaheim strictly based on goaltending. SJ has drafted some elite talents up front but they haven’t really been able to stabilize their D as they keep trading out the pending UFAs. Seattle is a smart team picking up under-rated cast offs at bargain prices but I don’t see a star amongst them. Now would be a good time to bottom out for a year to chase Gavin McKenna…
If Anaheim’s goaltending steadies, I can see them pushing for the #4 spot in the Pacific over Calgary. There’s some good young talent and some vets to steady the ship. Different touch behind the bench also helps (have read that the players hated the previous coach).
So far really following LT’s dry powder plan, and based on the deals signed elsewhere so far today, that’s okay!
I am spending today choosing to believe Sam O’Reellly will be NHL ready this September and score 30 points as the Oilers 3C.
Yes, I just chugged a mickey of moonshine.
I have the lad pegged at 40+ points but I was at one to many Grateful Dead concerts and an Oilers fan for life, there’s a smoking crater where my rational brain once was.
Getting a little concerned about the bottom 6 becoming a black hole again
Hell, I am concerned about the top six scoring outside of McDrai.
Hyman and RNH coming off injuries and downbeat regular seasons.
Getting younger and cheaper but not worse is the job for the summer.
So where are people with Quinn Hutson? I like how things are opening up for Savoie, and wonder if Hutson has a shot on this roster as well? Have either played on their off wing? Could we get RNH centring/mentoring a third line with Savoie and Hutson?
I don’t think the Oilers are under as much pressure to slow roast the prospects as they were 10 years ago when it was a lock to throw someone into the fire. Now the team has a solid core of vets, and the youth are ready to pop earlier than in the past. A regular season of Savoie and Hutson being tutored in this environment could accelerate their development. Broberg would be on the roster today if he was given such a process to follow. It gives a ton of time to evaluate and replace if they need AHL time.
Hutson likely needs a substantial amount of time in the AHL – if he ever makes it, I think he’s a distant bell.
Savoie played exclusively RW in the AHL except he switched to center when the injuries, leaves, call-ups and non-reporting and what not added up.
He’s a perfect 2RW/3RW, I leave him right in those spots.
Ok let’s get Philp in with Savoie in the lineup then I want a two rookies (I know Philp isn’t one) on the roster each season for the next few years. Two of Akey, Oreilly, and Hutson for ’27.
And meaner and faster
Cheaper, younger, meaner, and faster!
Easy peasy.
Holland doing exactly what everyone expected. He must have a lot of agents he calls friends too, not just GMs.
There is nothing wrong with doing very little today.
Accruing cap space is fine.
100%
Group VI UFA Ronnie Attard leaves the Oil for Colorado on a 1 yr deal.
Carrick and now Attard departing pretty much ensures Akey’s junior days are done.
Attard is not an NHL player.
No doubt Akey is heading to Bako – zero reason for him to stay in the OHL.
I a trying to look at this objectively.
The Oilers are paying 5.15 million for Frederic and Kapanen next year
Brown for at or under 3 and another UFA at 2, I’m not so sure what’s better.
Brown was more of a difference maker than any of those 2, had speed and penalty killing. He doesn’t take faceoffs but I’m not sure Trent has mastered that either.
Really hope Frederic proves me wrong.
I don’t see a hope in hades Fred outperforms that contract, but hell has frozen over before…
Would be nice to get someone on a cheap deal to try to win a cup
Brett Burns?
You mean the way Jeff Petry just signed for $775k in Florida?
Klim Kostin
Some interesting UFA names (in no order). Most of whom shouldn’t cost the sun, the moon, and the stars, courtesy NHL.com:
— James Reimer
— Jacob Bernard-Docker
— Erik Brannstrom
— Anthony Mantha
— Brett Burns
— Jesper Fast
— Tyson Jost
— Jack Roslovic
—
Jonathan Drouin— Evgenii Dadanov
— Mikael Granlund
— Matej Blumel
— Alex Lyon
— BROGAN RAFFERTY
— JOE SNIVELY
— John Klingberg
— Jon Merril
— Brian Dumoulin
— Nicolas Aube-Kubel
— Calvin de Haan
— Anton Forsberg
— Matt Grzelcyk
— Philip Tomasino
— Alexandar Georgiev
— Noah Gregor
— Klim Kostin
— Nikolai Kovalenko
— Michael Eyssimont
— Nick Perbix
— Derrick Poulliot
— Reilly Smith
— Anthony Beauvillier
— Andrew Mangiapane
Smith, Eyssimont, Forsberg, Perbix, Dumoulin, Blumel, and Bernard-Docker are off the board. Fast has retired.
Yeah, I ran out of time to edit trying to fix formatting errors (apparently WordPress doesn’t like long bullet lists and bunches it together in a run on sentence).
Was trying to cross out the ones that NHL.com hadn’t updated, but got timed out. Thanks for the list.
Holland doing Holland things in LA is just perfect.
As much as I didnt want to bring all of our depth forwards back it would be nice to get a few guys that can play on cheap contracts
Damn, Anton Forsberg is someone I had time for.
Hard to believe Ken Holland was the best GM so far of the McD era. Hilarious.
He takes the easiest and most obvious path every time. It’s ok but not nearly enough against the best teams
He’s a alright G.M anyone who dares to compare Sather who revolutionized the game isn’t old enough to have seen Sather. The only reason Holland won Cups in Detroit was the sale of the CCCP Allstars to moneybags Little Caesars
I have trouble knocking a guy who basically engineered a team to back to back Stanley Cup finals.
Fantastic to see Kenny Holland playing the hits in LA
Another interesting RFA to watch is Dylan Garand.
23 years old, solid AHL numbers, and has gotten some reps with the WHC team. He’s stuck behind Shesty and Quick and the Rangers aren’t swimming in cap space. A strategically placed 1.5mil offersheet might be enough to take him away and he could also be part of a longer term solution.
Throw a 4.6M os at Cuylle while you’re at it. Not kidding.
I like your thinking 😉
FA Signing Tracker on a run now with several signings at short term and low dollars. The bulk of the big signings are done although some may still be in process and not yet reported… now is the time to bargain shop!
If Nurse did not have trade protection, would he have positive value on the trade market?
If Ceci just got $4.5m, Nurse would be getting Bouch money today. Jesus Ken Holland is nuts.