Every once in a while, an Oilers fan on Twitter will retweet Edmonton’s lineup from the 2018/2019 season. We can laugh at it now, but this roster has come a long way from what we used to sit through.
The mouths of every fan in Oil Country got watery after July 1st. An already elite offensive roster looks more dangerous and more challenging to shut down. We know Evander Kane is starting the 2024/2025 season on Long Term Injured Reserve. Imagine him being added to this group if he was healthy. A healthier Kane would’ve been a slight boost in Rounds 3 and 4 last season. Subtracting some speed with the departures of Warren Foegele, Ryan McLeod, and Dylan Holloway wasn’t preferred. But the finishing skillset of their replacements should be enough to fill the void. Unrestricted Free Agents were offered more money by other teams, but chose to sign/re-sign with our team for less. That was the wish of Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, as the potential to win a Stanley Cup in the Alberta capital is apparent. The same franchise that gave Benoit Pouliot and Mark Fayne $7.5M combined ten years ago, gave Jeff Skinner and Viktor Arvidsson $7M combined ten years later. Winning more games than losing will do that for you. Each line is subject to change even a little as the season goes on. There’s bound to be an experiment or two every now and then. But let’s have some fun before the season starts. My ideal forward lines are…
Jeff Skinner/Connor McDavid/Zach Hyman
One change to the usual top line. McDavid and Hyman are still together, but Skinner is the new guy on Connor’s left wing. 97 would have both a hard-working garbage goal scorer and a shooter with multiple 30-40 goal seasons to choose from after speeding with the puck. It might be wishful thinking to expect 50+ goals from Zach again. But he’s always known his job, and that won’t go away just yet. Jeff still has yet to make a postseason appearance despite being a 14-year veteran. That could easily change with his new team. His spot normally belongs to Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, but I have another idea in mind.
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins/Leon Draisaitl/Viktor Arvidsson
During the 2024 Playoffs, Head Coach Kris Knoblauch alluded to Draisaitl producing without having elite wingers. Jeff Jackson clearly took this to heart when he was the interim General Manager by increasing the winger depth significantly. Arvidsson is no stranger to the Oilers, having been on the Los Angeles side that lost two first rounds in a row against Edmonton(he didn’t play for the Kings in 2022). Injuries have been an issue at times in his career. He only played 18 regular season games last year, but put up 15 points. Aside from just the offense, he can also fill in the peskiness that Kane would’ve had covered. Some people have pinned Skinner on this line, but I’d rather have Nugent-Hopkins on here for the sake of defense. Draisaitl sometimes has a tendency to be a giveaway machine. As vastly improved as his wings are, an offense only line would bleed goals against. I think it’s best to balance that out with someone who has the 200ft game to help mask mistakes.
Mattias Janmark/Adam Henrique/Connor Brown
At times last season, you could make a drinking game for every breakaway or 2v1 rush that Janmark and Brown failed to capitalize on. But the further their team went in the postseason, they became penalty kill/ shorthanded goal magicians. Those two and Henrique wound up being a productive 3rd line in the Stanley Cup Finals. Who knows if they’ll stay consistent with that offense, it was a small sample size. They won’t mind the familiarity, though. Oilers fans are mostly looking forward to a possible bounce-back season from Brown, a major whipping boy last season. His knee injury from 2022/2023 that held his production back a lot in 2023/2024 should be a thing of the past. Henrique put up 42 points in 60 games on the 30th place team before being traded to Edmonton. Janmark can play center and wing, so he can take over the faceoff dot at times if need be. I think this has the potential to be a perfect 3rd line, defensively sound while chipping in for odd goals and giving the top 6 a break.
Vasily Podkolzin/Derek Ryan/Corey Perry
Let’s call this the “Whatever Line” because it really is just “Whatever”. I’m certain we could also see call-ups from time to time for youth purposes. Ryan is still serviceable on faceoffs, put him in defensive situations. But he’s not hitting 20 points again, which would be okay for a 4th liner. That being said, he was also on the money when he told a reporter that his job as a bottom 6 forward can help lead to offensive situations for the top forwards, even if the bottom 6 isn’t always producing. This is an audition for Podkolzin, a former top 10 draft pick that didn’t pan out in Vancouver. The red flag here is Perry. I thought his regular season between Edmonton and Chicago was pretty decent, considering his age. But in the Playoffs, it’s fair criticism to say he was their worst forward. He only scored 1 goal, and most people think it was scored by McDavid. There was also a moment in the second round where he held up his stick against an opposing player. Those were the only two highlights of him in the Cup run that anyone can remember. I didn’t agree with re-signing him, most fans assumed he would retire. But I assume they brought him back because the players like having him around as a leader. If he’s going to play a decent amount of games this season, I want him to be a pest again, even if he doesn’t score.
I’ll be back projecting the defense pairings next. Do you like these lines? Would you form them differently? Let me know.
ITR 26: 2 Nations Fighting – Inside The Rink
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