When Alec Regula was in elementary school in the Detroit area, he was hanging out at Joe Louis Arena on weekends because his dad Chet looked after the teeth of the Red Wings’ players.
In the end, Regula wanted to be a hockey player more than a dentist—being around Nicklas Lidstrom might do that for you– and, wonder of wonders, he was drafted by his hometown team (67th overall) in 2018. But after being part of the Red Wings organization for just 16 months, he was traded to Chicago while playing junior with the London Knights, then to Boston. Now, the 25-year-old defenceman is trying to find a spot on the Edmonton Oilers blueline.
But there’s no cavities there. No holes, right now. But, he’s not that far away.
If we’re drilling down on his chances of making the Oilers today, the odds are very slim today because fellow righties Ty Emberson and Troy Stecher are No. 6 and No. 7 on the depth chart. But, Regula, clearly on his way to Bakersfield to start the season, could be the first right-shot defenceman recalled if there’s injuries.
They didn’t give Regula a two-year contract this summer, after the Dec. 11, 2024 waiver pickup, if they didn’t feel he was a keeper in the organization. He didn’t play a single game for them last season because of ongoing rehab from knee surgery, but they like him.
Regula, who had a stall in the dressing room for six months last season without tugging on an Oilers jersey for a game, is the team’s wild card. He’s 6’4” and 212 pounds, he can skate and he can shoot, and the only reason the Bruins put him on waivers last December was to get him to the AHL, for his rehab and games. The Oilers grabbed him because GM Stan Bowman traded for Regula when he was with the Hawks, sending the Wings Brendan Perlini.
So, now Regula, who lines up alongside rookie Finn puck-mover Atro Leppanen against the Seattle Kraken Wednesday, is starting his journey with the Oilers. He’ll need games in the AHL, but he’s ahead of Josh Brown on their organizational depth chart as a right-shot D. And, he could get a look sometime this season.
“It’s hard to tell where I’m at (knee). You only find out by playing, figuring it out, and then you go from there,” said Regula, taking the philosophical approach. “Nothing replicates games. I mean, the Captain’s Skates before camp were fast, and I was rusty. The games? You just face it head-on and see where you are. Trying not to beat myself up too much if there’s errors.
Regula never thought he would miss a whole season, but he did. Never a good thing when you’re young because you can’t get that year back, plus you fall behind when you’re trying to make the NHL. Regula played 22 games for the Blackhawks before being traded with Calahoo’s fellow D Ian Mitchell to Boston for Taylor Hall and Nick Foligno, then there was no room for him on the crowded Bruins’ back-end and he went to Providence.
Chicago Blackhawks defenseman Alec Regula (75) shoots and scores against the Calgary Flames during the second period of an NHL hockey game, Monday, April 18, 2022, in Chicago.
He was good there, and the Bruins thought they could slip him through waivers, but couldn’t.
Now, of course, maybe Boston would reclaim him when sent down by the Oilers. But it’s iffy.
“To be honest I think I’m in a really good spot here and there’s some belief in me if I get up. I think there’s a pathway to success,” said Regula, who figures missing an entire 2024-25 season could give pause for other suitors, along with two years on his deal.
“I had a really good year in Providence and thought I was ready for the next (NHL) step but there was a bit of logjam there. I thought I could play if they had injuries but I knew I was having surgery.”
Regula first hurt his knee, off ice.
“Four or five years ago I was training and I was doing single leg bounding…I took a bound and I got a sharp, shooting pain,” he said. “I played three seasons with it and it slowly got worse. I’m not out of the woods now. I’m still working at it but it’s in a much better place.”
He was around the team after the Dec. 11, 2024 waiver claim, resting, rehab, skates in practice, even a few morning of game skates. But no games. The Oilers had their back-end with Emberson in the third pair and Stecher as the other righty as a 6-7. Maybe they could have sent him to Bakersfield, but it didn’t come off.
“I did ramp things up but I thought with the game and the speed I felt it (knee progress) would regress. I had an open conversation with management and I was very honest with them. They had claimed me in good faith and they said to me ‘if you want to take more time, that’s what we’ll do.’”
The Oilers did resign him though, and, again, for two years.
Part of giving him that deal was maybe to dissuade other NHL teams but there was also some trust there. “Super grateful to the staff (medical) working with me and they (team) bringing me back on another contract. A lot of people in my situation wouldn’t have had that opportunity. I’m counting my blessings,” said Regula.
Oilers coach Kris Knoblauch hasn’t had many up-close viewings with the player, but he likes what he sees.
“For a guy who hasn’t played hockey for, I don’t know, 16-18 months and to be at an NHL camp and doing as well as he is, it speaks highly of him,” said Knoblauch. “I have a lot of respect for him. He’s still getting used to the speed of the game and getting his skills up because he hasn’t played for a year and a half. If you can get a big, right-shot defenceman who can move the puck, that’s a good thing.”
This ‘n that
Leppanen, 26, is the other intriguing camp D, from the same town as Risto Siltanen (Mantta). We know he’s got the offensive chops, but can he defend well enough at 183 pounds? He was playing in Div. 2 in Finland for years until his friends convinced him to contact the Div. 1 coach for a tryout. He was changing tires and working seasonal jobs to supplement his meagre hockey salary in Div. 2 (Mestis). Last season in the Finnish Liiga, he breaks Brian Rafalski and Pekka Rautakallio’s single-season record for points by a defenceman.
Related
Bookmark our website and support our journalism: Don’t miss the news you need to know — add EdmontonJournal.com and EdmontonSun.com to your bookmarks and sign up for our newsletters here.
You can also support our journalism by becoming a digital subscriber. Subscribers gain unlimited access to The Edmonton Journal, Edmonton Sun, National Post and 13 other Canadian news sites. Support us by subscribing today: The Edmonton Journal | The Edmonton Sun.