This was supposed to be a big developmental year for Matt Savoie, and by the end of it, he’d turned himself into one of the more intriguing young pieces in the Edmonton Oilers’ system.
The path here wasn’t straightforward. Buffalo took him ninth overall in 2022 and expected a future impact player, but Savoie spent the next two seasons back in the WHL before being dealt to Edmonton for Ryan McLeod. That trade reset his timeline and gave him a new place to build.
After a year with the Bakersfield Condors, Savoie got his first full NHL shot last fall, and the opening stretch was rough. In his first 23 games, he managed only five points while working in a bottom-six role.
Then things started to click.
As the season moved along, Savoie earned time in the top six and caught fire after the Olympic break. He closed the regular season with a hat trick against the Vancouver Canucks, finishing with 18 goals and 37 points. The playoff bump never followed, but the regular season breakout left a clear impression.
The numbers from that late run are what make the conversation so interesting. Over a 24-game stretch after the Olympic break, Savoie produced at a 65-point pace. Edmonton controlled play in his five-on-five minutes during that span, and he also handled a meaningful role on the penalty kill.
The offensive profile is encouraging, too. According to All Three Zones, Savoie sat in the 85th percentile in scoring chances and the 95th percentile in shots off high-danger passes.
He found open space in coverage and got to the inner slot, even if the finish wasn’t always there. He ended the season below league average in shooting percentage, which held down the totals.
That part improved as the year went on. Before the Olympic break, Savoie shot 7.2 per cent at five-on-five and 11.4 per cent in all situations. After the break, those numbers jumped to 9.1 per cent at five-on-five and 15.3 per cent in all situations.
His defensive results also improved. Early in the season, his energy wasn’t showing up in the team’s numbers at five-on-five, with the Oilers allowing 2.9 goals against and 2.9 expected goals against per hour in his minutes over the first five months.
After the Olympic break, that dropped to 2.4 goals against and 2.5 expected goals against. He was already strong on the penalty kill for most of the season, and that work earned him the second-most PK time on ice among Oilers forwards.
Now the next question is where he fits. Late in the season, Savoie landed next to Connor McDavid, a spot that had belonged to Ryan Nugent-Hopkins for a long time. Nugent-Hopkins is 33-years-old and has shown signs of decline over the past couple of years, which opens the door for Savoie to spend more time in the top six in 2026-27, whether that’s with McDavid or Leon Draisaitl.
There’s even a path to more power-play responsibility. Because he creates so many chances from the middle of the ice, Savoie could eventually work his way into the bumper spot on the top unit.
If he earns Mike Babcock’s trust early, the setup is there for another real step forward. The skill is obvious, the late-season production was real, and the 22-year-old looks like he’s only beginning to tap into what he can become.
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Ryan Nugent-Hopkins Is About To Make Oilers History
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Now, with the season just getting underway, he is lined up to pass Kevin Lowe for the most games played in franchise history. Nugent-Hopkins is expected to tie the mark on Oct. 10 and move past it on Oct. 13 during an early-season road swing, a fitting next step for a player who has been at the center of Edmontons story for so long. [Read more 🡒]