July always hands out hope in bulk, and the Oilers have taken their share of it. Edmonton didn’t tear the roster down or swing for one giant headline move. Instead, the summer was about tightening the screws around a core that mostly stayed intact, with Darnell Nurse the notable exception.
The biggest change is that the depth chart looks sturdier. That matters for a team that has spent recent summers trying to patch holes without disturbing the top of the lineup. This time, the Oilers added bodies who should make the group harder to play against and a little less dependent on the stars to carry every shift.
In goal, the situation is still unsettled, but it’s a different kind of unsettled than before. Stuart Skinner and Calvin Pickard gave Edmonton familiarity last season even when the results weren’t there.
Now the mix includes Tristan Jarry, coming off a rough stretch in Pittsburgh, Frederik Andersen, whose health has been an issue for years, and Devon Levi, who is now a long-term project in the system. Three goalies, three very different tracks.
At the very least, the season won’t rest entirely on one netminder rediscovering his game.
The back end also looks more layered. Connor Murphy brings the kind of game that doesn’t show up in flashy highlights but absolutely shows up on a game sheet: blocking shots, battling below the goal line, and giving his partner room to breathe. Edmonton also signed Ryan Shea and Shakir Mukhamadullin, who are projected as bottom-pairing defenders, though the real verdict will have to wait until they’re on the ice in Oil Country.
There’s a different edge to the physical game too. Murphy, Dickinson and some of the other newcomers are built to go hard on pucks and do the dirty work that lets players like Connor McDavid stay out of the forecheck grind.
Colton Dach said on Oilers Now that he’s been watching Zach Hyman’s film because he thinks that’s the kind of player he can be. That’s exactly the sort of profile Edmonton needs more of.
The goaltending question still hangs over everything, and nobody is pretending otherwise. But even with that uncertainty, the roster feels more complete than it did a year ago.
The kind of improvement contenders usually need at this stage doesn’t come from one splashy addition. It comes from stacking useful players who can handle twenty hard minutes, win a defensive-zone draw, survive a Tuesday night in Nashville in January, and ease the load on the top line before April arrives.
That’s what Edmonton spent the summer doing. The result is a team with fewer obvious weak spots, more size and bite, and a lineup that looks deeper and sturdier than the one that opened last season.
Whether that becomes a Stanley Cup run is something nobody can settle in July. But on opening night, the Oilers should be better equipped for the long grind that starts well before the playoffs.
In Other News...
Connor McDavid Contract Debate Just Got More Intense For Oilers Fans
Connor McDavids next contract is already becoming a talking point in Edmonton, even though the one he signed in October does not kick in until the 2026-27 season. The two-year extension keeps him at $12.5 million annually, but the bigger question around the Oilers captain is what he might do when he is eligible for another deal down the road.
Jason Gregor added fuel to that discussion by suggesting McDavid may not chase the maximum possible payday if the Stanley Cup still eludes him. For Oilers fans, that is the real tension here: McDavids future earnings could end up being shaped less by the market and more by whether Edmonton can finally give him the championship run that has defined so much of the conversation around him. [Read more 🡒]
Oilers May Be Taking A Risk Fans Know Too Well Up Front
The Oilers are heading toward the season with a familiar kind of roster question hanging over them, but one analyst at Oilers Nation is making the case that it does not need to be answered right away. Edmonton already has enough scoring on hand to survive the early stretch, with several players in the mix to provide offense, and the thinking is that the club can lean on its stars while letting the rest of the forward group sort itself out.
Stan Bowman is expected to keep some cap space available rather than spend just to spend, which leaves the door open for a move later if the right winger becomes available. Names such as Vladimir Tarasenko and Claude Giroux have been floated as possible fits down the line, and that approach may feel safer than forcing a deal now, even if it also carries the same kind of wait-and-see risk Oilers fans know all too well. [Read more 🡒]
Oilers Fans Know McDavids Next Contract Changes Everything
The conversation around Connor McDavids next contract is starting to feel like one of those topics that will shape everything around the Oilers, even before a single number is put on paper. An analyst recently suggested McDavid could put winning ahead of maximizing his next payday, which is exactly the kind of possibility Edmonton fans will latch onto as the captain moves toward his next deal.
That idea matters because McDavids current track record has already shown a willingness to leave room for the team if it helps the bigger picture, and any future extension will be judged through that lens. Around the league, teams are making aggressive moves to shore up their own weaknesses, but in Edmonton the real question is whether McDavids next contract becomes another sign that the window is the priority, not the paycheck. [Read more 🡒]