Which Young Players Will Bowman Have On The Oilers' Roster For 2025-26

Stan Bowman & Kris Knoblauch, Edmonton Oilers

Edmonton Oilers' general manager Stan Bowman is not going to be afraid to make more of a mark on the team in his first offseason. He made some solid mid-season additions that helped the team get back to the Stanley Cup Final, but there is more to be done with contract expiring and an old team that arguably needs to get a bit younger. Bowman said that he's looking to bring in some youth to the team.

What could that look like? I think that should include internal and external options. Internally, the team has Matthew Savoie and Noah Philp who are ready for full time roles now. There is an unsigned Maksim Berezkin who has been playing in the NHL and is good enough to jump right into an NHL lineup. A couple of underrated options also include Quinn Hutson, Viljami Marjala, and Josh Samanski. I really like Savoie and Philp who have had a taste of NHL action and look good in the AHL.

Last offseason wasn't the best for the Oilers. Offer sheets were sent to both Dylan Holloway and Philip Broberg. Both accepted and the Oilers didn't match, losing two recent first round picks that both stepped their game up on the St. Louis Blues. Edmonton let both of them get past July 1 and signed players like Jeff Skinner and Viktor Arvidsson, taking up cap space. But the team did bring in Vasily Podkolzin who looks to be a long time fixture in the Oilers lineup as he's only 23 years old and a former high draft pick.

Outside of that, Bowman will definitely be looking at some trades, and not only for a goalie. He highlighted that the forwards and goaltending are going to see some changes. I mentioned Holloway, but Ryan McLeod was another young player that was traded and had a better season offensively. This was something he couldn't find on the Oilers.

Some options include JJ Peterka, Lukas Reichel, and even Nick Robertson, but the latter two would need to prove that they can grow and be what they were expected to be. Peterka would require the Oilers moving money out somehow since he requires a larger contract. A player like Jason Robertson doesn't seem like he is available anymore, but with Jonas Gustavsson's great season with the Minnesota Wild, Jesper Wallstedt could become a trade option. The Oilers traded down a couple of spots in 2021 to allow Minnesota to draft him while Edmonton ended up with Xavier Bourgault who hasn't played an NHL game and likely won't.

There are definitely options if Bowman looks hard enough and is thorough enough. I don't doubt that there will be more than a couple of larger Oilers moves this offseason and the team will be younger.