Photo credit: Rob Gray-Imagn Images
Matt Savoie has given Kris Knoblauch a new top-six answer, and the Edmonton Oilers are getting closer to a much bigger contract conversation.
That’s the real shift here. This isn’t just a hot stretch or a nice depth story on a long season.
Since the Olympic break, Savoie has produced 13 points in 16 games, with 11 of those coming at five-on-five. That kind of push changes how a coach builds a lineup and how a front office prices a young forward.
Early in the year, the 22-year-old looked like a rookie trying to keep up. He had 1 point in his first 11 games, and the pace around him looked a step too fast.
Now the puck is staying on his stick longer, his reads are cleaner, and he’s getting real trust. That matters more than any one highlight.
Knoblauch has stopped treating Savoie like a fringe option and started using him where it counts. He has spent more time in the top six, and that deployment is telling the whole league what Edmonton thinks of him now.
When Leon Draisaitl was still in the mix, Savoie’s work beside him was strong. More recently, he was trusted with Connor McDavid in overtime against Vegas and was on the ice for Evan Bouchard’s winner.
The Edmonton Oilers can’t ignore the money angle
Young forwards who can skate in the top six and handle PK work don’t stay cheap for long. Savoie isn’t just filling a spot. He’s giving Edmonton real value in pressure minutes.
The Oilers already have Draisaitl at 14,000,000, McDavid at 12,500,000, Bouchard at 10,500,000, and Darnell Nurse at 9250000 on the books. That’s why any breakout from Savoie lands right in the middle of Edmonton’s cap squeeze.
Stan Bowman also knows this team doesn’t have endless internal replacements. Edmonton sat at 32-26-8 with 233 goals for and a 5 goal differential in the latest team context, so every cost-controlled impact player matters.
That’s what makes this stretch bigger than a nice March run. Savoie is starting to look like a player the Oilers won’t want to bridge if the production keeps coming.
And if he carries this into the playoffs, the number only climbs. Top-six speed, McDavid chemistry, and trusted PK usage are the kind of traits that turn a team-friendly deal into a massive payday.
Previously on Edmonton Hockey Daily
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Matt Savoie’s breakout is giving the Oilers a huge contract problem
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