The players have all converged in Edmonton. Training camp has begun. With the roster of all camp attendees announced on Wednesday with the official opening, we got a glimpse into what the team might look like heading into the 2024–25 season.
Of note was the official injury announcement for winger Evander Kane, who will be undergoing surgery to fix multiple issues that plagued him throughout last season. Some people were a lot more invested in his medical procedure than others, however.
His absence does create a hole in the roster. One which a few other players will be trying to fill in the training camp competition.
Leading us to begin exploring the main position battles at Edmonton Oilers training camp.
Who will play right-side on the second defence pairing for the Oilers?
Perhaps the biggest question mark hovering over the Oilers’ roster is the opening on the right side of the second defence pairing. After Cody Ceci was traded this offseason, there is a hole in that spot. And it is a concerning one, being in such a crucial place in the lineup. Edmonton’s defensive depth on the right side falls off dramatically after Evan Bouchard.
Who has the potential to fill this spot? Well, we will start with the player acquired for Ceci.
Ty Emberson
Ty Emberson is a relatively inexperienced but promising shutdown defender who had a decently impressive NHL debut last season on a very bad San Jose Sharks team.
This gives us hope that he will only get better with his experience and also with being on a much better team.
His playstyle seems to fit what is needed in this role alongside Darnell Nurse. Emberson is a defence-first, shutdown style defender that can take care of that side of things so that Nurse doesn’t have to do everything.
Emberson appears to have first dibs on this spot as he opened training camp playing alongside Nurse.
Troy Stecher
Last season’s trade deadline acquisition did not get to play much with the Oilers before being shut down due to injury, but he was serviceable in his short time. As a result, the Oilers re-signed him for the upcoming season.
Troy Stecher has been an excellent depth defender for a variety of organizations over the past few years. But he has never really solidified a consistent spot within a lineup or with any one team. The holes in the Oilers defence this season could give him that shot.
Although Stecher played some big minutes in his first few seasons with the Vancouver Canucks between 2016–17 and 2018–19, averaging around 19 minutes per game, he has not been able to match that very often since as the only other season he hit 18 minutes per game was the most recent one.
So, it may be a bit of a reach for Stecher to be able to take this second pairing role on given his recent career trajectory. But his playstyle and skillset could match well with Nurse.
Josh Brown
Another possible option on the second pair will be Josh Brown, who was signed as a free agent earlier this offseason.
Brown is a punishing, physical defender who focuses most of his efforts on that side of the game. He has very little offensive upside, but he will beat down the opposition.
Unfortunately, Brown’s underlying numbers indicate he does not have the ceiling or skillset to take on this role and may be best suited to the seventh defender role, if not the AHL.
Who will be the third pairing right defender for the Oilers?
Most likely, this spot in the lineup will be taken by the runner-up to the second pairing role. It seems to be that Stecher and Brown will be the two main candidates for it. They could end up splitting the role based on opponent and matchup, with Brown drawing in against bigger opponents or more physical games.
However, a couple of others might, with a strong performance, get a chance here.
Connor Carrick
Veteran Connor Carrick was signed in the offseason to a two-way deal. His most likely destination is Bakersfield. But, he has plenty of experience at the NHL level and has been a reliable option for teams in the past. If he does well in training camp, he could easily surplant Brown in the depth chart.
Max Wanner
There is always room for a prospect in this discussion. Max Wanner is likely the closest defensive prospect the Oilers have to seeing NHL time. He placed seventh in The Oil Rig’s prospect rankings earlier this offseason after a strong rookie season with the Condors last year.
A key factor for his rise within the depth chart is the departure of Philip Broberg. He was a huge part of the Condors’ defence in the latter half of last season. So with him moving on, there is plenty of space for Wanner to establish himself in a bigger role.
He is a 6’3″ RHD who has established himself as a solid defensively minded defender with a huge wingspan. He has shown amazing growth in some areas, like skating, which has allowed him to add a new dynamic to his transition game where he can activate and carry the puck himself.
His growth and development leave him a dark horse candidate to make the Oilers roster at some point this season, if not on opening night.
Who will be fourth line centre for the Oilers?
The next position battle will be for the fourth line centre role. Incumbent Derek Ryan is still with the team and the de facto holder of this spot, but as he ages and slows down there may need to be a changing of the guard through the season.
Derek Ryan
Ryan is a prototypical fourth line centre at this point. Reliable, defensively sound, strong on faceoffs, but a low offensive ceiling, a bit slow, and a bit small while lacking physicality for the role.
Nevertheless, his veteran presence and leadership on the ice and in the locker room make him an incredibly valuable contributor and someone who does still deserve to be out there.
Ryan spent lots of time on the wing last season but with more wingers fighting for NHL spots in 2024–25, he may get pushed back to centre on a more regular basis.
James Hamblin
The next option battling for this fourth line centre role is James Hamblin. The 25-year-old has played some NHL games in each of the last two seasons with limited ice time and has looked solid in this opportunities.
His playstyle focusing on speed and energy would serve him well in this role, and he has sneaky good offensive instincts and a strong wrist shot as well.
Hamblin’s defensive instincts will serve him well in this role. He is smart positionally, not afraid to block shots, and can find ways to exit the defensive zone to create offence.
These traits would serve him well developing into this role, especially as there may be a penalty kill spot open for the season with Ryan McLeod‘s departure.
Hamblin has yet to play much in the games he has appeared in, averaging 8:09 in time on ice per game thus far in his career, however.
Noah Philp
Noah Philp is perhaps an outsider in the battle for this spot, but he could very well see some time in it this season. Sooner, rather than later.
Philp is an interesting case as he retired from hockey for the entire 2023–24 season for personal reasons, but in March had announced his intent to return. The Oilers had qualified him the previous offseason to retain his rights and signed him back when he returned.
He may not be in competition for the fourth line centre spot on opening night due to the break from hockey. Philp will likely need a little bit of game time to get his feet back under him. However, he has worked his way up the Oilers’ depth chart quite quickly be on track to make the team and see some time with the NHL squad.
As a right-handed centre, he may have a small advantage as him and Ryan would be the only two on the roster.
Philp also has size and physicality in his game that may be seen as more desirable in this role over the smaller frames of Ryan and Hamblin. Additionally, his defensive play and positioning are solid enough to hold their own, especially if he has a responsible veteran on his wing to train him.
Who will play wing in the bottom-six for the Oilers?
The departure of Dylan Holloway and injury to Kane leaves a lot of uncertainty in the Oilers’ wing spots. Particularly in the bottom six. It appears as though Mattias Janmark and Vasily Podkolzin are the projected winners of these two winger spots, but they aren’t the only ones competing here.
Mattias Janmark
Janmark had his best stretch as an Oiler throughout the recent playoff run, specifically alongside Connor Brown on the penalty kill. Along with Adam Henrique, the three of them spent a fair amount of time together as well. Though their 5v5 results weren’t quite ideal with negative possession metrics boosted by an on ice save percentage of 96 according to Natural Stat Trick.
Janmark on his own has a limited offensive ceiling but is an incredibly hard worker, forechecker, and defensively sound. A perfect fit for a bottom six role, but he may be better suited on the fourth line with first unit penalty kill duties.
Vasily Podkolzin
One of the Oilers’ offseason acquisitions immediately looked like a Holloway replacement. Podkolzin was also a forward prospect who hadn’t really broken out yet, the main difference being that he was on a downward trajectory while Holloway was getting better.
Podkolzin seemed to thrive best when in a situation in which he could score. He is a big, aggressive player who knows how to drive offence. The hope is that he can find some of his rookie season magic and become a contributor to the depth scoring in Edmonton.
If he doesn’t, he may continue spending plenty of time in the AHL.
Raphael Lavoie
Raphael Lavoie has been one of the Oilers’ top prospects for years, always just on the verge of finally getting his chance and breaking out. Unfortunately, he hasn’t really gotten his chance to even try and break out. He made his NHL debut last season in which he played seven scoreless games.
The tools are all there. He is a forward with size, sufficient skating, good offensive instincts, and a solid shot. Lavoie has been one of the better scorers on the Condors for the last couple of seasons.
With a more clear path to the NHL this season on a team that is looking for a scorer in the bottom six, Lavoie may be able to play his way into a third line role to give him the chance he is looking for.
Roby Jarventie
Another offseason acquisition for the Oilers is winger Roby Jarventie. His recent production trajectory has him on the upswing with 20 points in 22 AHL games last season. He may have a slight upper hand on Lavoie as Jarventie had one assist in his seven game NHL audition as well.
Unfortunately, Jarventie has struggled with injury and will miss most of training camp resting his knee. He had injured one knee last season, but it is the other knee that was bothering him this time as it overcompensated for the injured one.
This means he is unlikely to play for the Oilers for the beginning of the season, but his scoring talent should quickly get him noticed by the coaching staff as a potential call-up if a change is needed early on.
Who do you think will win these battles? Drop a comment down below!
Photo by Brett Holmes/Icon Sportswire
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