It was announced on Thursday that Oscar Klefbom, an ex-defenseman for the Edmonton Oilers, is hanging up his skates at the age of 31. We all saw it coming, but now it’s been made official.
Related Post: The Career of Oscar Klefbom: What Could Have Been
Drafted 19th overall by Edmonton in 2011, the same summer as the Ryan Nugent-Hopkins Draft, Klefbom played in 378 NHL games and put up 156 points. He also had 7 points in 16 Playoff games. In Round 1 against the San Jose Sharks in 2017, the season where the Oilers ended a 10 year Playoff drought, he scored the franchise’s first Playoff goal since Fernando Pisani in Game 7 of the 2006 Stanley Cup Finals. He hasn’t played an NHL game since the 2019/2020 season due to a shoulder injury that has only been worsening over the years.
Klefbom was their version of Mattias Ekholm before they traded for the real Mattias Ekholm. He is a solid two-way defenseman, good in his zone, and could also chip in for offense. While lacking credit leaguewide for the improved defensive play on the Oilers, this injury was a long-term blow to the franchise. That, and Adam Larsson’s UFA departure for personal reasons, held previous Oilers GM Ken Holland back from upgrading the team’s group of 6 on defense. His sweetheart contract was a bonus, $4,167,000 per season for eight years, signed in 2015. The team’s salary cap total would’ve looked much more favorable to Oilers fans.
We wish him a happy and healthy retirement. If that shoulder didn’t end his career… Oh, what may’ve been.
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