The Edmonton Oilers’ prospects saw plenty of action this past week. With a some strong individual performances across all leagues, we had to give this week’s spotlight to Matvey Petrov. Let’s dive right into it!
Welcome to the TOR Edmonton Oilers prospect update. Each week, we’ll take a dive into how the Oilers’ prospects have done in their respective leagues. We have defined a prospect as a skater who has played fewer than 65 NHL games, and is younger than 25 years of age. All data is from EliteProspects. We also use an NHLe calculator built by Christian Roatis (@Croatis) which is used to estimate a player’s equivalent point total in the NHL based on how they are performing in their respective league. The calculator uses the difficulty of the given league combined with the ease at which a player puts up points to determine the NHLe.
Matvey Petrov had such a productive season in the OHL last year that it seemed unlikely we would see much of an uptick in his final junior season. A player with poise and control with the puck, Petrov has a definite quality to his play. The question heading forward will be to what effect he is able to apply these skills in tougher leagues, a question he will not get a chance to answer this season.
The best one could hope for this season would be to see some added dimension to Petrov’s game, and to an extent that is what we have seen. Petrov has gone from a rush shooter, building his game out into a power play distributor as well. There have been some leaner weeks for Petrov of late, a trend thoroughly bucked with a strong showing this week.
Would you look at that, Petrov scores another from his office. An almost weekly feature on our weekly prospect articles, Petrov is adept at finding space in the slot like this.
With tons of space during a 5v3 power play, Petrov positions himself in an ideal shooting spot. Petrov has too much quality not to capitalise off these opportunities in junior, and it won’t be until he makes his professional debut that we’ll be able to see how stiffer competition will affect his game.
Another goal from Petrov’s big week, this time showing off his speed to pull away from defenders through the neutral zone.
Petrov again sneaks into the slot, roving the middle ice, making a break towards the net as defenders turn their backs.
While there is less dazzling skill displayed in this clip, Petrov shows us something important. Going to the net front is simple, a timelessly effective way for creating offence, yet it is the most contested ice. It is a good sign to see Petrov doing so effectively, even while in transition.
We’ve seen from the multiple rookies on the Bakersfield Condors that the jump from junior leagues to the AHL can be a big one, and that it might take some time for them to start asserting themselves as they did at lower levels. That will likely be the challenge that lies ahead for Petrov, but for now we are seeing everything we would want from the player.
This and That
AHL
The Condors went 2–1–0 on the week, with Calvin Pickard starting all three games in net, bringing the team to 14–20–3 on the season. Unlikely to make the playoffs, the Condors would do well to keep winning as much as they can this season.
With an influx of youth, showing signs of steps forward would be a fantastic omen from a developmental standpoint. Ending the season close to 0.500 would be a nice target for the club, though Oilers fans will likely be more concerned with individual point totals should their minds wander to thoughts of the AHL.
Tyler Tullio and Raphael Lavoie continued their incredible production on a line together, while Xavier Bourgault and Carter Savoie had a nice week as linemates. With the young forwards stepping up so prominently, the Confors should have it in them to remain competitive down the stretch.
Luke Esposito drives to the net hard, where Tullio cleans up the garbage for the eventual game winner. With six points in his last five games, Tullio is heating up ever since being put on a line with Lavoie, who has 12 points in his past 13 games.
This is quite encouraging from Lavoie. Not only has he put together a run of sustained production, but he’s been doing so by going to the tough areas. Dropping his shoulder and cutting to the net is hardly the fanciest move that Lavoie is capable of, but it is effective.
Though Markus Niemelainen is rarely our focus here, his slap shot beats the goalie clean. If anything, these clips give us close up to more of the Lavoie-Esposito-Tullio line dominating.
A high tip from Savoie, who shows a bit of dimension to his game. Usually his best work comes off of shooting or dangling with speed, so this work in traffic shows that Savoie is willing to do what it takes to score at the pro level.
Savoie goes to the front of the net as the Condors swarm. On a line with Bourgault and Brad Malone, it is nice to see the some of the prospects building chemistry together as they build off the first half of their rookie seasons.
An empty netter shows that Savoie is earning trust defensively as well, to an extent. Certainly his linemates Bourgault and Malone help in this regard, as notable defensive forwards in their own rights, as might Savoie’s being close to the hatty. Coming into the game with five goals on the year and leaving with eight is a tidy bit of work, and a big second half of the season would go a long way towards earning some NHL consideration sooner rather than later.
James Hamblin has cooled a bit offensively from his torrid start to the season, prior to his NHL call up. Unlikely to ever be a scoring option in the NHL, this dip in production should not be too concerning. Regardless, Hamblin does well to finish off some great passing with a slick backhand move.
WHL
Max Wanner is showing more and more offensive quality as his junior career has gone, continuing here by picking the top corner short side. We’ve seen Wanner more comfortable attacking deep into the zone, but he looks like a scoring winger more than a physical defenceman in this clip.
A rare OT penalty shot, Reid Schaefer shows us some smooth hands, a quick deke to his backhand for a deft top shelf finish. Schaefer is more than a big body, there are legitimate offensive skills.
Schaefer chases down the loose puck, before taking the shot on the two-on-one. As one of the WHL’s top goal scorers, including grading out even better at even strength, Schaefer gets a lot accomplished on the rush.
KHL
Backchecking, Maxim Beryozkin finds the loose puck his teammate creates. With a quick turn Beryozkin delivers a quality pass to a streaking teammate. Often Beryozkin has highlights as a puck carrier or an offensive zone distributor, but seeing more of this bodes well for his effectiveness across the ice as a transition passer.
NHLe Leaderboard
NHLe is a metric used to estimate a player’s offensive output at the NHL level from their point totals in their respective league. Here are the Oilers’ current top five (bracketed numbers denote movement from the previous week).
- Matvey Petrov 36.8 (1)
- Maxim Beryozkin 31.0 (2)
- Reid Schaefer 29.0 (3)
- Tyler Benson 25.5 (4)
- James Hamblin 25.1 (5)
Overall regular season totals for Oilers’ prospects
Forwards
| Player | Team | League | GP | G | A | TP | PPG | PIM | +/- | NHLeLeague | NHLe |
| Justin Bailey (RW/LW) | Bakersfield Condors | AHL | 23 | 5 | 7 | 12 | 0.52 | 24 | -6 | AHL | 20.7 |
| Tyler Benson (LW) | Bakersfield Condors | AHL | 11 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 0.64 | 6 | -5 | AHL | 25.5 |
| Maxim Beryozkin (LW/RW) | totals | 48 | 7 | 17 | 24 | 0.5 | 14 | 6 | totals | 30.3 | |
| Xavier Bourgault (C) | Bakersfield Condors | AHL | 37 | 9 | 10 | 19 | 0.51 | 8 | 0 | AHL | 20.3 |
| Skyler Brind’Amour (C) | Quinnipiac Univ. | NCAA | 24 | 10 | 10 | 20 | 0.83 | 4 | 10 | ||
| Maxim Denezhkin (C) | totals | 30 | 6 | 9 | 15 | 0.5 | 78 | 1 | totals | ||
| Seth Griffith (C/RW) | Bakersfield Condors | AHL | 37 | 10 | 21 | 31 | 0.84 | 18 | -9 | AHL | 33.5 |
| James Hamblin (LW/C) | Bakersfield Condors | AHL | 20 | 5 | 6 | 11 | 0.55 | 2 | -2 | AHL | 21.9 |
| Mattias Janmark (C/W) | Bakersfield Condors | AHL | 4 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 3 | AHL | 39.9 |
| Klim Kostin (LW/RW) | Bakersfield Condors | AHL | 9 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 0.44 | 15 | -4 | ECAC | 10.1 |
| Shane Lachance (LW) | Youngstown Phantoms | USHL | 33 | 23 | 7 | 30 | 0.91 | 31 | 5 | USHL | 20.1 |
| Raphaël Lavoie (C/RW) | Bakersfield Condors | AHL | 26 | 8 | 7 | 15 | 0.58 | 19 | -2 | Hockey East | 18.7 |
| Jeremias Lindewall (RW/LW) | Östersunds IK | HockeyAllsvenskan | 24 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 0.21 | 6 | -12 | Hockey East | 6.8 |
| Brad Malone (C/LW) | Bakersfield Condors | AHL | 24 | 2 | 11 | 13 | 0.54 | 22 | 0 | AHL | 21.5 |
| Tomas Mazura (C) | St. Lawrence Univ. | NCAA | 20 | 3 | 6 | 9 | 0.45 | 6 | 0 | ||
| Greg McKegg (C/W) | Bakersfield Condors | AHL | 36 | 1 | 6 | 7 | 0.19 | 42 | 2 | AHL | 7.6 |
| Joel Määttä (C) | Univ. of Vermont | NCAA | 24 | 5 | 4 | 9 | 0.38 | 18 | -4 | ||
| Matvei Petrov (RW/LW) | North Bay Battalion | OHL | 42 | 20 | 41 | 61 | 1.45 | 24 | 24 | OHL | 38.4 |
| Noah Philp (C) | Bakersfield Condors | AHL | 36 | 6 | 3 | 9 | 0.25 | 17 | 4 | AHL | 10.0 |
| Carter Savoie (LW) | Bakersfield Condors | AHL | 29 | 8 | 3 | 11 | 0.38 | 12 | -4 | AHL | 15.1 |
| Reid Schaefer (LW) | Seattle Thunderbirds | WHL | 29 | 19 | 14 | 33 | 1.14 | 46 | 14 | WHL | 28.2 |
| Devin Shore (C) | Bakersfield Condors | AHL | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -1 | AHL | 0.0 |
| Tyler Tullio (C/RW) | Bakersfield Condors | AHL | 32 | 7 | 7 | 14 | 0.44 | 10 | 0 |
Defencemen
| Player | Team | League | GP | G | A | TP | PPG | PIM | +/- | NHLeLeague | NHLe |
| Philip Broberg (D) | Bakersfield Condors | AHL | 7 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 0.57 | 0 | -2 | AHL | 22.7 |
| Jake Chiasson (C/RW) | totals | 44 | 10 | 23 | 33 | 0.75 | 20 | -22 | totals | ||
| Brandon Wheat Kings | WHL | 37 | 10 | 18 | 28 | 0.76 | 16 | -20 | |||
| Jason Demers (D) | Bakersfield Condors | AHL | 31 | 0 | 11 | 11 | 0.35 | 57 | -8 | AHL | 13.9 |
| Vincent Desharnais (D) | Bakersfield Condors | AHL | 13 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0.15 | 19 | 1 | AHL | 6.0 |
| Philip Kemp (D) | Bakersfield Condors | AHL | 37 | 5 | 6 | 11 | 0.3 | 22 | 3 | AHL | 12.0 |
| Michael Kesselring (D) | Bakersfield Condors | AHL | 34 | 10 | 4 | 14 | 0.41 | 30 | -3 | AHL | 16.3 |
| Slater Koekkoek (D) | Bakersfield Condors | AHL | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | AHL | |
| Luca Münzenberger (D) | Univ. of Vermont | NCAA | 20 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 0.25 | 20 | -6 | ||
| Markus Niemeläinen (D) | Bakersfield Condors | AHL | 12 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 0.33 | 8 | 4 | AHL | 13.2 |
| Maximus Wanner (D) | Moose Jaw Warriors | WHL | 47 | 8 | 21 | 29 | 0.74 | 41 | 22 | WHL | 18.3 |
| Nikita Yevseyev (D) | Ak Bars Kazan | KHL | 45 | 5 | 2 | 7 | 0.16 | 11 | 8 | KHL | 10.5 |
Goalies
| Player | Team | League | GP | GAA | SV% |
| Calvin Pickard | Bakersfield Condors | AHL | 13 | 2.92 | 0.909 |
| Olivier Rodrigue | Bakersfield Condors | AHL | 19 | 3.03 | 0.909 |
| Samuel Jonsson | Rögle BK J20 | J20 Nationell | 21 | 2.49 | 0.903 |
| Ryan Fanti | Bakersfield Condors | AHL | 8 | 3.71 | 0.884 |
| Fort Wayne Komets | ECHL | 9 | 3.55 | 0.890 |
