Former Edmonton Oilers goaltender Jack Campbell is speaking openly about the alcohol addiction that shadowed much of his NHL career, including his turbulent run in Edmonton.
Campbell, 34, last played professionally in the 2024-25 season with the Grand Rapids Griffins, Detroit’s AHL affiliate. He joined the Red Wings after the Oilers bought him out following the 2023-24 season, and before that next campaign began, he entered the NHL’s player assistance program. At the time, the specifics of what he was dealing with were not public.
Now retired from professional hockey and working as an identity and performance coach, Campbell said on the Cam & Strick Podcast earlier this week that alcohol addiction was a major issue throughout his career. He also said it likely influenced the Toronto Maple Leafs’ decision not to bring him back after the 2021-22 season.
Campbell said he would have done anything to stay in Toronto, where he had become the team’s starter. But he also said he can understand, in hindsight, why then-general manager Kyle Dubas didn’t give him the long-term deal he wanted.
“Looking back and being real about it, Kyle cares a lot about the people behind just how they’re performing on the ice,” Campbell said. “He really cared about me and saw me struggling off the ice, especially with the booze.”
Campbell added that Dubas tried to help him, but he “just wasn’t ready.”
The big payday came from Edmonton, which signed him to a five-year, $25 million contract before the 2022-23 season. That move never worked out the way either side hoped. Campbell struggled in his first year with the Oilers, then spent part of his second season in the AHL before the organization bought him out.
Even so, Campbell isn’t pointing fingers.
“I’m grateful for Edmonton a lot,” Campbell said. “The things I get to have in my life now, I’m so grateful.
“It sucks that it went the way it did. I know what I’m capable of doing on the ice. However, it just wasn’t going to happen with the way I was living.”
He said the gap between what he could do and what he actually produced came down to what was happening away from the rink.
“My whole career was just a matter of when I felt good, I played good. When I decided not to feel good, I didn’t play good,” he said. “It sucks to look back on my career and be like, ‘Man, I did that to myself.'”
Campbell’s comments suggest a player who sees his NHL story very differently now, with a clearer view of how much his off-ice battles affected what happened on the ice.
In Other News...
Oilers Suddenly Have A Goalie Opportunity Fans Did Not Expect
The rematch with Vancouver comes quickly for Edmonton, and it arrives with a different look in net than many fans expected. After the season-opening loss, the Oilers are turning to Devon Levi, who is set to make his debut and earn his first start of the 2026-27 season as the club tries to steady itself against the same Canucks team that handed it the opening-night setback.
The crease change comes amid a longer injury shuffle for Edmonton, with Tristan Jarry having struggled and Frederik Andersen sidelined, while the forward group is also taking hits. Zach Hyman will miss the game, and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins has been moved to injured reserve, forcing the Oilers to call up Josh Samanski from the AHL to help fill out the lineup. [Read more 🡒]
Oilers Huge Night Still Left Fans Worried About One Problem
The goals came fast and the points piled up in a wild 9-7 win over the Vancouver Canucks in Edmontons second game of the 2026-27 season, the kind of night that showed why this roster can still overwhelm opponents when its best players are rolling. Connor McDavid finished with five points, Leon Draisaitl added two goals and Evan Bouchard kept driving the attack from the back end, giving the Oilers the sort of offensive burst that can make almost any early-season concern feel secondary.
Still, the unease around this start is hard to miss when the scoreline gets that messy. The Oilers were asked to win a track meet, and while they did it, the kind of defensive and goaltending stability this group usually needs never really settled in, leaving fans with plenty to celebrate and one lingering question about how sustainable nights like this can be. [Read more 🡒]
Oilers Suddenly Have A Real Chance To Test Josh Samanski
Josh Samanski has quietly become one of the more interesting depth bets in the Oilers system. The 24-year-old German centre signed a two-year entry-level deal ahead of the 2025-26 season after moving from the DEL to Bakersfield, and he already got a taste of the NHL last season when he appeared in 24 games. For a player who profiles as a potential bottom-six or middle-six centre, the next step is less about flash and more about whether his defensive game can translate when the pace tightens.
Now, the Oilers suddenly have a real opening to see what Samanski can handle under pressure. An emergency recall put him back on the NHL roster because of injuries, giving Edmonton a chance to evaluate whether his blend of size, structure and limited offense can hold up against bigger responsibilities. For a team always searching for affordable depth down the middle, his ability to survive this stretch may tell them a lot about how quickly he can move from promising call-up to something more permanent. [Read more 🡒]