As Edmonton Oilers training camp sets to open Wednesday with player medicals, it’s worthwhile to look back as a way to look forward.
Lots happened over the summer with the roster after the Oilers lost Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final. Several players re-signed, the lineup got a boost in a couple of areas and some others said goodbye. Hockey operations CEO Jeff Jackson and incoming GM Stan Bowman — hired in late July — had some important decisions to make to keep the Oilers in contender mode.
So, how did they do? Here’s an audit of every move they made pertaining to the NHL roster in chronological order.
Re-signing Calvin Pickard — two years, $1 million AAV: A-minus
Bringing back Pickard was the first shoe to drop for the Oilers in the days following the heartbreaking defeat in South Florida. And why not? Pickard filled in capably as Jack Campbell’s replacement — and even won a playoff start — all while being a popular teammate. The price point is fine here, but the extra year on the contract is a bit of a gamble considering 2016-17 was the last time Pickard, 32, was a full-time NHLer before his November recall.
Buying out the last three years of Jack Campbell’s $5 million AAV contract: A-minus
Fixing the biggest mistake from the Ken Holland era just had to be done. Trading Campbell was pretty much a non-starter, so Jackson, acting as GM, had to enact a buyout. Campbell will remain on the Oilers’ books until 2030 but the $3.9 million in savings on their cap for this season allowed them to retain several key veterans and add others in free agency.
Re-signing Connor Brown — one year, $1 million: A-plus
Brown was the only signing the Oilers made in free agency last summer, and he came to Edmonton with big expectations amid a hefty bonus added to his league minimum salary. Coming off a knee injury that cost him almost the entire previous season, Brown failed to come close to meeting those expectations. Infamously, it took him until mid-March to score his first goal. But Brown became an instrumental part of the team in the back half of the playoff drive. Having him back on this deal is nothing but good business for the Oilers.
Signing Viktor Arvidsson — two years, $4 million AAV: A
The first big July 1 addition, Arvidsson joins the Oilers after losing to them in the first round in each of the last two years with the Kings. (He missed the 2022 series because of injury.) The Oilers were thin when it came to natural right wingers and Arvidsson should fill that void nicely while complementing Leon Draisaitl — if he can stay healthy.
Signing Jeff Skinner — one year, $3 million: A
The Oilers should be getting a motivated Skinner, as the veteran winger has played for poor Carolina and Buffalo teams but will now be suiting up for a contender. The 32-year-old has played 1,006 regular season games yet none in the playoffs. Playing alongside Draisaitl or Connor McDavid means a seventh 30-goal campaign should be in the cards regardless of power-play time.
Signing Josh Brown — three years, $1 million AAV: C
It was unlikely the Oilers were going to bring back hulking righty blueliner Vincent Desharnais when he was set for a pay raise and after they scratched him in nine of the final 10 playoff games. Getting someone of Brown’s ilk made sense. But three years? That’s going out on a limb. At least the contract can be buried in the minors if needed.
Allowing Warren Foegele to sign with Los Angeles — three years, $3.5 million AAV: B-plus
The writing was on the wall after there were no contract talks during Foegele’s career season and then he failed to make much of an impact in the playoffs. The Oilers found effective replacements for Foegele with shorter commitments in Arvidsson and Skinner. That’s a plus. Still, the Oilers have moved on from a younger player, one with a track record of staying healthy and who produced well at five-on-five last season.
Allowing Vincent Desharnais to sign with Vancouver — two years, $2 million AAV: B-minus
Desharnais faded into the background from the second half of the Western Conference final onward. The contract he got from Vancouver, though manageable, was probably a bit steep for the Oilers’ budget. However, the Oilers could very well end up missing his physical play and penalty killing acumen, especially considering the question marks at right defence that only got bigger after his departure as the summer wore on.
Re-signing Corey Perry — one year, $1.15 million cap hit (plus up to $150,000 in bonuses): C
Jackson made so many shrewd decisions on July 1. Choosing to bring back Perry, however, falls in the puzzling category. The Oilers scratched Perry six times on the playoff run as the coaching staff struggled to find a role for him. Yet, the 39-year-old was re-signed with a salary bump all while RFAs Dylan Holloway and Philip Broberg remained unsigned. At least Perry should offer some serviceability as a top-six fill-in, a net-front presence on a second-unit power play and a super pest.
Re-signing Mattias Janmark — three years, $1.45 million AAV: B
After an underwhelming regular season, Janmark got better throughout the playoffs. That earned him his first multiyear contract since his entry-level deal and his first raise since 2018. It also got him a partial no-trade clause. This contract will only look better if Janmark keeps excelling in the springtime.
Re-signing Troy Stecher — two years, $787,500 AAV: B
Nothing to quibble about here. It just depends on how much playing time he receives.
Re-signing Adam Henrique — two years, $3 million AAV: A
Henrique was an understated contributor after being acquired at the trade deadline and excelled in the playoffs after returning from an injury in the conference final. His versatility to effectively play centre or wing and both special teams provides flexibility to this team. Think of him as Ryan Nugent-Hopkins lite. The term and cap hit are as close to ideal for the 34-year-old as you can get.
Trading Ryan McLeod and Ty Tullio to Buffalo for Matt Savoie: A
With the Oilers in a cap crunch, it seemed inevitable that they’d trade McLeod. Everyone in the organization, including the player himself, had long believed McLeod was better suited at centre, but his best moments last season came on the wing. The Oilers will miss McLeod’s speed and defensive awareness, but his inconsistency and lack of physicality led to his departure. In return, the Oilers got a hometown 20-year-old in Savoie, who was drafted ninth in 2022. He instantly became their best prospect, helping augment a weak pipeline.
Trading a 2025 fourth-round pick to Vancouver for Vasily Podkolzin: A-minus
The offer sheets to Holloway and Broberg were already in at that point. With less than two days before the deadline for a decision, Bowman, now at the helm, got proactive. Bowman nabbed Podkolzin, who at a $1 million cap hit for the next two seasons, was a cheaper wing option than Holloway. The acquisition cost wasn’t much and was worth the gamble for a winger selected 10th in the 2019 draft. Podkolzin has a lot to prove after his NHL time has decreased in each of the past two seasons.
Trading Cody Ceci and a 2025 third-round pick to San Jose for Ty Emberson: A
If the Oilers were going to clear more cap space after dealing McLeod earlier in the summer, Ceci was the most logical player to go. The trade, which happened on the same day as the Podkolzin one, allowed Edmonton to shed the last year and $3.25 million of Ceci’s contract. They even got back a fellow righty defenceman in Emberson, who played for coach Kris Knoblauch in AHL Hartford. The starboard side of the blue line isn’t as experienced now, but there is some growth potential for Emberson, 24. However, he’ll have to appear in at least 50 games or he can be a Group 6 free agent at season’s end.
Not matching Dylan Holloway’s offer sheet from St. Louis: B-minus
In retrospect, the Oilers should have made Holloway and Broberg higher priorities this summer. It’s hard to criticize this too much considering the way Jackson retained so many key veterans and added Arvidsson and Skinner. The plan was to get both players back on low-cost bridge deals, and Holloway would have been pushed down the lineup anyway. Still, it’s a shame to give up on a recent first-round pick over less than $2.3 million on a two-year term just as that player was starting to actualize.
Not matching Philip Broberg’s offer sheet from St. Louis: B-minus
Much of what was written above about Holloway can be applied to Broberg. There are two key differences. From a cap management perspective, the Oilers were sensible not to match in the short term. Having Broberg on the books for almost $4.6 million for the next two seasons would have thrown a wrench in their budget with Draisaitl, Evan Bouchard and McDavid needing new deals. But the Oilers also needed Broberg more than Holloway this season as he was slated to be a top-four defenceman. Though they found other bodies in Emberson, Brown and Stecher, none of those blueliners have Broberg’s ceiling. It wasn’t a certainty that Broberg could have fulfilled the No. 4 job on his weak side, but he was — and still would have been — the best option.
Extending Leon Draisaitl — eight years, $14 million AAV (beginning next season): A
The contract might not look so rosy over the last couple of years, but this should be a big win for the organization. Locking up Draisaitl has a two-pronged effect. It extends the Oilers’ contention window a bit longer and it signifies that McDavid is almost certain to re-up as early as July 1. Draisaitl has become the NHL’s highest-paid player (for now) but he’s earned that as one of the top stars for years and one of the best playoff performers of all time.
Final grade: A-minus
There were a few hiccups like giving Josh Brown term, signing Perry to a bigger contract than his last one and being susceptible to those offer sheets from the Blues. But overall, Jackson and his staff, which later included Bowman, did a wonderful job with the roster over the summer. They retained important players from the Cup run on reasonable deals. They improved the top six with Arvidsson and Skinner. They found replacement options for Holloway and Broberg. The Draisaitl deal was the cherry on top. The lineup isn’t perfect, namely at right defence, but the Oilers should have enough talent elsewhere and enough financial flexibility to bolster that position sometime before the trade deadline.
(Photo of Leon Draisaitl and Viktor Arvidsson: Juan Ocampo / NHLI via Getty Images)
