What will the Oilers be looking for at the NHL trade deadline? Catching up with GM Stan Bowman

New York Times

07-02-2025

That early-season slump sure is a thing of the past for the Edmonton Oilers. It has been for quite a while.
It's hard to believe it even happened.
This tweet Thursday from Oilers broadcaster Bob Stauffer said it all:
The @EdmontonOilers have the best record in the NHL since November 7th:
28-9-3 (.738)
— Bob Stauffer (@Bob_Stauffer) February 6, 2025
Have they been playing their very best of late? No, but they're grinding out points in the standings despite not having their very best.
The Oil are the best bet currently to win the Stanley Cup this season, according to the latest modeling from The Athletic's stats guru, Dom Luszcyszyn.
All of which begs the question: What do you get a team without any glaring weakness?
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Well, no team is perfect, and the Oilers will absolutely try to add. More on that in a moment.
Sitting down with The Athletic on Thursday, Oilers general manager Stan Bowman reflected back on the start of the season and what's transpired since with a team that is clearly showing signs of wanting to take care of unfinished business this spring.
'We did have a bit of a slow start,' he said. 'The results weren't there, but we actually were playing OK in October. Not as good as we are now. But a few things changed, our special teams improved, which made a big difference. Our goaltending improved as well.'
'We've been very consistent since that point. From November on, we've had a really good run in all areas. Special teams. Goaltending. And our best players have been dominant. Obviously, when that happens, you're going to win a lot of games.'
The blueline corps has also answered the bell. Losing Cody Ceci, Philip Broberg and Vincent Desharnais in the offseason made many think the Oilers could struggle defensively this season, myself included. But Ty Emberson and Troy Stetcher (acquired before the deadline last season) have filled in within a group still led by Mattias Ekholm, Evan Bouchard, Darnell Nurse and Brett Kulak.
The result? The Oilers are sixth in the league in goals against per game, sandwiched between the No. 5 Los Angeles Kings and No. 7Carolina Hurricanes. Good company.
That's a team-wide effort, but it starts on the blue line.
'There was a narrative that was formed over the offseason that the defense wasn't good enough,' Bowman said. 'I wasn't sure that I bought that, necessarily. I was new to the team so I wanted to see how it went when the games began. I don't think it's accurate.
'First of all, your defense as a team is not always the six defensemen. The one thing I've discovered with getting to know our coaching staff and our team is we are a very in-sync group between the forwards and our defensemen. Our defensive metrics are excellent, and it's because the defensemen have played well but I would say it's also a representation of the team's performance where our forwards do a good job. We really are a unit of five most shifts.
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'We don't expose individual players to a lot where they're forced to do a lot by themselves.'
The Oilers have also been relatively healthy on defense, which has neutralized concerns over depth in case the injuries start piling up. They did add free agent John Klingberg last month, who has traveled a long road back from hip surgery.
'He brings a different element,' Bowman said. 'He's only played a handful of games here, but the good news is he will end up getting 30-odd games in (before the playoffs), which will help him a lot. He missed a whole season and training camp and jumped in. So it's going to take him some time to get up to speed, but I think he's going to give us another look back there. He's very comfortable with the puck, and we've seen that in these few games where he's shown he's still got that ability to see plays and buy time and space and find guys.'
How Klingberg fares is a rather important factor for the team, according to former Oilers defenseman Jason Strudwick, co-host of the Got Your Back Oilers podcast with Ryan Rishaug and a panelist during Oilers games on Sportsnet.
'It's been a really good start for him,' Strudwick told The Athletic. 'The spot beside Darnell Nurse is a really important one for the Oilers, and if Klingberg can continue to play the way they think he needs to … I mean, he's great with the puck. But he hasn't played in a long time. The play away from the puck probably takes longer (to come back).
'If he can take that spot (with Nurse), to me that opens up the possibility for everything. Because that was the big thing they had to address: the player beside Nurse on that second pairing.'
Looking ahead to the March 7 trade deadline, the Oilers may be looking to add again on defense. When you're a Cup contender budgeting for two months of playoff hockey, you might need to go 10 to 11 deep.
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'We're spending a lot of time with our staff really looking around the league at different teams and players that could be available,' Bowman said. 'Depth-wise, I think if we're going to add a defenseman it's probably going to be a lefty. We've got a lot of righties now.
'Our top our top three lefties have been excellent between Ekholm, Kulak and Nurse. … But I think underneath that, if one of them were to get injured, then yeah we don't have that experienced depth on the left side. So that's one area to look at.'
Up front, the Oilers may look to add a bottom-six forward. Whether that's a center or a winger depends.
'We have a few ways we can go about it,' Bowman said. 'When we use (Ryan) Nugent-Hopkins on the wing, then we probably would like to look at a depth center. But if we choose to use him in the middle, then we've got four great centers (Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, Nugent-Hopkins and Adam Henrique).'
Nugent-Hopkins has played a little more wing this season, but of late has been at center more often.
'That's something we're evaluating with our coaches,' Bowman said. 'Whether it's a winger or a center, it's going to be dependant on where we think we want to use Nuge.'
That conversation might also hinge on how much trust the coaches have in winger Jeff Skinner. He has been better recently, and if he's turning a corner, that would be pretty impactful.
'Skinner's playing better lately and getting a bigger opportunity,' Bowman said. 'He hasn't had probably as big a role maybe as he wanted but I think that's trending in the right direction.'
In my view, adding size and sandpaper to their bottom six is the way to go. They've got enough skill already. They need to beef up.
'I would really like a bigger body up front that can be physical,' Strudwick agreed. 'One guy I think about is (pending unrestricted free agent) Jordan Greenway in Buffalo. That's the type of player I would like to see them add. Big, heavy guy who will announce his presence.
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'Most likely you're going to have to go through Vegas (in the playoffs), and they've got some huge D. They're six, seven deep with big D who are mobile. It's harder to get through those guys when you're a smaller player. You add Greenway in that bottom six … he's going to create some physical matchup issues for the group.'
And finally, there's goaltending. There has been talk among Edmonton media and fans (again) about whether the Oilers need an upgrade over Stuart Skinner. Which I find surprising. I'm not saying he's perfect, but Skinner helped get the Oilers to within a win of the Cup last spring.
Is there even an upgrade on him available on the market?
I do believe John Gibson from the Anaheim Ducks would waive his no-trade clause to go to Edmonton. So there's that. But it sure doesn't sound like Bowman sees goaltending as an area of concern.
'Our goalies have been great (since November),' he said. 'Calvin Pickard is 10-1 in his last 11 games. And Skinner's been excellent, too. Based on the performance of the team and their performance individually, they've done a really good job for us.
'So, I'm not sure where that comes from. … We certainly believe in both of them, and we think they've been a big part of why our team has been so consistent over the last several months here.'
The reality is that regardless of the possible additions before March 7, the Oilers are poised to take another swing at it with the way they've played since November.
They're right there again.
The thing that's impressed Bowman most as he gets to know the team in his first year is the poise from a veteran core.
The Oilers have had games this season when they're down 2-0 or 3-0, and there's zero panic.
'We just sort of stick with it,' Bowman said. 'There's a competitive confidence with the group. You've got to give the coaches and the leaders a lot of credit for that. They do a great job of not overreacting to when they face adversity in a game or a stretch of games.
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'We have a mature group. They believe in their ability to continue to compete, even if they aren't on top of their game to start. They stick with it. Those are good signs because you're going to face adversity in the playoffs.'
There's no easy matchup in the Stanley Cup playoffs, Bowman added. You're getting a tough out right from the opening round. That's the NHL today. But the Oilers have the makeup again to perhaps grind their way to the end.
'The maturity of our group is probably the thing that's impressed me the most,' Bowman said. 'It gives you hope that when times get tough, they can power through it.'