Owen Michaels is Biggest Surprise on Oilers’ Season-Opening Roster

Every year, there are a handful of players that unexpectedly make the cut with an NHL team. This fall, the Edmonton Oilers might have the most surprising one of them all.

Forward Owen Michaels is among the 23 players that will begin the 2026-27 season on Edmonton’s roster, which was finalized on Monday (Sept. 28). The 24-year-old forward is expected to be in the lineup when the Oilers open their schedule on Tuesday (Sept. 29), against the Vancouver Canucks at Rogers Place.

Essentially, Michaels appears to have beat out fellow forward Josh Samanski for a roster spot. The Oilers announced on Monday that Samanski, who many thought would start the season in Edmonton, has been loaned to the Bakersfield Condors of the American Hockey League (AHL).

Based on the lines at Oilers practice on Monday, Michaels will centre Edmonton’s third line, skating between Isaac Howard and Trent Frederic. Michaels played with both Howard and Frederic at times during the preseason.

Should Howard suit up on Tuesday, it would not only be his first NHL regular season game, but his first regular season game at any level of professional hockey, period.

Road to the NHL

Michaels has taken the long road to the NHL. The six-foot-one forward was eligible to be drafted in 2020, 2021, and 2022 but was passed over each year.

After playing junior hockey in both the North American Hockey League (NAHL) and the United States Hockey League (USHL), the Northville, Mich., native attended Western Michigan University, joining the Broncos NCAA Division 1 men’s hockey team.

Over three seasons with the Broncos, Michaels totalled 33 goals and 36 assists in 119 games. In 2025, he was named Frozen Four MVP while helping Western Michigan capture its first ever NCAA men’s hockey championship. Last season he served as team captain, and led the Broncos to another NCAA tournament appearance, as a No. 1 seed.

Last April, just a few days after Western Michigan was eliminated from the NCAA tournament, Edmonton signed Michaels to a one-year entry level contract beginning in the 2025-26 season. Michaels joined the Oilers and skated in practice but did not suit up for any games in the remainder of the regular season or Edmonton’s first round playoff loss to the Anaheim Ducks.

Michaels then re-signed with the Oilers during the offseason, agreeing to a two-year, $1.8 million contract on July 6.

Strong Preseason

Michaels turned heads with strong all-around play during the 2026 NHL preseason. Along with Howard, he was one of just two players to appear in all four of Edmonton’s games, which is likely indicative of how he was starting to earn serious consideration for a roster spot.

Michaels’ preseason stats were nothing to write home about: 0 points, an even plus-minus, 4 shots on goal, and a success rate of 47.2% (25/53) on faceoffs. But the strengths of his game are not necessarily reflected in the box score. Michaels didn’t need to put up big numbers to make a huge impression on new Oilers coach Mike Babcock.

“He’s played well. He really can skate,” Babcock said on Monday. “If you look back at his career, he wasn’t a big scorer, so he didn’t hang his hat on that. So he had to be a two-way, effective player. He won a national championship, so he knows how to win, and he’s in all the good clips.

“It wasn’t like we had this plan that he was going to be here, and he wasn’t supposed to be here, but that’s the great thing about plans: you get to change them.”

Samanski’s Status

As for Samanski, he was widely projected to start this season in Edmonton. A member of Germany’s 2026 men’s Olympic hockey team, Samanski suited up for 24 regular season and five playoff contests with the Oilers in 2025-26, seeing his role increase along the way.

That, however, that was under former Oilers coach Kris Knoblauch. Now Samanski needs to impress Babcock, who was asked on Monday how the 24-year-old can get back to the NHL.

“Just get down there and get to work,” Edmonton’s new coach said. “The simple thing is, you’ve got to figure out who you’ve going to be in the National Hockey League. And then when you go down to the AHL, they put you in a totally different role. But you have to become an elite faceoff guy, an elite penalty-killer, a great two-way defensive centre to play here, because that’s going to be your job.

“In the (AHL), they want him to be on the power-play, play on the first line, do all that, so sometimes that gets in the way. But as a player you’ve got to learn that, and he’s old enough now to understand, that’s what he’s got to do to get back.”

Future with Oilers

Michaels is in Edmonton for now, thought it remains to be seen for how long. The Oilers are starting the season with three veteran forwards who figure prominently into their plans – Jason Dickinson, Mattias Janmark and Matthew Savoie – on the injured list, so they’ll need to make on the roster as those players return to action.

But considering how Michaels has completely defied expectations to this point, it would be a fool’s errand to put any limits on his future. Oilers fans are anticipating his debut on Tuesday night.