In Podz they trust.

Otherwise, they wouldn’t have given him an $8.85 million ($2.95 million over three years) contract extension.

His numbers aren’t great (eight goals and 16 assists last season), he isn’t flashy in any way shape or form and if you aren’t paying close attention you’re really aren’t going to notice Vasily Podkolzin out there.

All of which suggests that $2.95 million is something of an over pay, especially by an organization that didn’t think Dylan Holloway (63 points last season) was worth $2.29 million.

But there is a reason Leon Draisaitl raved all season about having him as a linemate. There’s a reason his head coach feels comfortable throwing him out there in almost any situation.

And those are the reasons he’s going to triple his salary.

Podkolzin is a hockey player’s hockey player. A strong, smart, reliable, hard-working. selfless linemate who makes those around him better.

“It’s not just Leon, there are numerous guys in the lineup who like playing with him because of the type of player he is,” said head coach Kris Knoblauch. “He drives a lot of the play, he spends a lot of time in the offensive zone. For me, I like the versatility of him. I can move him up and down the lineup.”

There are bottom six forwards who can’t keep up in the top six and there are top six forwards who aren’t big enough or complete enough to make a difference in the bottom six.

Podkolzin is a unicorn in that respect. The 6-foot-1, 190-pounder can be plugged in anywhere in the lineup and he looks right at home.

“You always want players who make other players better and Podz has those attributes,” said Knoblauch. “He’s pretty good defensively, he’s hard on the forecheck, he makes it uncomfortable for the other team because he’s a strong guy and he’s not afraid to finish his checks.”

It’s not very often you get something for nothing in this world, but in giving up a fourth-round pick to get Podkolzin, the Oilers fleeced Vancouver on this deal. They landed a winger that the best players in the world love having as a linemate, a guy who lead the team in hits (211) and, now that he’s found a home and earned the confidence of his coaches and teammates, has an opportunity to realize the potential that made him a 10th overall draft pick in 2019.

“We were very fortunate to get Podz the way we did,” said Knoblauch. “He’s been a huge asset for us. He’s a hard worker who complements any player he’s playing with, whether it’s a skilled player or he’s on a simple, forechecking defensive-minded line.”

The next step in that evolution is to start putting up some better offensive numbers. The importance of helping Draisaitl put up 100-point seasons can’t be overstated, but eight goals isn’t enough. There needs to be more production from a guy getting top six minutes, regardless of the other contributions he’s making.

He’s a steal right now as he plays out the last year of a $1 million contract, but even when the raise kicks in, $2.95 million for a physical, reliable 30-point player who can slot in anywhere in the lineup won’t be too far of whack when the salary cap starts climbing.

If he starts scoring, if he becomes a 20-goal, 50-point guy, then that $2.95 million is going to look like a highway robbery.

“He’s young and we feel he’s just going to get better,” said Knoblauch. “The offensive numbers were pretty pedestrian, weren’t outstanding, but we feel there is more offence in him.

“He just doesn’t have a shot-first mentality. He’s reluctant to throw the puck at the net because it’s often a change of possession. We’re encouraging him to shoot the puck a little bit more. And he’ll score because he’s got a really good shot.”

The trade to Edmonton represented a major shift in Podkolzin’s arc. He was drying up and fading away in Vancouver and now he’s in a pretty sweet spot with a pretty sweet contract, surrounded by players, coaches and fans who believe in him.

Life is good.

“I don’t want to say things about myself,” he grinned. “I just love hockey, I love the work, I love what I do. When I have opportunities to play with the best players in the world, it’s awesome. I really enjoy trying to be useful for them.”

But he promises to shoot more.

“I think I still have lots of potential, especially offence,” he said. “This is the perfect time to show it and be more useful offensively. Just shoot it more. If you have 200 shots on the season and you score on 10 per cent of them, that’s 20 goals. But I want a balance — I want to be good offensively but not lose what I had last season.”

E-mail: rtychkowski@postmedia.com

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