Looking at the Edmonton Oilers' depth chart so far this offseason

New York Times

6 hours ago

The Edmonton Oilers have not unequivocally improved so far this offseason, but at least they've left themselves some wiggle room to do so soon.
The depth chart looks sparser than it did a couple weeks ago, though sensible options with upgrade potential are at the ready to act as replacements.
Gone are Evander Kane, Viktor Arvidsson and Jeff Skinner, three wingers who got time in the top nine and had some success, even if limited. Also out are wingers Corey Perry and Connor Brown, two impactful veterans who played up and down the lineup. John Klingberg, one of the regular eight defencemen, has moved on, too.
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In their places are Andrew Mangiapane, Curtis Lazar, David Tomasek and Matt Savoie.
Mangiapane, 29, is a one-time 35-goal scorer who was pushed down the lineup in his only season in Washington. Lazar and Tomasek give the Oilers right-handed faceoff options. Lazar, 30, is an ex-Edmonton Oil King who's shown he can play centre or wing. Tomasek, 29, was the top scorer in the Swedish league, closing in on his NHL debut. Savoie, 21, was already in-house as the team's best prospect and is about set to enter his second year in the pros.
There were no additions made on the blue line to offset Klingberg's loss, but his deletion allows for Ty Emberson to regain his place in the lineup after he became an afterthought midway through the second round. Emberson, 25, signed a two-year contract before the playoffs.
This depth chart doesn't include centre Noah Philp or left winger Max Jones, fourth-line options who have cap hits of $775,000 and $1 million, respectively. The Oilers shouldn't need to carry a 14th forward as they attempt to accrue cap space, but both players are waiver-eligible.
Another impressive training camp from Philp — he had a performance last fall worthy of making the team — and it might behoove the Oilers to keep him on the season-opening roster. That could take up most of that available space, though Tomasek and Savoie are exempt from waivers. They can be sent to Bakersfield in a pinch if needed to offset the addition of Philp or another forward.
The defence corps is set entering the season, barring an unexpected offseason injury or a sudden change of heart by general manager Stan Bowman. If anything, Bowman said, there will be conversations later in the summer to extend the contracts of Mattias Ekholm, Jake Walman and Brett Kulak. All are entering the final year of their deals.
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The most obvious place to potentially augment the roster remains between the pipes. Bowman said multiple times heading into free agency that he wasn't committed to finding a replacement for one of Stuart Skinner or Calvin Pickard. He's opted for the status quo through the first few days of free agency. There's a high likelihood the Oilers take this goaltending tandem into the training camp now, with the door open to find an in-season enhancement.
The Oilers could also use a boost up front. They have three bona-fide top-six forwards — Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl and Zach Hyman — and opinions vary on whether to include Ryan Nugent-Hopkins in that group. Nugent-Hopkins, though an important and versatile player, had just nine goals and 21 points at five-on-five in 78 games last season. He might be better served as the third-line centre.
Whether someone like Adam Henrique replaces Nugent-Hopkins on one of the top two lines, the Oilers still need a couple of players to step up in a scoring role. Options consist of Mangiapane, Savoie, Trent Frederic, Vasily Podkolzin and Kasperi Kapanen. Frederic is expected to get a run at centre early in the season.
The Oilers bringing in at least one top-six winger before next year's trade deadline is something to watch out for.