Seven days ago, Dylan Holloway and Philip Broberg signed offer sheets with the St. Louis Blues. As both players were restricted free agents, these contracts were subject to a first right of refusal by their original club, the Edmonton Oilers. The Oilers had seven days to decide whether they would match or refuse the offer sheets as presented, and their decision was due today at 9:30 AM eastern time.
Speculation was rampant the past week as to what direction the Oilers would choose. The club made two trades during this time as well, acquiring Vasily Podkolzin from the Vancouver Canucks and trading Cody Ceci and a pick to the San Jose Sharks for Ty Emberson.
In light of these moves, the Oilers have announced that they have chosen to not match the offer sheets for both Holloway and Broberg.
Outlook on the Oilers post offer sheet drama
Losing Holloway and Broberg definitely impacts the Oilers’ organizational depth at both positions. However, adding Podkolzin and Emberson this week helped address that risk, which was a big success for the Oilers.
The biggest win for the Oilers in not matching the offer sheets is on the financial level. If either had been matched, the team’s salary cap outlook would have been much bleaker than it is now. The Oilers are now in a much better place.
There have been conflicting reports about Evander Kane’s status and whether he will be on LTIR to start the year or not, but the bottom line with Kane is that he wouldn’t be out for the full year and would create a major salary cap problem if the Oilers were relying on his LTIR relief and he came back midway through the season. Now, that’s not an issue.
The Oilers can safely ice a full roster even if Kane is not on LTIR at all. This opens up a world of flexibility for the team, and they can now work to fill their depth elsewhere.
As well, the Oilers have added two draft picks next season, second and a third rounders, which puts them in a much better draft spot than before when they had only a sixth and seventh rounder in 2025.
The right decision
This was the right decision.
Both offer sheets pay the two players much more than they are worth, and with others on the team being asked to take less to help the Oilers win a Stanley Cup, this drama had the potential to be a distraction in the locker room all season long.
The Oilers didn’t succumb to the players’ power play, made the right salary cap and asset based decision, and should be better off for it.
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