As far as facelifts go, the Edmonton Oilers had the most work done in the off-season of any of the NHL’s leading Stanley Cup contenders.
We’re talking skin pulled so tight it looks like they’re in a wind tunnel.
Gone are Evander Kane, Corey Perry, Connor Brown, John Klingberg, Viktor Arvidsson and Jeff Skinner. Zach Hyman is injured and will miss the first month of the season.
Edmonton Oilers forward Zach Hyman was injured in the first period of Game 4 of the Western Conference Final against the Dallas Stars and didn’t return. The Oilers winger was injured after being hit by Stars forward Mason Marchment.
In are Matt Savoie, Ike Howard, David Tomasek, Andrew Mangiapane and Alec Regula. Trent Frederic, who was limping around on a bad ankle last year, is healthy and filling in for Hyman. Noah Philp is expected to take on a larger role after playing 15 games last year.
So it’s a very different look this year. But is it better?
Maybe not right now; they lost some good veteran players in this conscious effort to get younger, faster and cheaper, but the plan is to see the newcomers grow as players over the course of the season while the Oilers grow as a team.
Edmonton Oilers forward Matt Savoie skates during the first period against the Seattle Kraken in a preseason game at Climate Pledge Arena on October 1, 2025, in Seattle, Washington.
“What we’re focused on now is starting the year strong,” said general manager Stan Bowman, who hit the European free agent marker hard in the off-season in order to bolster Edmonton’s feeder system.
“But, when you look at the big picture of the whole season, we want to see our team take steps internally. We didn’t have much of that the last couple of years, players growing by huge leaps and bounds over the year. I hope to see that this year.”
There is every reason to believe it will, given that Savoie and Howard are rookies with high-end potential who everyone expects will be better in April than they are right now, and right now they’re looking pretty good.
Tomasek is 29, but he brings size (six-foot-two, 210 pounds) and skill (Swedish league scoring leader) and will evolve as he adjusts to North American ice and NHL competition. He’s already filling in for Hyman as the net-front guy on Edmonton’s vaunted power play.
And Philp, who head coach Kris Knoblauch said “checks a lot of the boxes” for what they’re looking for in a bottom six centre, will also benefit from a steady diet of NHL experience.
The Edmonton Oilers’ David Tomasek (86) battles the Winnipeg Jets’ Vladislav Namestnikov (7) during first period preseason NHL action at Rogers Place, in Edmonton Friday Sept. 26, 2025. Photo by David Bloom
“Even a guy like (Vasily) Podkolzin is only 24,” said Bowman. “He’s going to be a better version of himself in the spring than he is now.”
They hope the same holds true for Mangiapane and Frederic, as well, as they adjust to their new, high-profile roles as top six forwards with Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl.
So, yes, the Oilers will be a work in progress all year.
“This year it’s a different team, we have a different look here,” said Bowman. “We have a number of younger players who are going to show improvement over the season. However they look in October and November is going to be different than how they look in April.
“The whole goal for our team is, not just those (young) players, but our team in general, we want the team to take steps as the year goes on.”
That’s promising and it makes sense. But what about the quick start to the season this team has been promising itself for three years? Is that doable with a lineup that’s been reshaped with players who still need to adjust to the toughest and most competitive hockey league in the world?
“It’s a balancing act,” said Bowman. “If they’re not ready, they might not play every game and that’s OK. It’s an adjustment. The NHL game is different no matter what you say it’s certainly harder than college hockey and it’s a step up from the American League. Learning to deal with the rigours of the league is part of that process.
“That’s part of their evolution to being an NHL player. It’s going to happen, it’s just a matter of how quickly and how smoothly it happens and that’s a process our coaches are going to have to work with.”
Edmonton’s veterans have seen the new guys up close for a month now and know better than anyone what the potential is, for the newcomers as well as the team. They believe that when spring rolls around they will be loaded for silver again.
Darnell Nurse #25 and Adam Henrique #19 of the Edmonton Oilers celebrate after Nurse scored during the second period against the Florida Panthers in Game Four of the 2025 Stanley Cup Final at Amerant Bank Arena on June 12, 2025 in Sunrise, Florida.
“We have the belief in our group that we can contend again for a Stanley Cup, I don’t know why we would have any reason to think otherwise,” said defenceman Darnell Nurse. “It’s a good D corps, the forwards look really good. Are we different? Yeah, but there is some youth and energy and enthusiasm coming into the lineup that’s going to do nothing but help our group.
“There are enough guys who’ve been here for a few years, especially the last couple of years, who are still here. You set the standard and everyone who comes in falls into the mold pretty quickly. At this point, it’s feeling pretty good.”
E-mail: rtychkowski@postmedia.com
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