The Oilers have raced out of the gate, but that hot start hasn’t stopped the trade chatter from kicking in early.
Edmonton’s 11-2-3 beginning has given the club a strong cushion and a lot of optimism, especially with the team finding ways to keep winning through a long injury list. With Mike Babcock behind the bench, the Oilers have looked as sharp as they have in a while, and that has fans wondering whether last year’s first-round exit was just a one-off.
Even with the season still young and the Mar. 1 trade deadline still far away, the conversation has already turned to what Edmonton might do to get even stronger. There are plenty of names floating around as possible targets, from Nikita Kucherov - who has requested a trade from the Tampa Bay Lightning and could potentially be interested in playing for the Oilers - to Edmonton native Jake DeBrusk, who is reportedly on the market for the Vancouver Canucks. GM Stan Bowman has options to consider.
But any big move has to be paid for, and these are the players who could be used to make that happen.
Isaac Howard is one of the clearest candidates. The 22-year-old was brought in during the summer of 2025 with the idea that he could grow into a top-six forward, but that path has taken longer than expected.
He still brings plenty of offensive upside and is coming off a strong rookie year in the AHL, yet his NHL production has been modest, and Babcock doesn’t appear eager to hand him a top-six role anytime soon. With a low cap hit of $972,500 and youth on his side, Howard would make sense as part of a package for a more established NHL player.
Matt Savoie is a different case. Edmonton probably wants to keep him, and for good reason.
The 22-year-old St. Albert native put together a strong season last year with 18 goals, 19 assists and 37 points in 82 games, and he was expected to be a fixture in the top six this season before an injury knocked him out.
Once healthy, he should slide back into the second line and continue pushing toward a bigger role. Still, Savoie carries the most value of any trade asset on this list, which is why he could be the piece that gets serious attention if a major name like Kucherov becomes available.
Jake Walman is the veteran name in the mix, and his situation has already gotten awkward. Less than a month into the first year of a seven-year, $49 million contract, the 30-year-old defenseman found himself out of the lineup for three straight games after landing in Babcock’s doghouse.
He has 1 assist in 10 games this season and carries a $7 million cap hit, and there was hope that being healthy and back on his natural side would help him bounce back after a disappointing year. Instead, a change of scenery may already be on the table.
In Other News...
Oilers Escape With A Point In A Performance Fans Wont Love
The Oilers left New Jersey with a point after a 4-3 shootout loss, but it was the kind of night that probably felt more like a warning than a consolation. Edmonton opened the scoring, then spent much of the game chasing after the Devils swung the momentum in the second period, before the Oilers managed to drag it back to even in the third and force extra time.
Connor McDavid kept his run going with another point and assist, and Evan Bouchard continued to lead defensemen in scoring this season, but the bigger story was how much Edmonton leaned on its power play to stay afloat. Tristan Jarry finished with a .912 save percentage, and while the Oilers escaped with a point, it was hard to miss how uneven the performance looked at five-on-five. [Read more 🡒]
Oilers Suddenly Have A Wing Problem At The Worst Time
Isaac Howards latest setback adds another wrinkle to a wing group that already needed some stability, with the Edmonton forward set to miss about two weeks after getting hurt early in the game against the New York Islanders. Howard had been in the lineup for 12 games this season before the knee injury, and his absence leaves the Oilers trying to keep their forward rotation steady while one of their younger options gets a break from the lineup.
Filip Hallander has been the next man up in Howards spot, giving Edmonton at least a temporary answer while the injury plays out. The timing is less than ideal for a team that would rather be building chemistry than shuffling pieces, and it puts a little more pressure on the rest of the wing group to absorb the minutes until Howard is ready to return. [Read more 🡒]
Jake Walmans Start Is Raising An Early Oilers Concern
Jake Walmans first stretch with the Oilers has not gone the way anyone around the club would have planned. The defenseman has been dealing with injuries and uneven play early in the 2026-27 season, and the result has been a stop-start opening that has already forced Edmonton to shuffle its blue line more than once.
Mike Babcock has not offered much clarity on where Walman stands, which only adds to the uncertainty around his role. Even after being put back into the lineup against the Devils, the bigger question is whether this is a temporary reset or the start of a much more complicated conversation about his place with the Oilers. [Read more 🡒]