The Oilers’ rookie group gets one last live audition Monday night, and for a few players, the Next Gen Showcase at Scotiabank Saddledome is exactly the kind of stage they need. Edmonton faces the host Calgary Flames at 6 p.m. MT, with both teams dressing lineups made up entirely of players from their rookie camps.
Edmonton opened rookie camp at Rogers Place on Friday, Sept. 11, with 14 forwards, seven defencemen and four goaltenders in attendance. With Main Camp set to open Tuesday, this exhibition is the final chance for the rookies to leave a mark before the next round of roster decisions begins.
Edmonton also plays its first game of the 2026 preseason on Saturday, Sept. 19.
Among the names worth tracking, Beau Akey stands out as one of the most intriguing. Three years ago, the defenceman was turning heads at Oilers Rookie Camp after Edmonton picked him 56th overall in the 2023 NHL Draft.
He flashed real promise in the Young Stars Classic exhibition tournament, only for his momentum to be interrupted soon after by a major setback with the Barrie Colts of the Ontario Hockey League. Akey needed surgery on both shoulders and missed the rest of the 2023-24 OHL season.
His path back has been stop-and-start. Last season, his start with Bakersfield was delayed by injury, and he didn’t get into a game until November.
He spent four games on a conditioning stint with the Fort Wayne Komets in the ECHL before joining the Bakersfield Condors in the AHL. In 42 games with the Condors, he posted two goals and eight assists and finished third on the team with a plus-12 rating.
If he’s fully healthy now, this is the moment he’s been waiting for. Edmonton’s blue line still needs help, and Akey is back in the conversation as a player who could finally show the upside that made him such an interesting pick in 2023.
Monday also marks a first for Rudolfs Berzkalns, who will play his first game in an Oilers jersey. Edmonton chose the centre with the No. 58 pick in the 2026 NHL Entry Draft, making him the first player the club selected in that draft.
Berzkalns, from Cesis, Latvia, put up 13 goals and 12 assists in 48 games for the Muskegon Lumberjacks of the USHL in the 2025-26 season. He followed that with 10 points in 16 postseason games as Muskegon won the Clark Cup.
At six-foot-four and well over 200 pounds, he brings a big frame and a reputation for playing well in all three zones. When he was drafted, he drew comparisons to current Oilers winger Zach Hyman.
His camp is only the start of what should be a big year. Berzkalns had originally been expected to join Boston College, but instead he’s headed back to Muskegon for another season and will wear the captain’s “C” as the Lumberjacks try to defend their Clark Cup title.
He’s also expected to be part of Latvia’s team at the IIHF World Junior Hockey Championship, set for Dec. 26, 2026, to Jan. 5, 2027.
Then there’s Zach Bookman, the kind of invitee every rookie camp seems to need. He’s one of the smallest players in the group at five-foot-11, one of the oldest at 24 turning 25 next spring, and one of the few who never heard his name called in the NHL Draft.
Bookman’s route has been anything but direct. The Syracuse, N.Y., native headed west to play for the Brooks Bandits in the Alberta Junior Hockey League, where he spent two seasons. In 2021-22, he was named the Canadian Junior Hockey League Top Defenceman while helping Brooks win the AJHL championship.
From there, he moved on to Merrimack College and played three seasons of NCAA Division 1 hockey. He was nominated for the Hobey Baker Award in both 2023-24 and 2024-25. For his senior year, he transferred to Western Michigan University and collected 18 points in 38 games in 2025-26.
In April, Bookman signed an ECHL contract with the Komets and made his pro debut, appearing in two regular-season games and four playoff contests. Now he’s back in Alberta on an invite, one of only five players at Oilers Rookie Camp in that category this year.
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