The Edmonton Oilers have been one of the most talked about teams to start the 2023-24 season after their unexpectedly horrendous start had them near the bottom of the Pacific Division. They’ve been fighting to keep themselves afloat considering their Stanley Cup hopes coming into the new season. Another storyline following the Oilers in recent days has been the fact they won’t have a single one of their prospects representing them at the 2024 World Junior Hockey Championship (WJC). It is the first time in over a decade the Oilers don’t have a single player on any country’s roster at the WJC.
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The Oilers do have some eligible prospects who can play at the 2024 WJC, but all of them have been dealing with injuries or simply weren’t selected by their respective countries. Former Oilers prospect Reid Schaefer represented his home country of Canada at last year’s tournament but he was not only traded to the Nashville Predators last season, but he also aged out from being eligible to play in the tournament as he turned 20 in September.
With nobody from their prospect pool going to the WJC this season, their focus will be on draft-eligible players who may stand out to them as steals in the later rounds. As contenders, it’s fairly likely the Oilers end up moving their first-round draft pick in 2024, so they’ll try to find some players who are flying under the radar and won’t have all the eyes on them like Macklin Celebrini will, who is the projected first overall selection at the 2024 NHL Entry Draft.
Akey’s Injury Keeps Him Out Of WJC
Perhaps the Oilers’ top prospect, defenceman Beau Akey played extremely well during the team’s preseason, unfortunately, he went down with an injury that will keep him out for the entire season after an electrifying start to his 2023-24 campaign with the Barrie Colts of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL). In his 14 games this season, he scored four goals and added five assists for nine points.
Akey’s red-hot start had him considered as a lock for Team Canada and would likely have represented the Oilers at the 2024 WJC, but unfortunately, he’ll have to wait until next season to have a chance at doing that. As an 18-year-old, he still has one more year of eligibility before he ages out. As a prospect who will likely help improve the Oilers’ defensive depth for many seasons once he finally cracks the roster, not having a chance to showcase himself at one of the most-watched prospect tournaments in the world is simply terrible luck.
Other Prospects Are Eligible But Weren’t Considered
It’s not like the Oilers have nobody eligible to play in the tournament this season, it’s a matter of how strong some countries’ prospects are, and unfortunately, not everyone can be selected. One example of this is Oilers’ prospect Brady Stonehouse, who is 19 years old and has been solid in the OHL with the Ottawa 67’s this season scoring 12 goals and adding 12 assists for 24 points through 31 games, but he wasn’t even invited to tryout for his home country of Canada, proving just how strong their roster is.
Two other prospects who have been decent but weren’t considered are Canadian goaltender Nathaniel Day of the Flint Firebirds in the OHL as well as American forward Matt Copponi who is playing in the NCAA with Merrimack College. Day, who is 18 years old, has posted a 4.00 goals-against average (GAA) and a .859 save percentage (SV%) through 27 games while Capponi is over a point per game having scored three goals and adding 14 assists for 17 points through 15 games. Neither of them even had an opportunity to try out for their respective countries.
With Russia not in the 2024 WJC this season, that leaves defenceman Nikita Yevseyev out of the question to participate as well, but he likely would have cracked their roster. In the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) with Ak Bars Kazan this season, he has scored one goal and added two assists for three points through 19 games. Yevseyev has also been dealing with an injury, so perhaps he wouldn’t have had an opportunity either way, but he was skilled enough to have had a look should he have been healthy.
What Will Oilers Be Scouting For Instead?
The Oilers don’t exactly have the strongest prospect pool in the league and while they haven’t been focused on their future as they push toward winning another Stanley Cup, I’m sure they would like to bolster their prospect pool as much as they can at the 2024 NHL Draft, so they’ll be looking for players that fit into their team and could be beneficial for their future.
There isn’t anything specific the Oilers need to look for at the WJC, and they should just focus on getting the best prospects available. There isn’t anybody they’ll get in the later rounds that will help them immediately, so finding players they can work with and help improve to make their team in the future is the key to this year’s tournament.
The Hockey Writers will be covering the 2024 WJC this season so be sure to tune in for updates, scores, recaps, thoughts, and more from around this year’s tournament. The tournament gets underway on Boxing Day, Tuesday, Dec. 26 in Gothenburg, Sweden.
