Edmonton Oilers rookie camp began Wednesday (Sept. 10) and will continue through Monday (Sept. 15). The Oilers rookies will take on the Calgary Flames rookies in a pair of exhibition games, on Friday (Sept. 12) at Rogers Place and Sunday (Sept. 14) at the Scotiabank Saddledome.
Related: 3 Oilers to Watch in Battle of Alberta Rookie Game
Edmonton’s rookie camp roster runs the gamut, from future NHLers, like Issac Howard and Matt Savoie, to extra bodies, like Josh Banini and Dru Krebs. But of the 25 players attending Oilers rookie camp – 11 forwards, seven defencemen, and four goaltenders – the most fascinating one might be winger Rhett Pitlick. Here’s why:
Oilers Invited Pitlick to Camp
More than two-thirds of the Oilers’ rookie camp roster are players that Edmonton either drafted or acquired in a trade. Just eight players attending the camp are there via invite. Pitlick is one of them.
NHL rookie camp invitees are the longest of the long shots. It’s rare that these individuals wind up becoming NHLers. But those that do make for the best stories, and Pitlick’s already working on a pretty good plot line.
Pitlick Is Oldest Player on Roster
At age 24, Pitlick is the oldest player in Edmonton’s rookie camp by nearly a full year. The Coral Springs, Florida, native was born on Feb. 7, 2001, while no one else in camp was born before 2002. More than a third of those on the Oilers’ rookie camp roster are under the age of 20.
The 5-foot-10 forward has to feel a bit like the old guy in university, who’s finally going to college and finds himself in class with a bunch of kids right out of high school. And in a sense, that’s actually pretty accurate.
Canadiens Drafted Pitlick in 2019
Pitlick was selected in the NHL Draft by the Montreal Canadiens with the 131st overall pick in 2019. But he never signed with the Habs, and that means he never once attended Canadiens rookie camp.
Over the six seasons since he was drafted, Pitlick played junior in the United States Hockey League (USHL) in 2019-20 and 2020-21, before going on to a four-year NCAA college hockey career. He spent three seasons, from 2021-22 to 2023-24, at the University of Minnesota before transferring to Minnesota State for his senior season in 2024-25. Over 148 career NCAA games, he totalled 119 points.
Condors Gave Pitlick a Shot
Pitlick closed out his college career last March by being named Central Collegiate Hockey Association (CCHA) conference Forward of the Year and helping Minnesota State capture the CCHA Championship. After Minnesota State was eliminated from the NCAA Tournament, Pitlick signed an amateur tryout (ATO) on April 8 with the Bakersfield Condors of the American Hockey League (AHL).
The 5-foot-10 winger suited up for Bakersfield’s final six games of the 2024-25 AHL regular season, and racked up some impressive stats: six assists, a plus/minus rating of plus-8, and 12 shots on goal.
Pitlick Is Part of Hockey Family
Pitlick made such an impression during his Bakersfield stint that the Condors wound up signing him on June 25 to a two-year AHL contract. But here’s the really cool part: his older brother, Rem Pitlick, signed a one-year AHL deal with Bakersfield on the same day.
Selected 76th overall by the Nashville Predators in the 2016 NHL Draft, Rem has appeared in 132 NHL career games over stints with the Predators, Canadiens, Minnesota Wild, and Chicago Blackhawks. The 28-year-old forward spent all of 2024-25 in the AHL with the San Jose Barracuda.
And yes, Rhett and Rem are related to former Oilers forward Tyler Pitlick. Tyler, who was drafted 31st overall by Edmonton in 2010 and played 58 games with the Oilers from 2013 to 2016, is their cousin.
This coming AHL season will be the first time that Rhett and Rem have ever played together on the same team. That is, unless Rhett ends up in Edmonton at some point. The chances of that happening are extremely unlikely, but the 24-year-old should at least get one chance to play in Rogers Place when the Oilers rookies host the Flames rookies on Friday night.
