The Oilers’ rookie picture for 2026-27 looks a lot different than it did a year ago. Last September, the conversation was driven by two substantial offensive prospects. This time around, the class skews more toward the hard-working, lower-glamour end of the spectrum.
There are 14 rookies in the mix: Josh Samanski, Viljami Marjala, Connor Clattenburg, Owen Michaels, Quinn Hutson, Eduards Tralmaks, William Nicholl, Damien Carfagna, Tomas Cibulka, Atro Leppanen, Connor Ungar, Samuel Jonsson, Aku Raty and Eemil Vinni.
For NHL purposes in 2026-27, the names that matter most are Samanski, Marjala, Clattenburg, Michaels, Hutson, Tralmaks, Carfagna, Leppanen and Raty. That’s nine players with some kind of path, though not all of them will actually get into games.
A few are obvious long shots, but there are enough variables here that nothing is fully settled. Raty, for instance, was signed for a reason even if that reason isn’t immediately obvious from the outside.
Tralmaks fits a similar bucket, though there’s a little more information to work with on him.
If you’re asking who actually gets in, the safest bets are limited. The reasonable expectations here are Samanski for 51 games and Hutson for 12.
The rest of the rookie minutes were given away to veterans such as Max Jones, who isn’t a rookie but has the kind of early edge that could stick around. The Mike Babcock uncertainty is part of the backdrop, too.
Samanski stands out as the best rookie bet. There’s a lot to like there, but the expectation is that he won’t get much of an offensive bump and probably won’t be the kind of player who suddenly catches fire because of depth wingers.
Hutson comes next, and his case got a little stronger because of Matt Savoie’s injury. Still, camp will tell the story.
If Hutson is faster than he was a year ago, he has a shot. His 30-goal AHL rookie season was impressive, but it came at age 23, so at this stage he mostly is what he is.
Even so, he may be good enough to win a job, and his two-way reputation helps.
Tralmaks is the oldest player in the group at 29, just one month younger than Connor McDavid. The analytics crowd seems to like him, and so can the math-challenged.
He’s 6.04, 225 and profiles as a first-shot scorer. Whether that translates to the NHL is another matter.
The safer expectation is Bakersfield.
Owen Michaels is the unusual one. As of now, he’s the only right-handed center headed to camp, and that gives him a real advantage.
Of the outliers, he may have the best chance to hang around because of that. The odds still look slim - less than five percent - but 24-year-old college players are often the ones who surprise.
There’s also a longer-career angle to this group. Samuel Jonsson, Damien Carfagna and Samanski are the names to circle there.
All three were rated highly in the winter, and all three look like NHL players at some point. This year, though, only Samanski is expected to get there.
Berzkalns is another type who could stick around a long time, and Lafreniere, Barnett and David Lewandowski from the 2025 draft also have a chance.
The 2026 draft class didn’t inspire the same confidence. After liking the 2025 group, the read here is that this one leans too heavily toward players who look offensively limited.
Rudolfs Berzkalns, in particular, looks like the sort of player who does everything except score, and that’s usually not a great formula. You can find that kind of player in week two of free agency.
Rick Pracey has earned some benefit of the doubt with names like Tommy Lafreniere and Asher Barnett, and maybe he’s uncovered something. Malcom Gastrin is the one who stands out as intriguing.
If you want the offensive snapshot, the equivalencies paint a mixed but useful picture. Raty is at 41 points in 82 games NHLE.
Hutson is at 37 points in 82 games NHLE, including 18 goals. Marjala sits at 33 points in 82 games NHLE.
Leppanen is at 29 points in 82 games NHLE, Samanski at 27, Tralmaks at 26 including 16 goals, William Nicholl at 22, Damien Carfagna at 13 and Clattenburg at 5.
Raty and Leppanen are the two numbers that jump out. Raty is a right-handed winger, and that alone matters on a roster that could use more of them.
He brings speed and skill, but he’s also 25 and has bounced around a lot. Leppanen is the more intriguing pure talent play, though the left side on defense is already packed at the NHL level and Babcock isn’t in the business of creating chaos.
Last September, the prediction was that four newcomers would play at least one game, maybe more. That turned out to be right, and even Connor Clattenburg was mentioned as a possibility. The broader point held: opportunities can come from anywhere, and sometimes a player spends the summer running up that hill.
The bigger issue with this rookie crop is simple enough. Offense is the weak spot. Still, there are enough interesting names in the group that a few of them could find their way into NHL games, even if the path is narrow.
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