It didn’t take long for the Edmonton Oilers to show why this roster feels different right away.
In the first preseason game, Edmonton came out hot against a Winnipeg Jets lineup that didn’t have nearly as many stars dressed, but the bigger takeaway was the look of the Oilers themselves. After seeing some of the starters on the ice, it’s hard to argue this group is deeper than the one Edmonton had when the 2025-26 season began.
That doesn’t mean every question is answered. The Oilers said goodbye to pieces at every position group, which is never easy even when it’s done with the future in mind.
But on paper, and especially if health holds, this team now has more options farther down the lineup and across the roster. The depth chart feels longer.
The margins feel stronger.
Up front, the Oilers are carrying more veterans, more speed, and more toughness.
There was plenty of buzz around the forward group heading into last season, especially with the uncertainty around Matt Savoie, Isaac Howard, David Tomasek, and Andrew Mangiapane. The idea was simple enough: add speed and skill to a lineup already built around superstar talent.
It didn’t quite unfold that way, with Savoie the only one from that group to stick long-term. Savoie is trying to build on a solid 2025-26, while Howard is hoping to make a significant jump with some help around him.
Edmonton has since added Mathieu Joseph, Alex Formenton, and Aku Raty, along with other re-signings and minor league moves. Not every one of those players is guaranteed a regular job, but the message is clear.
The Oilers want more pace and more physicality, the kind of ingredients that matter when the games tighten up in the playoffs. All three are relatively young, and what they’ve shown in preseason has looked solid, especially Formation, who used his speed alongside Joseph to make an impact in several areas.
Alex extends the #Oilers lead #LetsGoOilers pic.twitter.com/OK3KTNUJ2U
- Edmonton Oilers (@EdmontonOilers) September 20, 2026
The bottom six now looks built around a set of low-risk, high-reward additions that can complement a sturdy core. Jason Dickinson, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Trent Frederic, and others give the forward group a strong base, and they should make it easier for the newcomers to settle in. The expectation is a lineup that can come at opponents fast from top to bottom.
On defence, the Oilers have added reinforcements and, just as important, a little more stability.
There’s no denying the blue line was tested at times last season, and the loss of Darnell Nurse changes the feel of the group. He was a long-time presence, an alternate captain, and a player who could handle a heavy workload. Still, general manager Stan Bowman clearly focused on shoring things up and making the defence more defence-first.
The key piece coming back in the Nurse deal is 24-year-old Shakir Mukhamadullin. He’s already shown promise, putting up 12 points in 50 appearances last season. If he can cut down on the turnovers that crept up last year and keep progressing, he could become a major part of the group.
Edmonton also brought in Ryan Shea in free agency and re-signed Connor Murphy and Spencer Stastney. Given how often injuries have hit the back end in recent times, the more options the better.
That’s especially true when you look at the camp roster. There are eight defenders who played for the Oilers last season, plus two more who appeared in the NHL for other teams.
That gives Edmonton 10 players who can handle the highest level and be in the mix for opening night, whether that means a top-six or top-seven role. And that doesn’t even account for the possibility that someone else could force their way in later.
Then there’s the goaltending room, which has been completely reshaped from where it stood on opening night last season.
Edmonton began 2025-26 with Stuart Skinner and Calvin Pickard as its tandem, and those two are now with the Winnipeg Jets and Minnesota Wild, respectively. That pairing helped carry the Oilers to back-to-back Cup Final appearances, so there’s no reason to dismiss what they did. But this season, the setup looks deeper and potentially more stable on paper than it has in years.
That said, Skinner and Pickard have already proven people wrong plenty of times, so the paper test only goes so far in Edmonton.
Still, the current group brings real intrigue. Tristan Jarry is coming off a bad season, but there have been flashes of the goalie he can be with the Pittsburgh Penguins and even last season.
He knows he’s due for a bounce back. Alongside him are Frederik Andersen and Devon Levi, with Andersen set to miss training camp and part of the regular season because of injury.
That means Jarry and Levi will have to carry the load for now.
And that’s the upside of a deeper goalie room. If Jarry and Levi can rise to the moment after both have had their share of struggles, the decision-making gets a lot more complicated once Andersen is back. For the first time in a while, the Oilers can look at their goaltending and feel some real confidence, and that confidence extends to the rest of the roster depth as well.
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Ike Howards Early Oilers Role Is Raising An Uncomfortable Question
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Still, the fit only sharpens the larger question around where Howard ultimately belongs in the lineup. He looks like the sort of winger who could benefit from a longer runway alongside Connor McDavid or Leon Draisaitl, but Edmonton also has to decide how long it can wait for production to catch up to potential, especially if the early return does not come fast enough for a team trying to stay in the window of contention. [Read more 🡒]