The Oilers have spent the last two summers learning the hard way that free agency can chew up cap space in a hurry. Jeff Skinner and Viktor Arvidsson arrived in 2024 with plenty of name value, but both ended up cycling through the bottom six and the press box while carrying a combined $7 million cap hit. A year later, Edmonton’s big July 1 swing was Andrew Mangiapane on a two-year deal worth an AAV of $3.6 million, and that move unraveled so quickly that Stan Bowman had to pay a premium to move him just seven months later.
So yes, there’s a real argument for caution this time around. But the Oilers still have holes to fill, and according to PuckPedia they’ve got roughly $7.4 million in cap space left to work with. Their pending restricted free agents, Colton Dach and Spencer Stastney, shouldn’t take much of that room, and with Jack Roslovic and Kasperi Kapanen expected to leave, Edmonton is likely to spend most of what remains on another middle-six forward.
That’s where Matias Maccelli comes in.
Earlier this week, TSN Hockey insider Chris Johnston reported that the Toronto Maple Leafs would not be issuing Maccelli a qualifying offer, which would make him an unrestricted free agent. It’s still possible Toronto brings him back, but if he does hit the market, the fit with Edmonton makes plenty of sense. The 25-year-old winger has put up at least 39 points in three of his last four seasons, and this past year most of his damage came at five-on-five.
That matters for the Oilers. Maccelli out-produced every Edmonton forward last season at five-on-five except Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl. He also finished the year leading the Leafs with a 50.4 per cent expected goal share, the only forward on the team to out-chance the opposition.
What makes him especially intriguing is how he creates offense. Maccelli is a passer first, and that’s a skill set Edmonton could use more of.
At 5-foot-11 and with only average speed, he leans on his hands, his vision and his ability to make plays through traffic. The Oilers already have high-end offense coming mostly from McDavid, Draisaitl and Evan Bouchard, but beyond that trio the top six doesn’t feature many natural playmakers.
Zach Hyman and Vasily Podkolzin bring more of a forecheck and net-front game, while Matt Savoie creates offense by reading the ice and finding soft spots away from the puck. Adding Maccelli would give Edmonton another way to generate chances without needing the same three names to drive everything.
The underlying numbers back that up. Maccelli ranks well above league average in every passing microstat tracked by All Three Zones, and his ability to create chances and high-danger looks sits in the upper tier of the league.
There’s more to his profile than offense, too. He’s not a classic shutdown forward, and penalty killing isn’t part of his game, but he held up well defensively last season.
For a smaller player, he was active in battles in his own end and managed to be relatively successful under Craig Berube, who usually leans toward bigger, more physical forwards. HockeyViz, JFresh and Evolving Hockey all graded him above league average in defensive impact last season.
Edmonton has already had Maccelli on its radar. Back in February, Sportsnet’s Nick Kypreos reported that the Oilers tried to acquire him in a deal involving Mangiapane, but the Leafs “weren’t too interested.”
There’s been some chatter that Ilya Mikheyev could be the name Edmonton chases instead because of his speed and penalty-killing ability. Those are useful tools, but the Oilers already re-signed a pair of veterans for defensive impact and penalty killing. If they want to use their next move to add something different, Maccelli makes more sense: younger, more creative and with more upside.
Free agency has a way of rewarding the teams that stay disciplined and punishing the ones that don’t. Edmonton has already paid for a couple of misses. If it’s going to get this one right, Maccelli should be near the top of the list.
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Nurses situation has become one to watch because the trade discussion around him comes with a layer of control that can shape where this goes next. A few clubs are believed to be in the mix, but the process still feels fluid, with no clear indication that anything is nearing the finish line. In a market already packed with uncertainty, Edmonton may have to wait for the picture to sharpen before it knows whether this is just noise or the start of something bigger. [Read more 🡒]
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The complicating factor is Pittsburghs side of the equation. The Penguins are open to listening, but Kyle Dubas has not been in a hurry to move Rakell before, and the price has stayed high in previous talks. Any serious Edmonton pursuit would have to clear that hurdle while also navigating Rakells eight-team no-trade list, which can narrow the path quickly if the interest gets real. [Read more 🡒]