At this point in the offseason, unsigned free agents are starting to come off the board fairly quickly and are getting signed to PTOs (professional tryouts). While some teams have been fairly active in inviting players to training camp, other teams haven’t. The Edmonton Oilers sit somewhere in the middle, as they’ve signed both Brandon Sutter and Sam Gagner to PTOs. While two might be enough, I don’t think they should be done.
Defence is definitely an area where they need a bit more help, but adding someone else on a league-minimum contract doesn’t have to come in the way of a PTO. This could happen at some point during the season. The expectation is that the Oilers will be able to accrue over $2 million in cap space by the trade deadline, so depending on how the season goes, they will have options. This team is going to be competing for the Stanley Cup, so they’ll likely be buyers. It may not be something huge like they pulled off last season with Mattias Ekholm, but depth in different areas never hurt anyone, especially when the salary cap goes away in the playoffs.
We’re going to look at two different tiers of players that I think could be in the cards with one final PTO and then some long shots that don’t necessarily have to be signed right away.
One More PTO for the Oilers
Sutter and Gagner are decent players to sign to PTOs, but they are veterans and past their primes. They will be fourth-line players at best and top American Hockey League (AHL) options at worst. Two players were just taken off the board recently in Danton Heinen and Noah Gregor, signed to PTOs by the Boston Bruins and Toronto Maple Leafs. This is more the type of player with upside and scoring potential that I was hoping the Oilers would target.
Instead, I believe they still have one option in a younger player with potential, another veteran who still has it, and a defenceman to bolster the right side. These players would be Max Comtois, Zach Parise, and Ethan Bear.
Comtois has been linked elsewhere, and there were even reports that the Vegas Golden Knights would offer him a PTO. But that was more than five days ago, and he hasn’t signed one yet. The door is still open for the Oilers as they search for the best fit at the bottom of their lineup. Why I’m so intrigued by Comtois is because he is only 24 years old and has proved he can score without much help. A big and physical forward who still has time to prove himself as a decent NHL talent? Who does that remind you of? Jesse Puljujarvi. But there are big differences.
Comtois led the Anaheim Ducks in scoring with 33 points in 55 games in 2020-21. He has always been a very physical player by nature and from the get-go. Last season, he finished with nine goals and 19 points in 64 games, but remember that the Ducks were very bad and didn’t score a lot. He definitely still has the tools to contribute on the wing and could slot in on the third or fourth line if the Oilers can swing that. They lost some physicality, so why not give an opportunity to someone who can score and play physically?
Related: Former Oilers Still Looking for New Homes in 2023-24
By the way that Parise took the playoff loss by the New York Islanders last season, it made it seem like he’s not planning on ending his career just yet. The Islanders don’t seem to have interest in bringing him back as he remains unsigned, even without a PTO. He might be 39 years old, but he played all 82 games last season and scored 21 goals and 31 points. He doesn’t look done to me. He has gotten back-to-back league-minimum deals just so he can continue to play. A potential 20-goal scorer in the bottom-six doesn’t sound so bad in Edmonton.
Now since the Oilers have two forwards on PTOs already, it might not be likely they will sign a third. Rather, a defenceman could be the final piece added to training camp. Bear is still young and has bounced around to a couple of teams since the Oilers traded him. But now with their lack of NHL-ready talent on defence and Vincent Desharnais as one of the best options to fill a hole on the back end, Bear suddenly becomes a much more attractive option to at least give a chance.
At the very least, Bear earns a cheap deal and can bolster the AHL, plus be a legitimate option if there happens to be an injury. The 26-year-old scored three goals and 13 points in 64 games last season, but he was never only looked at for his offence. He will block shots, kill penalties, and start draws in the defensive zone. I like him as a seventh defenceman more than Desharnais at this point.
Long-Shots & Later Additions for the Playoff Run
Now the long shots are for a little bit of fun, but they also aren’t completely out of the question. Last season, we saw Evander Kane suffer a freak injury that kept him out for half of the season. This opened cap space for Mattias Janmark and Klim Kostin to come in and contribute. That isn’t ideal, but it could possibly happen again to any player.
Veterans who have been around a while and know how to win are still available. They aren’t all available at this moment, nor do the Oilers need them just yet. There’s Phil Kessel, who is still looking for a place to play this season. He’s willing to break his Ironman streak and can still skate, shoot, and score. Josh Bailey is also a recent buyout from this offseason. He might have dropped in production from the prior season, but we’re also judging the offensive performances of someone on the no-offense Islanders.
Jonathan Toews won’t start the season with any team. And though there’s not a great chance that he even plays this season since he stated he’s taking time away from the game, Toews says that “he cannot deny my love for the game of hockey and still feel the passion for competing at my highest level.” He has been linked to the Oilers because of Duncan Keith and the time he spent there, on top of Edmonton being in Canada and close to his home province of Manitoba. This is definitely a very long shot this season, but it remains open for 2024-25.
Eric Staal continues to prove that he can play at a high level as he returned to the NHL with the Florida Panthers last season, following him taking advantage of a PTO. He’s a league-minimum player who has won a Stanley Cup and been a great leader. The 38-year-old had 14 goals and 29 points while getting recognition for his strong two-way play. Staal being a centerman makes things interesting if the Oilers add him since I believe he is a better option for the fourth line than Brad Malone or Lane Pederson.
It never hurts to have options and competition in training camp and throughout the season. The Oilers’ players are already proving how much they want to win by the entire team showing up early to optional skates before training camp opens. With fewer options left, the team can still bring in another player to potentially help out.
