With all the focus on Connor McDavid at one end of the roster and the young guns at the other, perhaps not enough attention is being spent on what is in the the middle.

In particular, the one guy who is at the defensive heart of this club.

That and more in this edition of…

9 Things

9. The NHL trade deadline for 2025-26 has been set for Friday, March 6. It will be interesting if the various changes to the CBA temper the “Free Agent Frenzy”. I for one think they will.

8. Oilers rookie camp starts this week, with the focus on a home and home with the Calgary Flames rookies. Friday in Edmonton and (next) Sunday in Calgary. Matthew Savoie and Ike Howard are expected to play. More on those two as well as main camp in a minute…

7. While 9 Things is typically focused on the Oilers, I would be remiss to not mention the passing of Ken Dryden. I was privileged to speak with Mr. Dryden numerous times in my career. A highly intelligent man who loved the game and told compelling stories about it. A great Canadian and Canadien.

6. The Oilers’ Captains Skates are already well underway. Edmonton Oilers veterans officially report September 17. Medicals and fitness to start, then they will hit the ice September 18. Pre-season starts September 21. It will be interesting how fast Kris Knoblauch will pare down. I predict it will be quick. The club’s schedule early is tough.

5. One of the players some in the Edmonton organization were interested in perhaps bringing in on a PTO this fall may have a deal elsewhere. At the very least, winger Brett Leason has a PTO in Minnesota. I still believe among some KHL options Klim Kostin has the Oilers in his thoughts and vice-versa. Edmonton could use another rugged winger.

4. There is much talk about how critical it is for Matt Savoie or Ike Howard (or both) to “pop” this season. And it is true that the farm is not flush with prospects if they do not. It is why I will be watching Joshua Samanski closely this fall. I expect him to be in the AHL this season, but Samanski’s size and skill could give him a shot at a bottom six spot down the road.

3. Among the new changes to the CBA the “no paper loans” between the NHL and AHL again raises the practicality of having the Oilers farm club in Bakersfield. Shuttling prospects and managing the cap in the process just got harder. With all due respect to the terrific Condors fans there, it is starting to become a disadvantage for the organization. Pacific Division rivals Vancouver and Calgary already have their farm clubs just down the highway.

2. On Friday I was speaking with an old colleague of mine who is now in labor law. He commented on the Connor McDavid contract situation and mentioned the “quiet” pressure on 97 from the NHLPA to set the new standard for how players are paid going forward. Connor and his family are truly in a “push and pull” situation in the middle of it all. Take too much, your team has cap issues. Take too little, it sets a different salary precedent for other players. That is a lot of pressure. No wonder he wants to take his time. But I still expect a deal done before Game One of the regular season.

1. We now know that Mattias Ekholm played with a torn adductor muscle in the Stanley Cup Finals versus Florida. The veteran rearguard revealed that in a pre-season interview this past week. An inner thigh injury, typically a doctor will issue a “stop work order” when one occurs and in severe cases surgery is required to deal with a tendon that has perhaps torn away from the bone. That Ekholm played through that kind of pain is really quite something. But it also explains why he, despite his obvious dedication to the cause, was simply not himself in that series.

This is important pause for thought: Mattias Ekholm is 35 and will be 36 in May. He is at the age where most D-men regardless of their health and various skill sets begin to decline. One of Ekholm’s strengths is that he is such a good skater for a big man. It is a big part of his game. If the leg injury lingers or turns into a longer-term concern, that decline could arrive sooner than later. Nobody wants that, especially for such a good pro. But time often has a cruel way of marching on.

The Edmonton Oilers have a very good defence, among the best in the league. They even have decent depth in reserve. What concerns me most about Mattias Ekholm going forward though is that he is the one guy that the coach could always count on to “calm things down” back there. Most of Edmonton’s D-men have some degree of chaos in their games. Not Ekholm. He is normally “Mr. Steady”. And there is not another guy on that Oilers blueline right now to replace that.

At 100% healthy I believe Mattias Ekholm is probably still a first pairing NHL D-man for another season. Maybe even two. He can still help lead a team to a Stanley Cup. The Oilers need that guy. Desperately.

But his career is on a steep, slippery slope. And the pages on the calendar are turning…

This article is not AI generated.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Recently, at The Cult…

STAPLES: Some harsh critiques for some of the Edmonton Oilers top prospects

LEAVINS: The impact this big German Center may have on the Oilers

STAPLES: The next NHL “Brothers Act”?

Bruce McCurdy, 1955-2025.

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