#5 - Connor Clattenburg

D.O.B. - May 2, 2005

Draft: 2024 5th Round

Shoots: Left

Position: Left Wing

Vitals: 6’2” 205 pounds

2025/26 Regular Season Statistics - Bakersfield Condors (AHL)

2-2-4in 34 games or 0.12 points per game

The stat not included above, but should be is 131 penalty minutes in those 34 games including 9 majors for fighting. Clattenburg is an absolute throwback. Go to Youtube and search 1980s NHL hockey and a player type like Clattenburg will show up. He’s a guy that plays the game very hard.

Of course, in this era when its offensive to hit the other team’s players, you have to back up your actions. Clattenburg does that just fine.

What really makes him uncomfortable to play against is he will snap in an instant for the slightest of indiscretions.

Now all these traits will not get Connor Clattenburg to the NHL. At least not for more than a cup of coffee or two. In addition, to truly take advantage of these unique traits, Clattenburg needs to play a regular shift. None of that is going to happen until he gains the trust of his coaching staff. How that happens is by what he does off the puck and, more importantly, what he does with the puck. Away from the puck, Clattenburg has a good handle of how to play. Here is a very nice defensive zone shift. His only mistake was going for the big hit on the wall and allowing the puck carrier to escape him.

He also will happily sell out defensively to help his team. Here is does it well and the Oilers get up the ice with David Tomasek getting a good look. Of course, Clattenburg also makes his presence well known to the Panther defenders.

Where Clattenburg needs to work is on the puck. His puck skills and decision-making with the puck must improve. Most Oiler fans likely remember the clip of Coach Knoblauch working with him at practices on puck touches. He was right to do so. Clattenburg is a liability with the puck at this time in his career.

Now that does not mean he’s devoid of these skills. He played center in junior and had success. Even professionally, you can see the hands are good.

He just needs to ensure that he improves this area of his game so he can contribute positively with the puck on his stick. More reps will solve some of this, but constant work with the puck off-season is needed. If that happens, I think there is a unicorn style of player here for a bottom six role in the NHL. The chaos he creates will open a lot of space for him and for his teammates.

The game of hockey has always had a level of intimidation to it. That has subsided in recent years, but it is not gone. On a team that is replete with high skill, Connor Clattenburg could fill a role that would be very beneficial. For this season in the AHL, Clattenburg needs to show his coaching staff he can be trusted to play 13 minutes a night without causing his team headaches. If that happens, there are call-ups to the NHL in his future.

#4 - Quinn Hutson

D.O.B. - January 1, 2002

Draft: N/A

Shoots: Right

Position: Right Wing

Vitals: 5’11” 176 pounds

2025/26 Regular Season Statistics - Bakersfield Condors (AHL)

30-33-63 in 67 games or 0.94 points per game

Quinn Hutson scored the most goals in the AHL by a rookie last season. He was second in points as well. Yet, somehow there is a more melancholy feel about this player coming into this season. Now some of this is because Hutson definitely had a run on the powerplay. His even strength points total was 27 which was 6 less than Isaac Howard, but Howard played 20 less games. Quinn Hutson is not going to play a lot of powerplay if he gets to the NHL, so I understand the concern.

That said he still scored 15 times at even strength. In the AHL. As a rookie. I don’t care if he was 23 when he started the season. He can score the puck.

However, what I think makes him compelling is his brain and his compete. Hutson is a very smart player who never gives up on plays and rarely makes unforced errors.

Hutson’s understanding of the game and his compete create a lot of opportunities for him and his teammates. He also rarely makes a poor decision with the puck.

So why is he not #1. Well he is still 176 pounds and is an average skater. Both of these need to improve. He cannot be this size with modest skating burst because he will get steamrolled in the NHL. Now that does not mean he isn’t better at skating than when he was signed as a collegiate UFA.

It also does not mean that he cannot win battles for the puck with bigger players.

On this one, he probably scores on this nice sequence of work if Max Jones identified the open teammate.

If Hutson can just improve both of these areas, there is a player here. He is skilled enough to play up the line-up if these things happen. He is also smart enough that he could play 4RW and contribute to the penalty kill when asked. Rare is the scenario that a collegiate UFA can be a top 3 forward contributor, so perhaps expectations due in part to his last name are unfairly high. For me, there is a NHL player here with a little bit of work. Given that he did not cost the Oilers anything but money, that’s great value.

#3 - Shakir Mukhamadullin

D.O.B. - January 10, 2002

Draft: 2020 1st Round

Shoots: Left

Position: Defence

Vitals: 6’4” 201 pounds

2025/26 Regular Season Statistics - San Jose (NHL)

5-7-12 in 50 games or .24 points per game

The major piece in the Darnell Nurse trade enters the list at #3. Now many people don’t consider him a prospect because he has 83 NHL games, but I took slight liberty with my one NHL season rule for Mukhamadullin. YOu don’t like it, just cancel your subscription. In my mind, he is still a prospect until the season begins this year. While I expect Mukhamadullin will play the season with the Oilers, how much he plays will be interesting. Spenser Stastny is a very good left shot defender. He and Ty Emberson were solid together. What Spenser doesn’t have is a 6’4” frame. Mukhamadullin has that all day long. Coaches love size on the backend and Mukhamadullin has that for certain. He’s also an excellent skater and loves to jump into the play offensively.

His puck skills are not brilliant for certain, but he can make a decent first pass. He also can handle retrievals as well ok, but again, not great.

Where he gets into trouble is his decision-making on defending. Mukhamadullin does not always read plays well and can get puck locked. Watch a couple of clips here. The first is on a rush defending sequence which is a challenge for him. He’s got great support here and just needs to sit down where he is positioned. Instead, he floats to the outside attacker and that allows a middle lane for the puck carrier. He overreacts back to the inside, which gives the puck carrier a passing option and now it is chaos.

Here is another one in-zone. He gets caught puck watching. Instead of staying with the high man, he follows the puck and now there is a free player with slot access. Goal against.

In many ways, he is Darnell Nurse. He is tantalizing with his size and skating, although his puck skills are not as good as Nurse’s. The trouble is each of them have struggles reading plays defensively and it ends up looking quite bad. This clip is the most Darnell Nurse type clip there is of Mukhamadullin. Watch his struggle in his own zone. Then watch him fly up the ice and score a goal.

Frustrating and exhilarating all in one clip. Fortunately, Mukhamadullin gets to start fresh with a stronger defensive core and a very good coach in DJ Smith. He has tools to play a long time in the NHL, but to play up the line-up in high leverage situations, his decision-making needs to improve.

That’s it for today’s edition of the Edmonton Oilers prospect countdown for 2026/27. Thank you for reading and see you here next week with prospects #1 and #2. Have a great week.

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#8 - William Nicholl

D.O.B. - May 24, 2006

Draft: 2024 7th Round

Shoots: Left

Position: Center

Vitals: 6’0” 183 pounds

2025/26 Regular Season Statistics - London Knights (OHL)

15-11-26 in 32 games or 0.82 points per game

Nicholl is a personal favorite of mine. No, not because he followed the time honored Oilers tradition of getting off-season surgery and missing half a season. No, I am not kidding. He did and in fine Oilers tradition, he had…wait for it…shoulder surgery. I don’t follow other NHL teams closely, but the Oilers have to lead the fancy stats in shoulder surgeries per prospects.

Sorry, small digression there.

Anyway, the reason, he is one of my favorites is he has one very NHL level skill and one that is not far behind. The “for sure” NHL skill is his skating. It is elite in terms of quickness, power and four-way mobility. Fortunately, the shoulder surgery did not hinder this part of his game.

His ability to change directions and get to full speed quickly is incredibly strong. This clip was from an AHL game he played season where he overwhelmed defenders.

Here is another clip and if you want the definition of the modern day skating style or as I like to call it the “Connor McDavid”, watch this clip.

Without question, Nicholl’s skating is NHL level. So, what is the other skill of interest. For me, it is Nicholl’s compete. He never takes a shift off. He never shies away from a battle. He certainly never gives an inch. Watch this shift where he competes the entire shift. First, he gets himself into great passing position three times (he only gets the pass once). Then when the puck transitions the other way, watch his effort to get back up the ice where he wins the puck and gets back into position to receive an outlet from a teammate. This is pure effort.

Here is another short example of how Nicholl’s effort helps his team escape an attack.

Finally, here is the all out effort with his skating that leads to some offence.

Nicholl enters his professional rookie season with Bakersfield. He will play center on a middle of the depth chart line. I would guess the focus will be in a defense first role and likely will play a lot of penalty kill. For me, I want to see two things from Nicholl this year. I would like the game to slow down for him. Sometimes he is going so fast, he puts himself into spots where he has no options remaining and the puck dies on his stick. As such, I would love to see him use his quickness to get into a good spot and then just adjust his pace momentarily to see what develops. This should come with experience.

The second area of focus for me will be scoring. Nicholl has legitimate offensive tools. However, he lacks some confidence in using them in all instances. He has a good shot.

He also has decent passing skills as well. Most often he uses them in transition at pace which is a lot of where success occurs in the modern professional game.

Nicholl’s first season as a professional will be fascinating. He can push the river with his skating and compete. However, he steps up in level of competition and player in the AHL. If he can still push the river and increase his scoring output, the Oilers will continue to see this player move up the depth chart.

#7 - Samuel Jonsson

D.O.B. - December 15, 2002

Draft: 2022 5th Round

Catches: Left

Position: Goalie

Vitals: 6’5” 201 pounds

2025/26 Regular Season Statistics - Fort Wayne Komets (ECHL)

.910 Save percentage and 2.38 GAA along with 5 shutouts in 33 games

I have to say right off the bat, I don’t love what is happening with Jonsson. Yes, the Oilers have a lot of goaltending depth professionally. It also doesn’t really help that Matt Tomkins is signed for this season for Bakersfield. Consequently, it appears that Jonsson has decided to return to the SHL for this coming season. That’s not fatal at all from a physical development perspective, but I now wonder about the player’s enthusiasm for the organization.

However, if we put all this aside, Jonsson is a legitimate goaltending prospect. He is 6’5” and 201 pounds. When I first watched him in Sweden, he appeared to be a stopper of the puck. By this I meant, he played his angles well and used his size and good structure to allow pucks to hit him. However, Jonsson showed in his ECHL time that he has emergency save athleticism.

That is a very big man making a highly athletic recovery. Here is another example of the same type of capability.

I was hoping to see Jonsson in the AHL this season and watch his progression. A big, structurally sound goalie who can make an emergency save is very compelling. I remain a little concerned about his glove hand as it does get targeted successfully. However, that can be improved. While I wish it happened in the AHL, it appears that the SHL will be on my viewing schedule this season alot.

#6 - Viljami Marjala

D.O.B. - January 29, 2004

Draft: 2021 5th Round

Shoots: Left

Position: Center

Vitals: 6’1” 176 pounds

2025/26 Regular Season Statistics - Bakersfield Condors (AHL)

17-43-60 in 72 games or .83 points per game

I know that Marjala was not technically a rookie in the AHL because of his Finnish professional experience, but I expected him to have some struggles in the AHL. Man, did I get this wrong. First, the Finnish rink size is closer to the North American size and I should have remembered that. I did not. So the quicker reaction times required looked easy for him.

Second, I thought his slight size would result in him wearing down over the season. It did not. In fact, he played all 72 games. In the playoffs, he was the best Condor by a decent amount scoring 6 points in 3 games. To be blunt, Marjala made me look more stupid than normal. That’s a high bar. Or is that a low bar? Anyway.

This past season Marjala was given every opportunity to succeed by the Condors coaching staff. He played 1C. He played 1PP. He also killed penalties. He displayed all of his offensive tools in these situations. Look at this shorthanded play by Marjala.

What I love most about this clip is that I was wrong about another element to his game. Or I think I am wrong. I didn’t love Marjala’s speed adjustment capability watching him in Finland. Doesn’t mean he is slow, but I never saw an ability to separate from players or change attack speeds to upset defensive timing. This play clearly shows he has some of that ability. The fact it was shorthanded makes it more impressive.

What I did know about Marjala is that he could play good defensive hockey as a center. He understands how to play above the puck and he is an excellent backtracker on transition plays.

Marjala will naturally create opportunities for his team because of this strong play.

The other part of his game that was well known was his offence. It’s very, very good.

Marjala is very close to NHL games. I remain modestly concerned with his skating capability at the NHL level given his size. If he were 6’3”, he would be fine. At this size, I would like him to skate a bit better. However, it might be good enough. Also, I am hoping he puts on some muscle for this season. Not that he isn’t able to win puck battles.

For Marjala, I still have some struggles projecting him as a NHL center. However, if he continues his strong development defensively and can add to his build and skating, perhaps there is a 4C type role in his future with just a shade of 3C potential.

That’s it for today’s edition of the Edmonton Oilers prospect countdown for 2026/27. Thank you for reading and see you here next week with prospects #5 through #3. Have a great week.

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#12 Rudolfs Berzkalns

D.O.B. - March 3, 2008

Draft: 2026 2nd Round

Shoots: Left

Position: Center

Vitals: 6’4” 203 pounds

2025/26 Regular Season Statistics - Muskegon (USHL)

13-12-25 in 48 games or .52 points per game

The latest top pick of the Oilers is a 6’4” smooth skating center. At the time of the pick, I was a little surprised because the group of defenders that were available were quite appealing. Given the lack of depth in the organization here, it made some sense to me to go defence. However, the Berzkalns pick is still very good. These types of players do not grow on trees. His size, reach and skating plus his comfort playing the middle make him very intriguing. He also understands the defensive side of the game quite well. Put this all together and there is a really nice package to work with in Berzkalns. Watch this clip of Berzkalns skating and how he positions himself to support the puck for transition plays.

The area for improvement and really the key to his developmental success will be offence. It doesn’t come natural to him, but there are some elements to that side of his game. First, and foremost, he uses his defensive acumen to generate offense. This, again, combined with his size, give me some optimism.

He also should be able to generate scoring chances on the forecheck as a professional because he is going to be hard to navigate for opposition defenders.

Rudolfs Berzkalns is long ways away from professional hockey. He will play another year in the USHL before heading to the NCAA and Boston College. However, his timing may be good for the Oilers because sadly in the next few years, their center depth in the NHL will likely be weaker than it is today.

#11 Paul Fischer

D.O.B. - January 30, 2005

Draft: 2023 5th Round

Shoots: Left

Position: Defense

Vitals: 6’0” 203 pounds

2025/26 Regular Season Statistics - Notre Dame (NCAA)

6-17-23 in 33 games or .70 points per game

Fischer is a player I was anxious to watch in a professional setting this season. However, that opportunity was ended before it began when Fischer decided to return to Notre Dame for his senior year. It remains a little confounding to me that Fischer chose this path. He will play on a team that will struggle to win as it has in Fischer’s prior years. In addition, the caliber of teammate is inferior to other NCAA teams to say nothing of the Bakersfield Condors. Both of these could cause a slowdown in Fischer’s development.

Nevertheless, Fischer remains a solid defensive prospect. He’s not a big stature player, but he strong and his skating makes him intriguing in all three zones.

What needs work is his offence. Fischer was the point on PP1 for Notre Dame yet his point totals remain relatively mundane. While he has improved each year that is to be expected for players as they gain experience and maturity. Fischer needs to really pop in this area to make him a serious Oiler prospect. He will be 22 when he turns professional, so he will physically be ready. However, he needs to refine his offensive craft focusing on puck skills and rush support.

#10 Asher Barnett

D.O.B. - May 16, 2007

Draft: 2025 5th Round

Shoots: Left

Position: Defense

Vitals: 6’1” 196 pounds

2025/26 Regular Season Statistics - Michigan (NCAA)

5-13-18 in 40 games or .45 points per game

I have written a lot about the Oilers strategy of taking young players in strong organizations with their draft picks. The idea here is the player has not been able to show his true potential because he cannot get the necessary ice-time, so they are available in the later round of the NHL draft. Asher Barnett is a prototype of that player the Oilers have selected. Barnett was buried on a strong USNTDP team in Michigan in his draft year. So he had relatively modest offensive totals. However, it was clear Barnett had some very good skills. Physically, he is a slightly bigger version of Paul Fischer. He also has very strong skating skills. This makes him, like Fischer, compelling in all three zones.

Barnett also has a similar set of skills offensively. Not brilliant, but there are flashes of ability.

The difference between Barnett and Fischer is that Barnett never sees powerplay time. So his scoring totals are generated at 5v5 for the most part. Indeed, Barnett is counted on to be a shutdown defender playing hard 5v5 and penalty kill minutes. Functions that Barnett has exceeded at quite well.

Barnett will play on a very loaded Michigan team, but should play in a top four role with a strong partner. In addition, the early feedback is that Barnett may play in a top pairing role for the U.S. World Junior team. While it could change, it is clear the U.S. coaching staff have penciled him in for a very important role. Both of these opportunities will hopeful help Barnett accelerate his development.

#9 Beau Akey

D.O.B. - February 11, 2005

Draft: 2023 2nd Round

Shoots: Right

Position: Defense

Vitals: 6’0” 172 pounds

2025/26 Regular Season Statistics - Bakersfield Condors (AHL)

2-8-10 in 42 games or .24 points per game

Beau Akey, like Zack Sharp, could make me look very bad. While I think Sharp could rocket up the Oilers prospect rankings, Akey could continue his fall. Or he could make a resounding return and rise back up. That is the trouble with Akey. He has elite skills that make him intriguing as a professional. He is a brilliant skater.

It makes him very effective both defensively and offensively in transition. In addition, he has very good vision and it makes him an excellent passer.

The trouble is Akey has a couple of issues. One in his control and one that is partially in his control.

The first one is Akey can be timid defensively and he doesn’t always make good reads. Both are trouble for defenders.

Akey has to overcome this in the coming season. He will not get any trust from his coaching staff if he does not. That will cause him issues in moving up the depth chart in the organization.

The other issue is injuries. So why is that his fault? You say that is unfair? Sure injuries can be a product of luck and not the player’s fault. However, Akey does not help himself. Despite being roughly the same height and age of Paul Fischer and Asher Barnett, he is at least 25 pounds lighter than both. Consequently, he breaks down. He missed more than a calendar year of junior hockey due to a shoulder injury. Then last year he missed time due to an assortment of issues although one of them was a complete fluke when he was hit by a puck in the mouth. Akey could help himself immeasurably by putting on 10 to 15 pounds for the coming season. If he does that and if he stays healthy, maybe, just maybe, Beau Akey could put it all together and justify his second round pick draft status.

That’s it for prospects #12 to #9. Next up #8 through #5 will be out later this week. In the meantime, enjoy your summer because hockey is close by. After all, Daniel Salonen just played an exhibition game.

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#16 Tommy Lafreniere

D.O.B. - January 16, 2007

Draft: 2025 3rd Round

Shoots: Right

Position: Center/Wing

Vitals: 6’0” 183 pounds

2025/26 Regular Season Statistics - Kamloops Blazers (WHL)

41-36-77 in 67 games or 1.15 points per game

Lafreniere is another one of these middle round picks for the Oilers who took off in their draft plus one year. Of course, draft plus one players should be better, but Lafreniere really took his game to another level. Lafreniere registered 41 goals after scoring 25 goals in his rookie season. The 41 goals was good for a tie for 4th in the WHL. His 77 points tied him for 15th in WHL scoring. Both were impressive gains for Lafreniere.

Most notable for me in terms of Lafreniere’s scoring improvement was his shot. I didn’t see a ton of his release in his rookie season, but it certainly was on display for everyone in his draft plus one year. While his shot isn’t a bullet, it is incredibly accurate.

The other element to his shot is the release. It is very quick off his stick with very little tip off that it is coming.

He even put his shot to the test in the AHL where he played five games with Bakersfield. It worked. Look at the distance from where Lafreniere takes this shot. Also notice the goalie is squared up and ready for the attack. Lafreniere beats him clean.

It wasn’t all positive for Lafreniere last season. He really struggled with his defensive role on a Kamloops team that was not very disciplined in that regard. He mostly played center, but sometimes his defensive game would get so chaotic that he would end up on right wing. This will be an area Lafreniere can work on in the NCAA. He has the tools to be good defensively. He’s a very smart player and he’s incredibly quick. Here is a great example of what he can do off the puck. He takes a good lane back up the middle of the ice. His skating allows him to get above the puck and into a nice spot. He creates the turnover. It leads to a nice goal by him on the other end.

Here is another example from the NHL preseason.

The challenge will be to continue to work off the puck in all three zones in a disciplined manner. Lafreniere has the skills to do it for certain. He just needs to be more focused on the task.

This season at Western Michigan, I will be looking to see how Lafreniere develops defensively. Also, a full season against bigger, stronger players will help Lafreniere understand the rigors of the professional game. One last curiosity will be Lafreniere’s position. I would like to see him stay at center. He has enough size to make it work and certainly he has the pace. The Oilers have not had a right shot scoring center in some time and it would be a great development if it happened.

#15 Damien Carfagna

D.O.B. - December 12, 2002

Draft: N/A

Shoots: Left

Position: Defense

Vitals: 6’0” 185 pounds

2025/26 Regular Season Statistics - Bakersfield Condors (AHL)

7-15-22 in 66 games or .33 points per game

Carfagna was a quiet UFA signing out of Ohio State last year. To say that Carfagna’s debut in the AHL was successful would be an understatement. At various points in the season, Carfagna was playing on the first pairing 5v5. He also had a healthy role on the powerplay for Bakersfield when injuries hit the team.

What makes Carfagna so interesting is that he is a very assertive defender. Whether he does this because he’s only six feet tall or because he skates so well or a combo of reasons, it doesn’t matter. He’s a really good defender because he initiates on the puck early and before the opposition is ready. Watch these clips and note how assertive Carfagna is and how simple he makes the plays look.

I wasn’t too concerned that Carfagna would not be able to defend. I was more interested in whether he could score enough. It was not a spectacular offensive season, but Carfagna showed some flair in his offensive game.

It’s not all the way there yet, but Carfagna’s offensive game is better than I thought it would be. He is a good skater, so he can certainly join the rush. I would like to see his puck skills improve this season so he can rush with the puck. This will put more pressure on the opposition and also make Carfagna more of a threat. However, what is certain is Carfagna will get lots of reps. He plays a game coaches can trust and that means more minutes.

#14 Owen Michaels

D.O.B. -May 1, 2002

Draft: N/A

Shoots: Right

Position: Center

Vitals: 6’0” 179 pounds

2025/26 Regular Season Statistics - Western Michigan (NCHC)

13-13-26 in 39 games or .66 points per game

The 2026 version of Damien Carfagna was Owen Michaels. Michaels played three seasons with Western Michigan before being signed by the Oilers this spring. Michaels was a highly sought after free agent in the prior season but chose to return to school for his junior year. This might have been a mistake as his production declined from 36 points in 42 games to the 26 points in 36 games last season.

Nevertheless, Michaels is a right shot center and that is always intriguing to me. As it is to every NHL organization. Michaels will step in with Bakersfield this year and will play a very prominent role given the center depth on the team. The biggest challenge for Michaels will be whether his pace can compete at the AHL level. Here is a clip of his skating. It is not bad by any stretch, but it is just average.

What helps Owen Michaels though is his hockey sense. That can be seen in the above clip. It is very, very good. He gets over the puck very well to make good defensive plays. He also understands how to find quiet space in high danger spots.

Here is another clip where you can see both. The skating, not brilliant. However, Michaels anticipates the play well and puts himself into good spots.

Other than skating, the question that needs to be answered is what happened to Michaels scoring. He seems to have all the tools to score. He has excellent hand-eye coordination and he is really good in close quarters play with the puck.

There are others who have Michaels more highly ranked than I do. However, I just cannot get past the skating and the scoring decline last season. If Michaels can answer both those questions, the Oilers will have a very interesting prospect in their system. One who plays a position that the Oilers could very much use.

#13 Zach Sharp

D.O.B. - March 29, 2005

Draft: 2025 4th Round

Shoots: Left

Position: Defense

Vitals: 6’2” 194 pounds

2025/26 Regular Season Statistics - Western Michigan (NCHC)

5-14-19 in 37 games or .51 points per game

Sharp was one of two pieces that came back in the Darnell Nurse trade to San Jose. Sharp just finished his second season in the NCHC with Western Michigan after playing three full seasons in the USHL. No doubt Kalle Larsson had some influence on this aspect of the trade. I would also assume scouting Owen Michaels led to Sharp’s rise in interest by the Oilers. Why not. Sharp has a lot of very compelling tools. At 6’2” and 194 pounds, Sharp has NHL size to play defense. He also has the skating. His technique is sublime. Sharp is in perfect balance from chest down to toes. His acceleration looks so easy.

This is the part of his game that is so compelling. He’s big and his skating is so strong.

Now it has not yet translated into top end offensive numbers, but I believe that is in this game.

Sharp doesn’t have one plus puck skill, but he has a few that are good enough combined with his skating. If he can keep working on his puck skills, he could be very dynamic.

That’s all for prospects #16 through #13. Thank you reading. Enjoy your long weekend. See you next week.

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Much has been made in the last few years of the weakness of the Edmonton Oilers prospect pool. We don’t have to re-litigate the situation as it is well known that a combination of less draft picks, picks further back in the draft and poor picks led to the situation. However, since the arrival of Stan Bowman, Rick Pracey and Michael Parkatti, the organization has slowly, but steadily improved its depth. The results were there for everyone to see last year. Matt Savoie graduated from Bakersfield and spent all season with the Oilers contributing in a strong way. Others also got glimpses of NHL games. Josh Samanski, Isaac Howard, Quinn Hutson, Connor Clattenburg and Roby Jarventie all had stints with the Oilers for varying lengths of time. This is progress! The 2026/27 prospect class has the potential to have even more impact. While the draft was not spectacular overall, the team added some prospects through trades and free agency signings that are encouraging. So on that note, let’s kick off this year’s countdown with prospects #20 through #17.

#20 - Caden Harvey

D.O.B. - February 13, 2008

Draft: 2026 6th Round

Shoots: Right

Position: Wing/Center

Vitals: 6’1” 183 pounds

2025/26 Regular Season Statistics - Windsor Spitfires (OHL)

11-23-34 in 68 games or 0.50 points per game

Harvey is the prototype of an Oilers draft pick for the last few seasons. Younger player on a deep team who has lots of base skills, but was not able to put it on full display due to the roster strength. Harvey, like any prospect this young and taken this late, has lots of work ahead of him. However, there are some intriguing traits in this prospect.

Most prominent of these traits is Harvey’s comfort playing in the middle of the ice and along the walls. He’s not a monster in terms of size, although he has decent physical attributes. However, he shows an intense desire to get to the middle of the ice with the puck or to get the puck. There is no fear in his game.

Of course what typically goes along with this type of attitude is a strong forecheck. Harvey certainly brings this with him as well.

For Harvey, the most obvious area for improvement is skating. His skating is not bad by any measure. He’s quite quick off the jump and he generates good pace. However, the stride is quite short and it limits the potential of his skating.

Hopefully, Harvey can work on stretching out that stride to make it more powerful which will help his inside game at the next level where the players are stronger and quicker.

The other element for Harvey this season is to increase his scoring. There was some discussion about Harvey joining Penn State this season, but it sounds more like he will remain in the OHL. I view this as a positive. Windsor is going to be a middling team having lost a number of high end forwards. This should allow Harvey to get more minutes and more high leverage minutes. Hopefully this translates into improved scoring totals. Skating and scoring is what I will be watching from Harvey this season.

#19 - Tomas Cibulka

D.O.B. - April 2, 2004

Draft: N/A

Shoots: Left

Position: Defence

Vitals: 6’0” 170 pounds

2025/26 Regular Season Statistics - HC Motor České Budějovice (Czechia)

7-15-22 in 47 games or 0.47 points per game

Cibulka continues the trend of the Oilers signing European free agents with potential. Last year it was Josh Samanski, Atro Leppanen and David Tomasek. This year it is Cibulka. Cibulka has some North America experience as a junior in the QJMHL. However, after going undrafted, Cibulka returned to Czechia. He had two strong seasons in the top league in Czechia which earned him a two year deal with the Oilers organization.

Cibulka is a very smooth skating offensively capable defenceman.

This is a beautiful stride. Technically very sound and generates really good pace both on the attack and when he needs to recover back up the ice.

While I don’t love Cibulka’s offensive game, his skating helps him get into nice spots to contribute. His footwork is plus level and it allows him to get into seams quickly and efficiently.

Cibulka should excel in North America with his skating and decent offensive skills. The concern will be defending. Cibulka is small. 6’0” and 170 pounds is undersized for a North American pro defenceman. He is also not physically engaged in his own zone. He defends with his feet and his stick. Not a bad thing, but he will need to box players out in his zone and win some wall battles using elements other than his feet and stick. This will be my focus this season for Cibulka in Bakersfield. Can he defend AHL level forwards? That will be critical to his success in North America.

#18 - Connor Ungar

D.O.B. - January 12, 2002

Draft: N/A

Catches: Left

Position: Goaltender

Vitals: 6’2” 205 pounds

2025/26 Regular Season Statistics - Bakersfield Condors (AHL)

.923 Save Percentage and 2.53 GAA in 13 games

What a wild ride for Connor Ungar. In the second season of a two year deal with the Oilers, Ungar seemed to put his game together. He started the season by bouncing around three separate ECHL teams. This was because the Oilers decided to run the rookie tandem of Samuel Jonsson and Nathan Day in Fort Wayne. His most significant time was 19 games in Orlando where he had a 2.66 GAA and a .913 save percentage. When Connor Ingram ended up in Edmonton, Connor Ungar replaced him and that’s where the excitement started. Ungar played 13 games going 9-2-2 and was spectacular many nights.

Ungar’s athleticism is what stands out for me. I understand technical facets of goaltending at a very limited basis. What I do see often from Ungar is the above. He is a battler who can make an emergency save when everything breaks down.

For this season, Ungar needs to yank the mantle of starting goalie in Bakersfield from Matt Tomkins. Maybe this doesn’t sound like much, but it will be key. If he can do that, he is not very far from Edmonton. Yes, the Oilers have a three headed monster there. However, Anderson is on a one year deal and has struggled with injuries. Jarry was a mess after the trade. Devon Levi isn’t much further ahead of Ungar. He needs to take advantage of this situation. Focus on rebound control, make saves easier and generally help his team exit the zone after a brief attack more often. Ungar does all of this and the Oilers will have another potential NHL goalie.

#17 - David Lewandowski

D.O.B. - February 20, 2007

Draft: 2025 4th Round

Shoots: Left

Position: Wing

Vitals: 6’2” 176 pounds

2025/26 Regular Season Statistics - Saskatoon Blades

17-48-65 in 57 games or 1.14 points per game

Lewandowski was a great pick by the Oilers in 2025. He had come from Germany to the WHL part way through the season and it took a while to get his bearings. This led him to have good, but not great draft year numbers. The Oilers were able to get him in the fourth round. With a season under his belt, the question was would Lewandowski take off in his draft plus one year. He did. He did it very well. Lewandowski has two very pro level traits. Although he weighted 176 pounds, his physique is such that you can see him as a power forward as professional. It would not be a surprise to see him play at 6’2” and 215 pounds. Similar to another German born player with the Oilers organization. Lewandowski loves to use his size as a tool in games.

Here is another example except in this case it is on offence not defence.

Lewandowski’s physical capabilities will certainly be an advantage as he grows into his frame. The other element of his game that is certainly pro level is his shot. Lewandowski has a very heavy shot that is quick off his stick and accurate. A lethal combination.

Lewandowski will score goals professionally with this shot. No doubt. The big question with Lewandowksi is the skating. That is what primarily held him back in the NHL draft. This is a sample of his skating in his draft year.

Mostly it is a good structurally stride. What gets Lewandowski into trouble is the height of skates off the ice. It is almost like he is running on the ice. The problem is skates need to stay low to the ice. The quicker they return, the more power is generated. The more power, the better pace and the quicker the acceleration.

In his draft plus one year, there was some good improvement. Watch this clip.

Compare the two clips and notice the improvement on keeping his boots closer to the ice on the stride. It’s not perfect and it still gets away from him, but it is better for certain. Notice how he is able to generate quick acceleration that allows him onto the forecheck quick which leads to a Saskatoon goal.

For this season, it is time for Lewandowski to dominate and do so every game. Ideally, he puts on weight, his skating takes another step and Lewandowski scores and scores a lot. That is what I will be watching for this season.

That’s it for todays edition of the Edmonton Oilers prospect countdown for 2026/27. Thank you for reading and see you here next week with prospects #16 through #13. Have a great week.

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Rudolf Berzkalns

When the Oilers selected 58th, they had a number of defensemen sitting there for them. Instead, they chose a 6’4” Latvian center playing in the USHL. At first blush, given the organization’s limited depth at defence this may seem to be a less than ideal selection. However, Berzkalns is going to make an impact. Yes, he is a center and the Oilers have decent depth there. What they do not have is someone like Berzkalns. He is an incredibly strong, good skating, pain-in-the-ass-to-play-against forward. His size and skating ability alone make him easy to project as a professional player. Watch this full clip here with a focus on his footwork. Watch the edges and his ability to change directions fluidly. It is very athletic.

Remember Berzkalns is only 18 and is 6’4”. It is not always the case that a guy has this type of nimbleness to his skating at this part of the development curve.

Furthermore, his skating stride is very projectable. Watch this clip of him on a breakaway. The clip pauses to illustrate really good fundamentals. Look at the length of his stride and how low his skate is to the ice. Look at how his chest is up allowing good balance over his skates. Finally, look at the flexion and position of his hips, knees and ankles. This is a really solid skating stride.

This combination of skating and size is why he is projectable as professional. Watch this short clip and just notice how hard he is to play against.

The last piece to the projectability of Berzkalns is his hockey sense. The young man has a really strong idea of how to play the game off of the puck. Watch this clip. Besides his size and skating watch how he plays angles on the forecheck and how he works through the middle of the ice defending.

Now Berzkalns didn’t fall to #58 because it was a mistake by 31 other teams. The biggest unknown is offence. A player needs to put up offence to get looks professionally. Without a doubt. Berzkalns only had 25 points in 48 games in the USHL. That is a relatively low total in a weaker league overall. His puck skills are not strong for certain. His shot is not brilliant, but it is ok. I expect most of how he generates offence will be from his strong off puck play. Watch this goal against Canada from the World Juniors. Notice his work to cover off for three teammates down low. Once the puck is turned over, he skates downhill to the net. This is where his size and skating make him hard to handle.

Here is another example where he regroups in his zone for a mid-lane exit. Then he uses his size and skating to beat players up the ice with the puck and makes a deft little pass to the middle.

I don’t know that there will be a lot of “one T clappers” from the side ice although he has shown that a little. In addition, he certainly is not going to dangle players with his quick hands in tight. Instead, he will more likely use his reach and skating to simply beat defenders wide and down low.

Berzkalns is a strong second round pick. He projects easily as a professional player. What will make his NHL career is his ability to chip in offensively. For the next couple of years, I will be looking for improvements in his puck skills and his shot. This will allow him to be more dynamic in his attack which in turn will make him much harder to defend given his size.

Malcolm Gastrin

Gastrin was a reach pick for me in the third round. I have only seen the player three times, so this may be a very unfair assessment. He certainly offers some unique traits that I like a lot. For starters, he is incredibly young. He doesn’t turn 18 until August 19th. So his development curve might leap off the charts as he gets older.

He also is a very fleet skater. He has quick starts and his agility is very good. As he gets stronger (6’0” and 170 pounds at the moment), this will get even better.

The most interesting element is his hockey sense. He’s really good off the puck at finding space for himself in advance of plays made seconds later. His knack for being in positions where the puck ends up is uncanny. With the puck, he makes very quick decisions and usual good ones.

He is a competitive player as well which I normally expect out of smaller sized guys. He doesn’t win all his battles, but he loses less than I expected.

Gastrin scored 25 points in 24 games in the U20 Swedish league. Not brilliant, but not shabby either compared to players drafted around him in that league. Adam Anderson (#83) had 17 points in 30 games. Nils Barthholdsson (#88) had 42 points in 32 games. Oscar Holmertz (#87) had 36 points in 34 games. So he is in range of his countrymen in this league.

For me Gastrin, doesn’t quite merit the #83 pick. He is a very long way off in terms of development. However, his age works for him both in terms of his development curve and his ability to physically grow. A move to the Alsvensken league (Sweden’s AHL equivalent) at some point next season would be good progress.

Andrew Robinson

This pick did confound me a fair bit. The 6’0” 190 pound left shot defender had a pretty average rookie season. Not poor. Not great. Average. I saw Robinson a bunch on a fairly good Windsor Spitfire team. However, he never really wowed except one game. When the playoffs came, he took off a little and you could see some small flashes. His overall totals were mundane at 24 points in 63 games. He popped a little in the playoffs with 8 points in 13 games.

So perhaps the bet here is that Robinson started to develop late in the season which can happen for rookie junior players (see William Nicholl). No question you can see the potential for strong offensive play. He’s very confident stepping up into the rush using his strong skating stride.

Here is another clip when he makes a very nice little back pass off a double forecheck. Then watch him he get on his horse and attack up the ice.

This is very dynamic capability no question.

He also shows this type of play with his passing and vision for time and space. Watch this pass to another Oilers draft pick (Caden Harvey). Harvey is completely checked here by a defender. Watch how Robinson handles this by adjusting the pass velocity and putting the puck back post.

This is high quality play from Robinson. So I can see the Oilers enthusiasm.

However, this type of play was not the norm for him over the season. His play was really just pretty average. More worrisome was his indifference to defensive play because he is more interested in offence. Watch this clip where he makes a pinch that absolutely cannot happen.

Furthermore, you can see his defensive indifference in his own zone which is worse. Watch our boy William Nicholl just simply go around him without any hurt being applied by Robinson.

Here is an even more difficult clip to watch for a prospect watcher. This play shows a lot of casualness and indifference to getting pucks out of the zone.

I personally would have seen Robinson as a draft plus one drafted guy. In other words, passed over this season and watch what happens next season. That said, the Oilers have a decent track record drafting young players who rise up in their draft plus one year. For Robinson, he needs to get more dynamic scoring wise this season given the tools he has. Defensively, he has to dig in hard. Make it as much a passion as his love for offence. If that can happen, Robinson will be a solid top four defender in the OHL. This will help his development.

Caden Harvey

This is a pick I liked a lot from the Oilers. Harvey was a teammate of Robinson in Windsor. The issue for him was a supremely deep team. Harvey did not get a lot of cherry minutes as a rookie.

What I love most about Harvey is his fearlessness. Harvey embraces wall play despite being 6’1 and 183 pounds. He also loves to play in the middle of the ice. Again, not for the faint of heart. What makes him succeed here is his hockey sense. Harvey has a very quick decision-making process and it helps him play in these tight areas.

Here is another example where Harvey doesn’t just take the seam play, but he extends it into a great scoring chance that he converts.

There is also a tenacity to Harvey’s game. Here is a small sample of his forecheck that leads to him scoring from…wait for it…inside the middle of the ice.

Again, here is the hunt in him for the puck off an offensive zone face-off.

Harvey’s play inside is so impressive that I wonder about him in a center role. He certainly is willing to play inside which is a pre-requisite for a good center. My hesitation for this comes from his skating technique. Harvey is not slow for sure. He’s generally quite quick off the start. However, his stride is on the shorter side. In addition, his edgework on his weakside needs improvement. Take a look at this clip and you can see both issues.

If I had a worry about this prospect, it is here. Harvey’s size is projectable as a professional. His fearlessness and hockey sense are also good indicators of success at the professional level. However, I would like to see his skating improve The stride get longer and the edgework getting stronger are the two areas of need.

Harvey appears to be headed to Penn State for the 2026/27 season. I would have preferred he play in Windsor for another season. Windsor will be in a re-build and he would see significant minutes in all situations. Penn State will also be a young team, but the difference is playing against much more mature hockey players in college. Assuming he ends up there, it could impact his development.

Ryan Cameron

With their final selection, the Oilers drafted goalie, Ryan Cameron. Cameron is a USHL goalie with Cedar Rapids. I have seen him a few times watching other prospects. He looks athletic, but the USHL is a tougher league for me to assess goalies. Also, goalies are voodoo. Cameron was selected to the USA U20 training camp which is something of note. However, the USA depth is not great here, so it might not be as big a deal as would otherwise be.

This concludes my review of the Oilers 2026 NHL draft. I will be back later this week with a review of the prospects the Oilers picked up in the Darnell Nurse trade and in free agency. Thanks for reading.

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Connor Ungar

Ungar is the outlier of the four goalies here because he was not a draft pick. He was signed out of USports hockey after play four season in the WHL. The Oilers did not have a lot of room already in the organization for goalies, so Ungar didn’t even start in Fort Wayne, the Oilers ECHL affiliate. Instead, he played with the Orlando Solar Bears and the Greensboro Gargoyles with a modest amount of time in Fort Wayne.

Ungar also had a stint with the Bakersfield Condors and this is where people got excited. Ungar played 13 games. He went 9-2-2 with one shutout. He registered a 2.51 GAA and a .923 save percentage. Ungar was eventually returned to the ECHL when Calvin Pickard was waived by the Oilers. However, his athleticism and compete left an imprint on Oiler fans and management alike. Take a look at this clip from a 51 save performance. It is representative of Ungar’s game.

Ungar will start the year in Bakersfield is my guess. He’s 24 so he is in his prime development years. Should he replicate his time in Bakersfield, the Oilers will have a potential NHL goalie.

Samuel Jonsson

Jonsson, the 6’5”, 2022 5th round draft pick of the Oilers had an exceptional first North American pro year. Jonsson went 21-8-2 with 5 shutouts in Fort Wayne. He had a 2.38 GAA and a .910 save percentage. I was not as high on Jonsson because he had some deficiencies on his glove hand side. He still has that issue, but what is undeniable is his ability to use his size to thwart high danger attacks.

By the end of the season, Jonsson was tracking to the AHL for me. With the Ungar signing, I presume this may be delayed by one year. Nevertheless given his young age, Jonsson has plenty of time and the key is getting lots of minutes in the net.

Nathan Day

I liked Day better than Jonsson to start the year given that he played in a tough OHL environment for most of his junior career. While his junior numbers were inflated, his size and athleticism could not be denied. Day’s first season as a pro was solid. It was not as spectacular as Jonsson with a 2.76 GAA and .893 save percentage in the year. However, he did have three shutouts in the regular season and had a nice run in the playoffs with Fort Wayne. Day appears to me to be the more athletic between him and Jonsson. Many games this year, he relied on it to repel high danger chances.

As I watched more through the year, what I did notice was Jonsson’s structure or foundation was more solid than Day’s and it allowed him to stop shots just by proper positioning. Day was more chaotic in his net causing a lot of rebound control issues. Day certainly will need to improve this part of his game and another season in the ECHL is a good spot for him to do so.

News and Notes

Daniel Salonen had an excellent season in the SM Liiga. He was expected to be a back-up this year, but due to injuries played 30 games. He went 14-7-7 with three shutouts. He had a 2.40 GAA and a .887 save percentage. These are very good numbers for a 20 year old in Finland’s top league.

Eemil Vinni, the second round pick of the Oilers in 2024 has maybe finally turned the corner. After off-season back surgery the year he was drafted, Vinni has bounced around the Finnish second league. He was loaned to Kettera where he finally showed flashes of what he can do. In six playoff games, he registered a 1.52 GAA and a .943 save percentage. Vinni is still only 20 years old so he has lots of time. A full season of consistent play is what is needed for him this coming year.

That’s it for the prospect reviews for 2025/26. Next up is the 2026 NHL draft which will be out after the Oilers make their picks. Thank you for reading and see you on the weekend.

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Paul Fischer

Fischer was a 5th round pick of St. Louis in the 2023 draft. The 6’1, 212 pound left shot defender is a highly reliable defensive player who uses his excellent skating skills and size very well.

The clip shows his solid skating technique as well as the strength and balance it provides him to defend.

While Fischer is defence first, there is an element of offence to his game. He has 60 points in his 103 games with Notre Dame. This may not sound overwhelming, but Notre Dame is not a high scoring offensive team. Indeed, in those same three seasons, the team scored at a rate of less than three goals per game. So his scoring is better than the actual numbers suggest. What Fischer relies on for offence is also his skating. Watch this clip and look at the fluid motion he has with change of direction. He never loses pace which allows him to separate from players and find open ice.

Fischer also has a reasonable idea of how to run a powerplay. Again he uses his skating, in this case, his lateral mobility, to create space to attack the net from up top.

Given his physical tools, I was very surprised to see Fischer come back for his senior year. Also, the Notre Dame team will be challenged again this season to be competitive so Fischer will be pushing against the river pretty hard. That said Fischer will only be 22 when the season ends, so he still has lots of development aging curve ahead of him yet when he does turn professional. For this season, the focus will be on him stretching out offensively. He’s a senior, so he has physical and experiential advantages over many of his competitors. In addition, he is going to see all the high leverage minutes he can handle. Hopefully it all comes together and Fischer can step into the Oilers organization at the end of the 2026/27 season because the Oilers have some holes at left shot defence.

Owen Michaels

Michaels came to the Oilers organization on a one year deal having played three years at Western Michigan. Michaels is a 6’0 foot right shot center who was a very sought after collegiate free agent in the 2024/25 season. He returned to Western Michigan for the last season and it did not go as well. After scoring 36 points in 42 games the prior season, Michaels dropped to 26 points in 39 games this past season. This is not an encouraging trend. I watched Michaels a decent amount this season and I cannot point to any particular reason for this development. This is also concerning.

Nevertheless, the Oilers signed him to a one-year deal and burned that year so Michaels is now an RFA and yet to be signed by the Oilers. However, Michaels has some tools. He is a very smart right shot center. This is something the Oilers are lacking in their system. Here is a clip that illustrates what Michaels brings. You’ll see he is a player who constantly gets overtop of the puck to put himself in good positions.

You can see his understanding of structure. He puts himself in good positions constantly. In multiple instances, it led to his team gaining possession and creating attack chances.

Here is another clip that shows again Michaels getting into great support positions. You also see his very good hands in this clip.

This issue for Michaels is skating. He’s only 6’0 and I am not sold that his skating is strong enough at this time to track to the NHL in the future. Take a look at this clip. I want you to focus on the pace of his skating going up the ice. It is not dynamic and he cannot separate from collegiate players.

The result of this clip is great and it is testament to his understanding of plays before they happen. However, Michaels is 24 and the skating is not strong enough at this time. He will need to improve this part of the game in short order to make an impact in the organization. Should the Oilers sign him, this element needs to be the focus.

Dalyn Wakely

Wakely was a 6th round pick of the team in 2024. Instead of signing professionally, he took the collegiate route to UMass-Lowell. He had a good freshman year scoring 19 points in 35 games. Wakely played mostly 3C with the team, but jumped up on occasion to 2C. Wakely did, however, have a very strong impact on the penalty kill.

You can, however, see the issue with Wakely in this clip, which is skating. Now Wakely is 22 years old and he has time to work through this element to his game. They have him listed at 6’1 and 203 pounds. I believe he is a little shorter than this, but certainly carries good weight. The hope for Wakely is takes a step up the roster this year in college and have his skating improve. If so, he could join Owen Michaels as a player who brings an element to the organization it sorely lacks.

Bauer Berry

Berry was a pick in the 7th round of the 2024 draft out of the USHL. Like most USHL grads, Berry went to college hockey when he was eligible. He signed with a lower tier collegiate program in St. Thomas. Berry had a very good year offensively, which is encouraging because that was not his calling card. Berry scored 14 points in 37 games. Not a massive point total, but for a 6’4” defender known for his stifling defensive play, it was encouraging. Berry will continue at St. Thomas this season. As a 20 year-old, he needs to work on all facets of his game, but his lateral mobility is the most important area of focus. Berry is a long term project, but he is big, physical and makes a decent outlet pass. Improvement in his skating will take his development to the next level.

That’s it for today’s prospect season review. On Saturday, we will talk goaltending. Thanks for reading. Please leave your comments below and share with anyone you think might be interested.

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Viljami Marjala

Marjala had a very good year in Bakersfield offensively. He went17-43-60 in 63 games. This was good enough for third in team scoring and 20th in the AHL. Marjala came as advertised offensively. He is a very slick playmaker.

Interestingly, and somewhat surprisingly, Marjala showed some better than expected battle traits. He also flashed some very good transitional defensive instincts.

All of this led to Marjala being promoted to the penalty kill early in the season. His offensive skills showed up on the penalty kill and it had positive results for Marjala and Bakersfield.

Marjala never got a call to the Oilers. While I don’t have the reasons, I suspect his in-zone defensive play was the challenge. While Marjala displayed good battle level and transitional defence, he did struggle in his own zone. This was due to a combination of his reads of plays as a center in his zone as well as his ability to win net front battles to protect against rebounds and deflections. This showed up in his fancy stats. His GF share percentage was 47.1% and his relative metric to his teammates was -5%. Marjala was on for 54 goals against in his 63 games this year.

Marjala has offensive tools to be a NHL player. However, he needs to get physically stronger to enhance his ability to win battles as a center game in and game out. He is too slight right now to play center at the NHL level. He also needs to improve his defensive reads. This I am less concerned about as he will improve in his second year in Bakersfield. Nevertheless, this was an excellent signing by the Oilers and Marjala is a player who should get some looks next season if he continues to progress.

Connor Clattenburg

Clattenburg, like Marjala, also had a very notable AHL season. He just did it in very different ways than Marjala and in only 32 games. His point totals were 2-2-4 in that time. So what exactly did he do to make his season notable? Well, Clattenburg is a throw back forward. He hits to hurt and he backs up his play with his fists.

Let’s start with the hitting. He isn’t Tom Wilson, but Clattenburg is solid at 6’2” and 205. He also skates very well. All this combined with the fact he has a natural instinct on hitting makes the opposition keep their heads up.

You can see in the hits that Clattenburg is able to create transition plays for his teammates. He does this either by separating players from the puck or getting to pucks first because the opposition allows him to get to the puck first.

As with every physical player in this era, Clattenburg is often required to fight in response to his hits. Clattenburg has absolutely no issue in taking on these challenges.

Clattenburg’s play was so impactful, he was called up for five games with the Oilers. His time included scoring his first NHL goal which was in typical Clattenburg fashion. He started the play with a solid hit. Made a very good wall play while drawing defenders. Then went to the net and stayed there.

Clattenburg’s season though ended abruptly. He needed hand surgery from what looked like damage caused from fights in successive games. This will be part of his development. Clattenburg will need to pick his spots more often. He doesn’t need to take every fight. He doesn’t need to hurt every player with a hit. His reputation will help him with this because he will get space from other teams as the league learns about him.

The other area of focus is puck skills. Clattenburg’s are not good enough yet to be relied upon by a NHL coach. He needs to be able to complete plays to help his team get up the ice on the attack. He also needs to avoid transition plays against his team.

Fortunately, Clattenburg does have the makings of good puck skills. He has very deft hands in close quarters and makes quick decisions.

For Clattenburg, it is all about the hands. No, not in the fighting way. In the puck handling way. Clattenburg’s offseason should be all about working on how to manage the puck better to help his team exit the zone, enter the zone and create scoring chances. He needs to do this all while not turning the puck over.

Clattenburg is a throwback prospect. He plays the game in a very hard way and can back it up. He helps create space for teammates and constantly comes to their defence. These are all intriguing attributes.

However, until his puck skills and decision-making on the puck improve, he will have challenges advancing his game.

That’s it for this week’s post. Thank you for reading and see you here again very soon.

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Let’s start here. Maxim Beryozkin is a big man and he plays like one.

At 6’4” and 212 points, Beryozkin is a load to handle and he makes it very hard on opponents.

This could be very impactful on a team that could use some skilled wingers with size. Yes, that’s right, I said skilled. Beryozkin has very good puck skills.

To make this all the more enticing, Beryozkin loves to use his size and his puck skills on the interior of the ice. Think of how Vasily Podkolzin plays for the Oilers. Now imagine a player slightly bigger than him with better puck skills. That’s Maxim Beryozkin.

At this point, I am certain some of you are asking “what about the skating?” It is a very good question. One of my core beliefs is that big forwards who have below average skating skills have a better chance to succeed on international ice surface because they have more space. The more common thought process is if they are successful at scoring on the international ice then they must be quick. That is not the case. See David Tomasek. This is a player I warned about when he was signed. Eventually it showed up and Tomasek went back to Europe.

Fortunately with Beryozkin, I don’t believe he suffers from this risk. He certainly is not the quickest player off the blocks, but he is not slow either. Take a look at these clips.

You can see Beryozkin is not a speed demon, but he is quicker off the blocks than most players of his size. Once he gets his nose out front, he’s very difficult to contain.

I don’t have any insight on whether Beryozkin signs. However, I think he is worth a contract. He has size and skill. He plays a robust game that will be hard to contain. He also is not shy physically. These are all elements the Edmonton Oilers could use in their bottom six. Whether Beryozkin gets a chance to use them? Time will tell.

Thanks for reading another season in review on Edmonton Oilers prospects. If you think someone would enjoy this article, please share. Also please leave your comments below. See you at the rink.

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Alec Regula

The player who had the most NHL exposure this past season was Alec Regula. Regula was a waiver claim from Boston in December of 2024. Regula missed the entire 2024/25 season recovering from a knee injury. He returned to play in November of 2025 with the Oilers. Regula played 29 games and while he had good moments, he struggled with a goals for percentage in the 25% range. Ultimately he was sent down to Bakersfield. Regula played 20 games going 4-7-11 in his time. He spent a good deal of time as a second pairing defender seeing some modest second powerplay duty and a healthy amount of penalty kill. Unfortunately, his GF% continued to be an issue with him registering 45% in his time this season in the AHL.

Regula will turn 26 before training camp this fall so he is at the upper end of the range for prospects. At this point a substantial majority of prospects have developed their game to its maximum and the player is what he will be. However, Regula may be in a different situation. It’s the reason, I am not willing to rule him. From his last game prior to injury to his return with Edmonton was almost 18 months. That is a long time away from the game for a young player. So it is possible that really we are looking at a player whose 23 years old in terms of developmental time.

Given that Regula is a 6’4” right shot defenseman, it is worth being patient about him. He does have some very good tools. His passing game is certainly NHL level. He has great vision. He uses his size to shield off attackers and he makes really high quality passes.

Regula’s patience in finding teammates with quality passes is impressive.

Regula also has some very strong offensive instincts.

The troubles for Regula all season though was his footwork. He is obviously not a quick skater, but his size allows him to be a little slower. The issue that NHL teams and AHL teams exploited was his lateral mobility. The ability to turn quickly and then to accelerate.

Just little plays like this where Regula could not close the gap to defend a shot attempt because he could not get his feet organized quick enough hurt his defending. This is the critical element for him. This needs to be his only focus this offseason. He has to become much quicker in his footwork so that his recovery defending improves. Given that he came off a knee injury that shelved him for 18 months, I am willing to wait and see what happens. However, this is the critical year for Regula.

Atro Leppanen

The trade for Spencer Statsney really put a road block up for Leppanen this season. Leppanen has such good offensive skills that it was easy to see him getting time in Edmonton. That all changed with the acquisition of Statsney. Don’t get me wrong, Leppanen does some things that Statsney cannot do offensively.

He’s an excellent offensive player. Not as good a skater as Statsney, but he makes up for it with his pucks skills and creativity.

Leppanen is also a sneaky good defender against the rush.

He struggles a little given his size with net front defending, but it is not a huge red flag. The issue more than anything with Leppanen is his risk tolerance. He simply takes too many chances that are low risk.

Leppanen is a rover style of defender and that is fine if you have the skating ability of Lane Hutson or Quinn Hughes. Leppanen does not have that. He needs to be much more disciplined in his decision-making. His offensive skills are such that he can afford to be more conservative. However, to date that has not happened. Leppanen had 38 points in a his 57 games with Bakersfield. Yet, his GF was 46% this season at 5v5. He took too many risks and his team paid the price too often. Leppanen has to decide this season what he wants to be. An AHL journeyman who can get away playing this style. Or he can tighten up his risk taking profile and make a push for a 6/7 role in the NHL.

Damien Carfagna

Carfagna was easily my favorite story this year for the Condors. That’s quite a statement given the performances of Hutson, Howard, Marjala, and Ungar. Carfagna came in to Bakersfield as an unheralded collegiate free agent signing. His play was instantly high quality. I knew he would be fine defensively despite being 6’0” and 185 pounds. He played three years of collegiate hockey defending against physically mature hockey players. Carfagna is very assertive in his defending, closing time and space on players. His skating allows this mindset.

His assertiveness is all over the ice including the offensive zone.

The results from this type of play were outstanding. His even strength goal share was almost 56% this year in Bakersfield. This while being an anchor on a second pairing and even the first pairing for a chunk of the season.

What really became noticeable as the season went on was Carfagna’s offensive confidence growing. He only tallied 22 points in 66 games, but he was on the ice for the most even strength goals for on the team at 54! Carfagna didn’t always get on the scoresheet, but he was involved.

That said, he did show some better offensive skills than I thought he had.

Carfagna is a player to watch. I think there is a NHL player in here somewhere if he can continue to develop the offensive side of his game. I’d like to see him play more powerplay time. He also needs to activate more often with and without the puck because his skating is good enough.

Carfagna will get stronger without a doubt. He skates very well. His defending mindset is really good as well. If the offence comes more this season, I believe there is a chance he can play NHL games with the Oilers in the future.

Beau Akey

If Akey didn’t have bad luck, he would have no luck at all. I have never seen a player suffer so many weird injuries that derailed good play than Akey. Akey played 42 games this year and registered 10 points. However, he was just starting to produce and play well when he took a puck in the mouth while sitting on the bench. He lost nine teeth in the process. That put him out for some time and when returned he wore a bubble. He never scored another point in the season. 19 games. 0 points.

Yet, Akey was really good when he played. He had the highest GF% for defenders at almost 57%. He was on for 33 goals for and 25 goals against. For Akey it is all about skating. He’s such a brilliant skater. Both in terms of straight line skating and transition. He can make adjustments side to side with and without the puck without losing any pace. When he needs to recover, the skating is effortless to get him back into position.

For Akey, it is going to be a long journey. While he has good height, he has a very slight frame. He absolutely needs to get thicker. He needs to be able to defend in-zone better and more strength will be a key. Also, a stronger Akey will hopefully lead to a less injury prone Akey.

Finally, Akey needs to find his confidence. Akey does not realize how much he can dominate individual shifts with his skating and passing skills. This has been an issue going back to junior.

Hopefully a good off-season will translate into a stronger, healthier and more confident Beau Akey. If it does, Akey has tools that a lot of AHLers do not have and it could make for an interesting season.

That’s it for this week’s prospect season review. If you think someone would enjoy these posts, please share. Leave your comments below. Have a great weekend

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Isaac Howard

The acquisition for Isaac Howard is not without controversy. The former Tampa Bay first round pick didn’t want to sign with the club that drafted him. So Tampa struck a deal to acquire Oilers 2024 first round pick Sam O’Reilly. O’Reilly has really raised the stakes in this trade with a tremendous junior season winning both the regular season and playoff MVP awards in the OHL. In addition, he is something the Oilers need, which is a right shot center who can win some draws and kill some penalties. The trouble for Edmonton with O’Reilly is that he is only 20 and he still may be three years away from impacting play on a team trying to win Stanley Cups. His skating still needs work and the task of being a defense first center in the NHL is not one that comes easy for young players. Don’t get me wrong. I love Sam O’Reilly as a prospect and when he is 23 or 24 years old, he will be a good NHL player.

Howard, on the other hand, is closer to NHL ready. He’s 22 years old, so has a little more maturity. He should be able to withstand the rigors, physical, mental and emotional, of the NHL in short order. He also brings a few elements that definitely could help the Oilers forward group.

For starters, he can score goals and he does so from distance.

In this first one, watch how he unloads off his wrong foot and still beats the goalie clean from distance.

Here is another goal from distance that I am still trying to understand. Watch this release.

This final goal is just a laser through bodies and an attempt to stop the shot.

What I like about these goals other than the distance is Howard’s ability to get off a quick, accurate shot through to the net. This will be key for his success in the NHL. The players are quicker on defending both with body and stick, so Howard’s ability to get shots off in tight space or through block attempts will be critical.

Howard also plays with very good pace. He is not an exceptional skater, but he is a very quick transitional skater even with the puck. Again, this is something that could benefit the Oilers.

This first clip is a beautiful example of his ability to transition quickly from stop to start. I also love his commitment to get over top of the puck in the offensive zone when he sees potential trouble.

Here is another one showing his ability to create separation from a standstill while carrying the puck.

While some commentators have questioned his work rate off the puck, I have not seen that at all. Indeed, his limited play in Edmonton showed his desire to work off the puck.

This is very good work by Howard. What was missing for Howard this season was one element he could not control and one he could. The element he could not control: experience. Watch this clip. Howard realizes too late that he needs to get to the wall. The puck could have been exited had he done so. It ends up in the back of the Oiler net.

The other element was taking too much risk when the reward was not warranted. This is something that Howard can and needs to control. Otherwise, he will sit on the bench a lot in the NHL. Here is a clip where Howard cheats to the puck when he just needs to sit in his assigned position to be effective. He leaves that spot and it forces Roby Jarventie to roll over to the far side. He cannot get there in time and it results in a goal against.

All Howard had to do was hold his position. In this case, he needed to tamp down the risk because the reward was not there. He was not going to win the puck. Arguably he had a better chance to win the puck by staying still. Instead, he created more chaos for his team and it cost them a goal.

For Howard, the secret to NHL success will be taking less risks off the puck. His offensive skills are so good that he doesn’t need to cheat to make positive impacts. In addition, he does work hard and has an understanding of what needs to be done defensively. Indeed, his goal share at even strength in the AHL was over 55%. This is encouraging.

Oh, the other thing to no do. Like ever. This.

Get it to the guy who can give it back to you in an even better spot. Especially when the guy is Leon Draisaitl.

Quinn Hutson

Hutson was a tremendous success story for the Oilers. He also may not ever play a game for the Oilers. Hutson was a very high profile collegiate free agent having scored 50 points in 38 games in his final year in Boston University. The Oilers were able to sign him and he promptly had a 30 goal AHL season and, as mentioned above, finishing second in AHL scoring.

Right off the top, it is easy to see that Hutson can shoot the puck. It isn’t a heavy shot, but the release is quick and most importantly, it is a highly accurate. On the other hand, it is also notable Hutson scored all of these goals on the powerplay. That was a very prominent feature of his season. 28 of his 63 points were on the powerplay including 11 of his 30 goals. That is not anything to be ashamed of, but he is not going to get powerplay time with Edmonton Oilers, at least on the first unit.

Therefore, Hutson needs to bring some other elements to the table. Fortunately, he does have a very good tool chest. He’s a very smart player off the puck and it leads to transition plays for his team often.

He is also very committed to his defensive craft and works very hard back up the ice on transition.

So with all this good, why am I concerned about him not playing for the Oilers? Well, Hutson is a tweener. Not on skills. Not on hockey sense. Both are NHL level. The tweener in Hutson is he is smallish and his skating is average. He can have one of these, but not both. The combination of both is what holds him back. Fortunately, both can be improved upon. Indeed, Hutson’s skating is already better from his collegiate days.

The most notable element to his skating is how bent over he is at the waist. This creates a balance issue for Hutson for one. It also lessens the power push in his skating because his upper body is not contributing to the stride. The arm swing gets hampered and the legs need to do all the work.

Now take a look at a couple of clips from late this season. In this one, notice the quick transition. Watch him fight to keep his upper body in a slight tilt as opposed to a hunch. It is getting better.

The second clip is more of the same. Hutson working very hard to keep his upper body in good position, so that he can make powerful strides. He also shows some nice strength to fight through the check up the ice.

Let’s be clear, Hutson is not there yet with his skating. However, it is better. What Hutson needs to do is work continuously on his skating this off-season. He also needs to work very hard in the gym. Both of these are well within his control. If he does both of those, he can make the jump to the NHL. He is likely a bottom six forward who can chip in a few goals, play some second powerplay and kill penalties. He will not hurt an NHL team off the puck as well. He just needs to take the next step so that when the games become very important in a NHL season, he is a contributor.

Now people have asked a lot whether the Oilers could have three undersized players on the NHL roster. These players being Savoie, Howard and Hutson. The answer is I am not sure. If your center depth is big players and the wing pairs have a Podkolzin type player on the opposite side, maybe. What I do know is that each of these players has NHL skills and can make contributions at various levels in the NHL. Are any of these players trade chips? Absolutely. So their continued development does not have to be for jobs in Edmonton. It can be to assist in trades for other assets of value.

That’s it for this week’s Oilers prospect season review post. Thank you for reading, See you back here next week.

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Tommy Lafreniere

When Lafreniere was selected in the third round I admit I was disappointed. It’s not that I did not like the player. He just was lower for me overall and I thought he would be available in a later round. However, the Oilers obviously liked Lafreniere and had no hesitation in selecting him. With his draft plus one season now behind him, the Oilers are looking very sharp on their decision. Lafreniere had a spectacular offensive year in Kamloops. Lafreniere finished 19th in WHL scoring going 41-36-77 in 67 games. His 41 goals were tied for 4th in the league. Lafreniere displayed an incredible release this year that I hadn’t noticed much of in his draft year. It is quick and it is accurate.

He even had it on display in his amateur tryout with the Bakersfield Condors this Spring.

This release combined with Lafreniere’s elite skating ability make him a handful offensively.

Finally, Lafreniere is a very headed player with a motor that keeps going. This makes him very good in both creating and joining transition plays.

This combination of skills makes him very interesting as a prospect. However, there are challenges. Lafreniere isn’t small, but he isn’t very big either. At 6’0” and 183 pounds, he can be overwhelmed by bigger players. This combined with the fact it is not clear what his best position makes this more challenging. Lafreniere was a center for a majority of the season in Kamloops. However, there were times he was slotted out to wing and I could see why the coaches did so. He’s far more dangerous on the attack from the wing. He also was challenged as a center down low in his zone on occasion. When Lafreniere went to Bakersfield, he played right wing exclusively. I think this is ultimately the best position for him.

What should help Lafreniere is his commitment to Western Michigan. The season is shorter which will allow him to focus on gaining muscle mass to withstand the rigors of professional hockey. In addition, it will allow time to develop a role for his best position. I believe it is wing, but collegiate hockey will allow him to explore the center position against bigger, stronger competition if the coaches think it best. Overall, this was an excellent season for the Oilers third round pick.

David Lewandowski

Contrary to Lafreniere, I loved this pick when it was announced by the Oilers. Taken in the fourth round, Lewandoski has two traits that project to professional hockey. First, he has a wicked release that overpowers goaltenders.

It’s quick, hard and accurate. It helped him lead his team in scoring going 17-48-65 in 57 games. This for a team that was 16th in scoring in the WHL, these are impressive totals.

The other element that is pro ready is his stature. Lewandowski is not filled out yet at 6’2” and 177 pounds, but he plays and projects to be a power forward. Watch some of these clips.

This next one ends up with a great play to his draft buddy, Tommy Lafreniere.

Lewandowski has two traits that make him quite interesting going forward. However, he also has one hitch: skating. Here is a clip from his draft year. Notice the high boot lift which slows down the return of the skates to the ice. This means less strides which means less power and slower starts.

Now it has improved this season, which is great news. Watch this clip here. Notice how the boots stay much lower to the ice. This allows for more pushes off each side which gives him quicker acceleration and more power.

For Lewandowski, skating is the key. Hopefully his skating improvement continues. The focus now should be more crossover work to allow for an even higher tempo. Also, it will help him be more dynamic on the attack by being able to changes angles of attack on defenders.

Asher Barnett

Asher Barnett is why you never sleep in the USNTDP in the USHL. Everyone one of these young men have skills. The problem is the program can be so deep that players can get lost in the shuffle. Asher Barnett was one of these players. Barnett had a quiet year offensively in his draft season. This was because he played in a mostly defensive role with some other defencemen blocking his path to offensive minutes. Barnett committed to Michigan for this past season and the young Oilers prospect started to shine.

Barnett remained in a defence first role on the third pairing and playing a lot of first pairing penalty kill. He’s a very good skater and he is an incredibly sturdy defender.

However, Barnett has some offensive skills to go with these other abilities and these skills started to come out.

Barnett also displayed a very competent passing game which is key for his development.

Barnett had an exceptional year as a freshman on a powerhouse NCAA team. He finished 5-13-18 in 40 games. He also had a very strong showing at the World Junior Championships playing a shutdown and penalty kill role.

For this coming season, Barnett needs to take another step offensively. He needs to finish plays defensively and then when the puck is transitioned he needs to join and, more importantly, create more offensive opportunities. This will make him a more complete player who can contribute positively in all facets of the game.

Daniel Salonen

Everyone knows I do not understand goalies. That said, it is hard not to be impressed with Salonen’s draft plus one season. Salonen started behind Anti Raanta for Lukko in the SM Liiga, Finland’s top league. However, instead of playing modestly, Salonen ended playing 30 games. Some of this was due to injury issues for Raanta, but some was also performance.

Salonen is a good size goalie at 6’3”. He is a quiet goalie in the net using his size to his advantage. He finished his season with a .887 save percentage in the regular season. He also started two of the four playoff games Lukko played losing both, but showed well with a .902 save percentage and a 2.11 goals against average. I’ll be quite interested to see if Salonen is given more of a role from the outset of this next season. Some of that will depend on his goaltending partner’s health, but Salonen’s 20 year-old season in the SM Liiga should also weigh in that decision.

Aidan Park

Most people know the story now of Park being drafted. He was at the draft to support his friend and found himself being drafted by the Oilers in the 7th round. It was a great scene and probably a surprise to the Oilers that he was in the house for the draft.

Park was a commit to the Michigan Wolverines coming out of the USHL. He played mostly 4th line right wing, but did occasionally see third line time and played a bit of center with the Wolverines. He finished his first season 8-8-16 in 40 games. Not a bad start to his collegiate career. However, not brilliant either.

Now this may seem like harsh commentary for a 4th line player who was drafted #223 overall. However, Park has talent. Some very legitimate offensive talent.

The Wolverine coaching staff had him on the second powerplay which should be all the endorsement needed.

The issue for me is Park’s fitness. I see a player who has solid skating skills, but is slower because of his fitness. I see a player who is big enough and good enough with his stick to win puck battles, but he loses them because of fitness. In fact, if all Aidan Park did this next four months was get in the best shape of his life, I think his sophomore season at Michigan would be a breakout season.

That’s all for the first in this series of Oilers prospect reviews for the 25/26 season. Thank you for reading. The next edition will be out in seven days.

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All of that said, the fixes for the Oilers are not overwhelming. Indeed, all of the tools are in the tool bet for this team to turn it around quickly. How so, let’s go to the tape.

The Anaheim Counter-Attack

I wrote before the series and in every game since that the Anaheim Ducks were going to sell out for the counter-attack. It is why they give up goals against. They are willing to trade. Joel Quenville has run this type of system for decades back to Keith, Seabrook, Byfuglien, Toews and Kane. The Oilers just seem to forget that in every single game. Here are a couple of clips.

In the first one, watch McDavid. When the Oilers get this worked into a prime spot, McDavid slides down below the Anaheim players. Yet, Anaheim is selling out to block the shot. All he has to do is stay in the slot above the puck. He’s in the middle of the ice and in perfect position. Instead, he gets below and now the Ducks have essentially a 4v2 to start from the top of the circles.

On this next clip it is more a breakdown of positioning. The Oilers run a nice set play off a face-off win. However, watch Ekholm after he releases the puck. He sinks too low in case he needs to defend and actually makes himself unavailable because he slides behind the Anaheim defender. Bouchard then makes just an awful pass and the Ducks are off to the races.

Now the Oilers can solve this quite easily. The last clip referenced the solution. Run a solid 2-3 offensive attack. In the series against the Vegas Golden Knights, a team who feasts off the counter-attack, the Oilers did it to perfection. It allows the Oilers to have three players above the puck at all times for defending purposes. It also still creates offence in very good ways.

I read somewhere the Oilers need to clean-up their defensive zone. Personally, I did not see that as the issue last night for the most part. I saw the Oilers fail to neutralize a Ducks counter-attack that can be lethal if left unchecked. It was left unchecked last night.

The Ducks OZ Forecheck

One of the more notable differences in the Ducks tactics this series is how willing they are to dump and chase and how aggressive they are on the forecheck after. If there was one part to this series I did not expect, it was this type of play. The Ducks genuinely love to carry the puck into the zone. However, in this series, they have been content to settle for a dump in with a high pressure forecheck. Anaheim’s first goal came off this type of work. Watch this play. First of all, Darnell Nurse could absolutely help a teammate out by taking two strides across the ice to slow the forechecker down. He didn’t. Still look at the pursuit of Anaheim on this play. It leads to possession and ultimately Anaheim’s first goal.

The Oilers can counter this and did so last night at times. The puck has to get moving quick like Ingram did here. More importantly, the key element is to get back quickly with a low forward in the middle of the ice and one on the wall to support.

If I had to guess the Ducks have made a bet that Ingram cannot handle the puck well enough and the Oilers defence don’t have enough savvy passers to beat their forecheck at times. The first period last night was a pretty good example of that. In one sequence, I had Evan Bouchard fail to exit the zone twice and Mattias Ekholm once.

Overall, what happened last night is imminently fixable. However, it requires a far more committed effort from the entire group of skaters.

Goaltending

I got eviscerated by some last night for saying I very much disliked Connor Ingram’s rebound control. I did and I stand by it. Did it cost them the game? I never said that although some people thought I did or just chose to make it the issue. That said this is the second game in a row where the Oilers goaltending gave up two more goals then expected.

Do I think a change will yield better results? I do not. Do I think it might happen? I certainly do not know. The Oilers could help their goalie more, but the goalie could also help his teammates.

Lacombe-Trouba

This tandem has been spectacular. They have destroyed the McDavid line at 5v5 in this series. 4-1 in goals for and an expected goals for of 61.95%. The line that has given them trouble is unsurprising: Draisaitl-Podkolzin-Kapanen. The Oilers should be chasing this match-up and avoiding the other one as much as they can. If Jason Dickinson comes back, I would put 29-97 together on the road and try and erode this pairing’s success to date. Without a doubt Lacombe has been the star of this series.

That’s it for the game three review. Let’s see what game four brings. The ability to shift the narrative is fully within the Oilers control. See you back here Monday.

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The special teams should give the Oilers a modest advantage. Both penalty kills are below average although the Oilers have improved since the Olympic break. In addition, the Ducks powerplay, despite the young talent, was ranked 23rd this season.

The Ducks clearly took offence to this comment (or didn’t read it) and went out and scored two powerplay goals, added a short-handed goal and killed off all four Oiler powerplays in game 2. This and one other element were the keys to the Ducks tidy 6-4 win over the Oilers last night. How did this all shake out? Let’s go to the tape.

Goaltending

I’m sorry to say this, but when the goalie of record lets in two more goals than expected and your team loses by two with an empty net goal, the goalie is a part of the problem.

Neither of these goals can go in on Ingram. These are simply to far out and without much dynamic movement required to make the save. If you take both of these goals away, the Oilers are ahead in this game and have a chance to go up 2-0 in the series.

I honestly doubt that Tristan Jarry would be considered by the Oilers coaching staff, but if they are not at least entertaining it today, I would be disappointed.

The Penalty Kill

Part of the issue with the penalty kill was Ingram as seen above. The other part is the only critique I have of the Oiler coaching staff at the moment. I don’t understand the thought process of rolling Zac Hyman out on the penalty kill last night. I understand that two critical forwards were not dressed and Matt Savoie was in the penalty box. However, that should not have meant defaulting to Zac Hyman on the penalty kill. On the Ducks’ third goal, watch Hyman’s positioning off the puck. His mark is in slot and his responsibility is the slot. I also don’t like the Ekholm decision here, but I can defend that one a bit more. The puck is coming towards him. He should try and make the play. However, Hyman has to back off low. Instead, he goes for, I presume, a counter-attack play that leaves Evan Bouchard defending a 3v1.

Obviously, the Oilers will benefit if Jason Dickinson comes back. If he does not, the Oilers need to settle on some forwards who think defence first on the penalty kill because they will score goals against Anaheim.

Is There Any Good News?

Yes! Look goaltending and injuries could play a major role here, but I still don’t see this series different than in the preview. The Oilers scored four goals at 5v5 last night. The Oilers have outscored the Ducks 8-4 in this series at 5v5. The team has consistently performed well in the offensive zone. Take a look at these goals last night.

The first is a great entry followed by a strong forecheck. This leads to a great turnover play followed by a sublime pass by Leon Draisaitl. Lots of net front traffic. Quick shot. Goal.

The second one comes off a great neutral zone play by the Oilers. The Oilers again get in quick and on the attack. When the puck goes up top, the Oilers converge on the net for deflections or rebounds.

The Oilers are the superior team at 5v5 in this series to date. There is no question, they could avoid some east-west passing and work more on a forecheck game. It would help their cause to make Lacombe and Trouba face the glass a few more times a game for sure. That said, the Oilers have been very good at 5v5. Could that go sideways? Of course. However, to suggest that anything meaningful has changed in terms of this series based on a 1-1 tie is not something I can endorse.

New Third Line

I wonder a lot about whether the Oilers might look at Samanski-Roslovic-Savoie as a line going forward. I think the Oilers are going to load up in Anaheim in the top six. If only to get McDavid some confidence. If they do, I wonder if this line gets some run. Samanski is defence almost to a fault. Savoie is a very strong forechecker. Roslovic has elite skill and has played with some edge to date in this series. The group scored a very pretty goal.

That’s it for the game two review. See you back here on Saturday morning after game three. Have a great day.

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The Neutral Zone Battle

As we noted in the preview, one of the keys to the series was who could control the neutral zone better. The Ducks were going to try and slow the Oilers down by playing a very conservative 1-2-2 or almost a 1-4 trap. For the Oilers, the forwards in particular needed to be wary of the Ducks enthusiasm to attack quickly from neutral zone transition plays by ensuring they backtracked on players. All of it played out just discussed.

The Anaheim 1-2-2 Gets Bite

The Oilers were able to counter the Ducks conservative neutral zone by passing through it and skating through it most of the night. While Mattias Ekholm deserved the praise he received for his game, I thought Jake Walman was spectacular tonight for his efforts in this area specifically. Watch this first goal.

The Ducks set-up in the 1-4 and the idea was to eliminate any ability to pass to a man in motion with full control. Jake Walman beats that with one of the best passes you will ever see of this distance.

Kudos to Jason Dickinson picking up the pass, but that entire play was made by a sixty foot dart of a pass from Jake Walman.

The Oilers third goal was also was generated by beating the Ducks neutral zone. Obviously, it was bad fortune for the Ducks defender in falling down, but this play was going to be dangerous regardless. It again starts with a play by Jake Walman. One of the ways to beat this trap style neutral zone is to get moving before it sets up. Watch Walman do this by quickly starting up ice and beating the Ducks F1 with a great fake. Ekholm activates off the weakside and once he receives the puck, the Oilers essentially have a 4v2 play going.

It was fortuitous that the Ducks defender feel, but Jake Walman had already created a very dangerous play by beating the neutral zone structure of the Ducks with his skates and his stick.

Not to be outdone, the Ducks showed their neutral zone prowess on their first goal. We talked a lot about how the Ducks defenders were going to be aggressive at holding the bluelines. We also noted how they are going to join the attack from anywhere on the ice. Watch Jackson Lacombe, who had an excellent game. on Anaheim’s first goal. He steps up and takes the puck into the middle of the Oilers defensive zone with some slick puck skills. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins forgets to backtrack hard down through his zone. Eventually, it is his player who finishes off the play.

This will be a key all series long. Can the Oilers stop the Ducks defenders from counter-attacks and what do the Oiler forwards do to assist in this goal.

We have one final goal from the neutral zone. This came off a tendency of the Ducks defence that we discussed in the preview. The group is very, very aggressive. While this can work out, it can also cause issues. Watch the play here with Pavel Mintyukov. I love his assertiveness on this play, but he either needed some better support from Leo Carlsson or he needed to back off. His first contact with the Podkolzin was strong. However, the second contact was very aggressive given the support he had. It is tough to blame him because it happened quickly. Leo Carlsson definitely needed to be more urgent in getting back when Draisaitl got below him in the neutral zone. Once Mintyukov is beat, the play is a very short 2v1 for the Oilers.

Four of the six 5v5 goals came off neutral zone plays from either team. Game one played out just like the preview suggested. This zone was going to be an area of focus and game one held true to form in that case.

Long Live The Cycle

For all of that, the Oilers cycle is what ended the game for them. I mentioned in the preview the Oilers might be tempted to trade rush chances given the neutral zone play of Anaheim, but also mentioned I thought the Ducks defensive zone could be exposed by cycling the puck. The game winner was an example of just that prospect.

The clip starts with a tremendous play by Leon Draisaitl on the carry. He gets nice and low in his zone and catches a pass in stride. He beats the Ducks back up the ice and into the zone with a strong move at the blueline. When the Ducks get set-up in the box plus one, watch what happens to Jacob Trouba when the puck moves low. He is slow getting back to his spot. With Kapanen already inside of his position, he is in trouble. Podkolzin sees the opportunity and makes a great pass out front. Game winner.

While the Oilers had the better share of the neutral zone play, I still expect more of their success to come more from the cycle play in zone as the series grinds on. They are a big team with very good pucks skills. The group needs to try and pressure the Anaheim defensive structure as they did on this goal.

Game Notes

Tough break for Adam Henrique on the injury. He will be missed on the penalty kill with his partner Matt Savoie. Indeed, Savoie did not see the ice on the penalty kill with Henrique down.

The Ducks did a nice job of getting Lacombe and Trouba out against McDavid. However, they did not seem to have any concern in also playing Mintyukov and John Carlson against him. The Ducks had a very good night against McDavid overall I thought.

Connor Ingram won the battle of the goalies in game one. He made some very key saves when the Oilers needed it and provided a steadying presence on the night.

There was a lot of hand wringing about the second period for the Oilers. While I agree somewhat, I didn’t think it was that bad. The long change is a battle for every team and it was for the Oilers last night. The spacing for the group wasn’t great in the second period, but they didn’t change anything to their game from the first and third periods. Perhaps more focus on having the center low to support exits, but that is a modest quibble.

The game was also much tighter overall than I thought it would be. I had the high danger attempts at 9-6 for the Oilers at 5v5. Once again, anything below 10 high danger attempts against at 5v5 is very good defending.

That’s it for the game one review. Thank you for reading. See you back here on Thursday.

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It is important to note that most of my focus is on 5v5 play in each zone. For those less familiar, 5v5 is the most common state of play in hockey. So these zonal breakdowns at 5v5 are very important since they have a strong influence on the course of a game.

Before diving into the concepts, I want to define a few terms that will be used a lot in these articles.

Strong side - the side of the ice that the puck is located on;

Weak side - the side of the ice that the puck is not located on;

F1 - forward who is nearest to the puck or has it;

F2 - forward who is on the strong side of the ice supporting F1;

F3 - forward who is on the weak side of the ice supporting F1;

D1 - defenceman who is on the strong side of the ice;

D2 - defenceman who is on the weak side of the ice.

With all of the preliminaries out of the way, let’s analyze the Anaheim Ducks tactical set-up and how it can be attacked.

Anaheim Offensive Zone Forecheck 1-2-2

Let’s deal with the easy part first. The Anaheim forecheck is a very common 1-2-2 with F3 sitting narrower than most versions. The idea behind the narrow F3 is to allow him to protect the middle of the ice and force hard rims. Here is a very common example of what the Ducks do when they forecheck. F1 forces the puck to the F3 side. Notice the position of the F3 is in the middle of the ice more than splitting out to the boards. The D1 comes down hard to intercept the rim. He can do that because F3 supports him by taking his spot on the blueline to help against any breakout.

This system is very conventional. Just one note. The Anaheim Ducks very much prefer not to try and gain possession off the dump-in forecheck. This team loves to enter the zone with the puck in control. Much like this clip here.

This will be one of the keys to the series for the Oilers. Denying controlled entries by the Ducks with scoring opportunities. This will require a substantive effort by the Oiler forwards to backtrack through the middle of the ice. Watch this clip where Nugent-Hopkins gets into a nice F3 position in the offensive zone. This allows him to backtrack hard on the Ducks attack. Once Ekholm is confident Nugent-Hopkins has the middle, he flares out to take the outside player. This creates a loose puck that exits the zone.

This will be one of the critical pieces to the series. How well does Edmonton maintain a strong F3 in the offensive zone to allow for recovery on transition plays.

Anaheim Offensive Zone Attack

Once Anaheim is in the zone with control, they emphasize a strong 2-3 offensive attack. The idea is to have one forward nice and high in the zone who is free to attack downhill because he will likely be unmarked. Watch this clip and notice how often an Anaheim forward moves up to the top of the zone.

The Oilers will try and counter by playing their own version of the box plus one. The idea is keep a player in the middle of the zone to clog up any chances by the high forward to attack down the middle.

The other main advantage to this 2-3 offensive system is the high forward in the zone can transition to defence on counter-attacks by the opponent on a change in puck control. This will likely be an emphasis for the Ducks to slow down the high octane offence of the Oilers on the rush.

Anaheim NZ Forecheck 1-2-2 or 1-4

Where the game begins in this series though is likely in the neutral zone. The Anaheim neutral zone forecheck is where most of this team’s excitement occurs. Both good and bad. The overall concept is a 1-2-2 that morphs more to a 1-4. The change being that F2 and F3 are very conservative usually positioned on the center ice line or even below it. The defenders take up spots trying to hold to the blueline. The idea here is to stop the puck in the neutral zone and immediately transition to offence.

The base expectation for Anaheim is a result like the above where the puck is transitioned to them. What the Ducks really want to occur is a play like this one.

The puck gets turned over quickly just inside the blueline and the Ducks instantly head on the attack. Notice in particular the weakside defender joining the attack to create net front chaos. The result is a goal off the transition.

The Ducks are going to do this from every position including when they allow the entry off a neutral zone play. Watch Anaheim #7 here when there is a loose puck. Immediately he heads up the ice and gets into a mid-lane attack position. This helps create a nice passing seam for the outside attacker.

This is a staple of the Ducks play. They count on forward support defensively so they can take chances on potential transition plays.

This conservative 1-2-2 (1-4) neutral zone tactic though will lead to significant controlled entries against with chances to score. Here is an example against the Oilers with Leon Draisaitl. The Ducks forwards are so far back it allows the attacker to build speed. Those with skill can enter relatively easily.

Here is another example against a high skilled team and watch what happens.

The Ducks are willing to trade this in hopes of turning the puck over more at their blueline than allowing full control entries that lead to scoring chances.

The other element to this Anaheim neutral zone tactic is the Ducks defenders are very aggressive in almost all situations. As such, it can create bad situations for them. Here are a couple of examples.

In the first, the Anaheim D1 has no business staying this high knowing what is coming towards him. He does and when he is beat, it creates a very short 2v1 attack for the Oilers.

Watch this second clip in particular. Here the Anaheim forward botches the 1-2-2. Everyone else is headed back for a set-up and he chooses to head up ice. The decision creates a complete breakdown and allows the Oilers to create a quick attack. In this case, you would expect the Ducks’ defenders to back off. They do not. The result is a goal against.

The neutral zone is where a lot of my focus will be in this series because it really has the potential to shift game results depending on which team is handling it better.

Anaheim Defensive Zone - Box Plus One

The choice of defensive structure for Anaheim is not really surprising given their focus on controlled breakouts. They run a system that keeps the center down low to support their defence. The basic concept is four players form a zone in a box shape with one player pressuring the puck carrier. The shape of this defensive zone will shift from side to side and up and down depending on puck position. The overarching goal is to force attacks from the outside and protect the middle of the ice.

The only change from this is when the puck goes to the wall and there are multiple opponents there. Then the strong side players will move to the wall as well. Here is a fairly classic example of the box plus one.

One of the key ways to breaking this structure down is to just beat players to spots when the puck moves. Here is a classic example of how to do this with Ryan Nugent-Hopkins. #93 makes a great little pass to McDavid and immediately steps inside to the open space. Then watch the read by Evan Bouchard to step down while his check has his back turned to him. The result is a very pretty goal.

Here is another way to beat it off a side switch. Instead of staying on the strong side, Evan Bouchard moves the puck to the weakside which forces the box to move. Now watch Zach Hyman simply beat his man to the net front with his stick in a great position for a deflection.

The Ducks are not consistent defenders in their box plus one. I would expect as much as the Oilers might like to attack off the rush, the team may have more success off in-zone cycle work moving players off switches and also changing sides with the puck.

Series News and Notes

In terms of match-ups, I assume the Ducks will run Jackson Lacombe and Jacob Trouba against the McDavid. Whether the Oilers will entertain that match-up is uncertain. The current line of McDavid-Savoie-Hyman has not played much against the Ducks this season. Therefore, using data from this year against Anaheim should be done with caution.

The special teams should give the Oilers a modest advantage. Both penalty kills are below average although the Oilers have improved since the Olympic break. In addition, the Ducks powerplay, despite the young talent, was ranked 23rd this season.

In terms of goaltending, I think it is a saw off. Ingram has been slightly better than Dotsal since the Olympic break, but he also faces far fewer high danger chances against. That said, a failure by either starting goaltender in this series will have serious repercussions given the back-ups for each team.

Thanks for reading the Oilers- Ducks tactical preview. If you think someone would enjoy, please share the post. Your feedback is always welcome below. Enjoy the series.

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William Nicholl

Nicholl had an explosive start to his tryout with Bakersfield. He scored in first game and on his first shift. In true Nicholl fashion, it involved his speed. Watch this clip and look how explosive Nicholl is in transition. He actually is so fast, he needs to slow down at the opposition blueline. Seth Griffith makes a great pass and Nicholl sends the puck home for his first professional/amateur goal.

Take another look at the last part of the clip again. Notice Nicholl’s technical setup to receiving passes. Nicholl is a very easy player to pass to for a teammate. He keeps his eyes on the puck carrier and he presents both his body and stick very well as a target. Here is another example of both his passing set-up and his pace.

See how Nicholl’s eyes track the puck carrier and he always makes stick available for the pass. He does it three times in one shift. The final part where he beats everyone back up the ice to recover the puck is pure William Nicholl.

The final clip for Nicholl is an example of how dangerous his transition speed is for the opposition. He starts by overshooting the forecheck on a dump-in, which will not happen as he gains experience. However, he immediately stops and is back up the ice into a great defensive spot in the middle of the ice. He gathers up the puck and immediately heads back on the attack. He is so quick that the defender cannot gap up on him and is forced to take a penalty.

William Nicholl’s first week as a professional was very strong. As his teammates, especially defencemen, get used to his pace, expect him to get more pucks in open ice and on the attack. Once this develops, Nicholl’s next step is to improve his offensive decision-making.

Roby Jarventie

The big Finn has really had a tremendous return to the AHL. He has nine points in the seven games since returning with 13 shots on net. He has been the dominant Condor forward in most of these games. Perhaps the taste of NHL games has inspired him to find a new level. Whatever the reason, he has been dynamite.

Take a look at some of this clips. The first is a tremendous no look pass that leads to an Alec Regula goal. Jarventie’s reach combined with his pace allow him to create seams that smaller players cannot do as easily.

Then there was his goal scoring. This week he showed great hands both net front and on a breakaway.

This last clip isn’t overly brilliant, but I am showing it for one reason. Jarventie is finally getting all the high leverage minutes including first powerplay and empty net situations. This was not the case until essentially his return to the AHL. Consequently, Jarventie’s scoring impact has been more at even strength.

With Jarventie moving to the top line and being given all the high leverage minutes he can handle, I expect his scoring output to continue to climb.

Tommy Lafreniere

Lafreniere did not have as spectacular a debut as William Nicholl. However, he also just turned 19 years old. Lafreniere played mostly a fourth line right wing role in his three games. While he was less impactful, he still showed his lethal shot can be beat professional goalies. Watch this goal and pay attention to the distance from where the puck is released and the readiness of the goalie. Lafreniere just flat out beats him with a great wrist shot.

Lafreniere looked more comfortable the more games he played. How much more ice he sees will be interesting, but his skating and shooting were not out of place in the AHL.

News and Notes

David Lewandowski’s season came to end last night. Saskatoon was swept by a very strong Prince Albert team 4-0. Lewandoski finished tied for the team lead with nine points in 11 games in the playoffs.

Maxim Beryozkin and his Lokomotiv teammates have moved on to the third round of KHL playoffs after sweeping Salavat. Beryozkin continues to put up modest scoring totals with four points in nine playoff games. His overall game has been good, but the scoring remains below prior year levels.

That’s it for this edition of the Edmonton Oilers Prospect Report. Thanks for reading and see you back here next Thursday.

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David Lewandowski

Lewandowski had a great first round series against the Oil Kings. His totals of 3-8-8 in seven games has him tied for fourth in WHL playoff scoring. Lewandowski still doesn’t shoot enough for my liking. He only averages just over two shots per game. Why is this a key for Lewandowski? Take a look at this clip.

Not quite the Leon Draisaitl spot, but Lewandowski has a very similar release. Lewandowsi has a tremendous shot and it will beat professional goalies from distance. Watch this clip and his footwork to get into a seam and notice how quick the puck gets moving towards the net.

That shot will create some chaos for defending teams at the next level. His shot came without any hesitation and it was hard and accurate. This is why I believe Lewandowski needs to shoot more.

Now Lewandowski didn’t completely forget his physical play. This is the other exciting element about Lewandowski. He has a very natural build to be a power forward. It is easy to see him 30 pounds heavier as professional. Imagine him doing this type of work with a more powerful frame.

Lewandowski and his Blades’ teammates start their second round series against Prince Albert on Friday evening. As the games get tighter, I will be looking for Lewandowski to use his physical play to create more chances for himself and his linemates. That said, I would like to see him more selfish with his offensive play.

Maxim Beryozkin

Edmonton Oiler fans got a surprise tidbit when reports surfaced that Maxim Beryozkin may sign a one year deal with Edmonton. Now the report was not confirmed by anyone associated with the team other than to note that there was a social media report. Nevertheless, Beryozkin is an interesting prospect. Now 24, Beryozkin had steadily improved his craft until this season. This regression came as Lokomotiv hired Bob Hartley as their coach. While I don’t have any evidence, I did see Bob Hartley’s impact on specific players when he was in the NHL. Perhaps that is the answer for his poor offensive performance this year, but there is no certainty here.

That doesn’t mean I would not sign Beryozkin. I think he has a decent shot to make it in the NHL. For starters, he is 6’4” and 220 pounds and plays a robust game. This would help him on the smaller ice surface in the NHL where he will see more contact.

He is also a decent skater for a man of his size. He’s not a plus skater because he needs space to get going. Once he does though, he shows good ability to hold off attackers.

His skating is not pretty, but he also is not David Tomasek slow. Beryozkin will be able to create some space for himself with skating.

Here is an example of where he uses his size and skating to create an opportunity for his linemate.

Where it gets really interesting is Beryozkin’s puck skills on the attack. Watch this clip that leads to a goal.

My favorite part other than the close quarters puck skill is how every player on the ice is smaller than him by a margin.

Whether Beryozkin signs is not a certainty from what I understand. If he does though, he will create a very interesting scenario for the Oiler coaching staff. Beryozkin is a big body winger who plays both sides. The fact he has brought offence previously is what makes him very intriguing.

News and Notes

The Bakersfield Condors qualified for the AHL playoffs last night. Quinn Hutson scored his 30th goal of the season and has ten points in his last ten games. Roby Jarventie has four points in his four games since his return from Edmonton. Isaac Howard has ten points in his last ten games. Each had a significant impact in getting the Condors to the playoffs. This team will be a very fun watch in the playoffs.

The Michigan Wolverines play their Frozen Four semi-final tonight against Denver University. Tonight is another chance for Aidan Park and Asher Barnett to continue their development.

That’s it for this edition of the Edmonton Oilers Prospect Report. Thank you for reading. If you think anyone would find this post of interest, please share. Have a great week everyone.

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D.O.B. - October 12, 2001

Draft: 5th round 2020 (EDM)

Shoots: Right

Position: LW/RW

Vitals: 6’4” 212 pounds

2024 Regular Season Statistics - Lokomotiv (KHL)

15-27-42 in 66 games or 0.64 points per game

Beryozkin is a great Oilers prospect. He’s also Russian. That makes his projection to the Oilers very circumspect. The reason I can be so certain is Beryozkin would have competed for a top nine spot on the Oilers this season. No question. Yet, he signed a new contract for one year back in the KHL.

Why is Beryozkin so enticing? He’s a massive right shot winger, who can play both wings. He’s a good, not great, skater with impressive puck skills. Moreover, he continues to improve each year in his point totals and play. At the age of 23, I find it hard to believe the Oilers did not try to sign him. Look at some of his skills and tell me what you think.

He moves so easily around the ice despite his massive size. His puck skills are very good and combined with his body type make him very difficult to check. He’s also a very good passer.

Here is another clip showing his skating ability. Again, he’s not a speedster, but he gets around the ice very well. He then shows those great puck skills with a sublime in-tight move.

This last clip is my favorite goal of Beryozkin this season. The reason is because it is very NHL like in terms of his play.

This goal is very translatable to the NHL. Without a doubt.

There is simply no question about Beryozkin’s athletic ability. He has all the skills to make the jump to the NHL. He went from less than 0.5 points per game in the prior season to 0.64 this past season. More importantly, he continues to show well in the playoffs. In the last two seasons, where he played a total of 41 playoff games, Beryozkin averaged 0.73 points per game. When the games get bigger, Beryozkin does not shrink from the pressure.

As mentioned, Beryozkin has signed another deal for one year with Lokomotiv. My read is that he is preparing to coming to the NHL in 2026. The hope is Beryozkin has another strong year in the KHL. If this happens, he will become a very strong candidate for the Oilers in 2026/27. Alternatively, he too could become an important trade asset for the Oilers this season.

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