Mattias Ekholm Wants To Stay With Oilers
The Edmonton Oilers’ next summer will be clouded by record-setting contract negotiations, but they’ll have a heap of top talent to re-sign behind Connor McDavid. Top of the list will be defenseman Mattias Ekholm, who expressed a strong desire to stick around in a recent conversation with Daily Faceoff’s Jason Gregor. The 35-year-old defenseman said:
Absolutely I want to stay in Edmonton, but I know you have to take care of the big boys first. Once [Connor McDavid] gets [signed] I’m sure we will talk.
Ekholm was narrowly Edmonton’s third defenseman last season. He averaged 22:12 in ice time each game while rotating in-and-out of a top pair role with Darnell Nurse, who averaged 22:22. His year ended with an impressive nine goals and 33 points in 65 games – the second-highest scoring season he’s had since 2020. He managed his highest last year, when he scored 11 goals and 45 points in 75 games.
Even in his sunset years, Ekholm has remained an active impact in all three zones. He shows no signs of wavering any time soon, and offers Edmonton’s blue-line unique veteran value. But he’ll be 36 by the time he’s playing out his next contract. That will cap his next deal in both price and term. He’s wrapping up a four-year, $25MM deal originally signed with the Nashville Predators in 2021. Halving that deal could be an interesting start for next summer’s negotiations, though Ekholm could surely earn a bit more after two proficient seasons in Edmonton.
Derek Ryan Announces Retirement
Center Derek Ryan has decided on retirement, he told Bob Stauffer of Oilers Now on 880 CHED yesterday.
“I’m retiring. We, my family, are back home in Spokane,” he told Stauffer. “The kids started at their new school here today. I didn’t actively look for a job this off-season. Europe could’ve been an option, maybe other NHL teams, but if it wasn’t going to be Edmonton, I didn’t want to move the family again. As the kids get older that gets harder. We had good roots in Edmonton, and, shoot, I’m almost 40. It’s nice to settle in here in Spokane. We have our house, friends, and family. It’s nice to be home.”
Not only is Ryan from Spokane, but it’s where he began his junior career with the WHL’s Spokane Chiefs all the way back in 2004. His three-year run there preceded one of the most unique pathways to becoming an NHL fixture in recent memory.
Undrafted, Ryan opted to enter the Canadian university system when his junior eligibility ran out in 2007. That’s not uncommon in and of itself, but it’s not a pathway many future NHLers undertake. Those who do rarely spend a full four years there, but that’s exactly what Ryan did. He played for the University of Alberta from 2007 to 2011, leading the CIS West in scoring in his senior season with a 17-30–47 line in 28 games.
Ryan, already 25 years old at the time, then decided to make the jump overseas instead of pursuing a professional career stateside. It was in Europe that the 5’10”, 185-lb center unlocked offensive dominance. He spent three years in the EBEL (now ICEHL), Austria’s top league, playing with Villacher SV (2012-14) and Hungarian club Fehérvár AV19 (2011-12). He recorded 199 points in just 158 EBEL games over that span, including a spectacular 2013-14 campaign that saw him lead the league with 38 goals in 54 games to earn MVP honors.
He then made the jump to higher-level European pro hockey in Sweden, a decision that finally put him on the NHL’s radar. He spent one year with the SHL’s Örebro HK, where he erupted for a 15-45–60 line in 55 games to lead one of Europe’s top leagues in assists and points, being named the SHL’s MVP and Forward of the Year.
Ryan finally landed a two-way deal with the Hurricanes – inking his first NHL contract at age 28 – the following summer. He was immediately named the captain of the AHL’s Charlotte Checkers, their minor-league affiliate at the time, and was an AHL All-Star with 55 points in 70 games. He also got his first taste of NHL hockey late in the season, scoring his first goal in his first game of a six-game call-up.
That trial run kicked off an NHL career spanning over 600 games, most of which were played after his 30th birthday. He quickly established himself as a defensively responsible third-line pivot in Carolina, scoring 69 points in 153 games for the club while averaging over 15 minutes per night. He reached unrestricted free agency in 2018 and got rewarded by the Flames, signing a three-year, $9.375MM contract to return to the province where he played college hockey.
Ryan’s first season in Calgary was arguably the best of his career. He recorded a 13-25–38 scoring line in 81 games and, while he saw a reduction in ice time, won a team-high 58.2% of his faceoffs and added a +21 rating. That earned him Selke Trophy consideration, landing a fifth-place vote for the only time in his career.
While Ryan’s productivity and usage declined steadily over the course of his tenure with the Flames, that didn’t mean he was in an unfettered downward spiral. He still landed a multi-year deal in free agency from the cross-provincial rival Oilers in 2021, signing a two-year, $2.5MM pact to round out their fourth line.
That kicked off a four-year run for Ryan in Edmonton, the longest of his three NHL stops and a run that concluded just a few months ago. He was a regular from 2021 to 2024, appearing in at least 70 games for his first three years there, but was relegated to the press box for a good chunk of last season and even landed on waivers. He totaled 29 goals and 60 points in 261 games for Edmonton, appearing in 19 games in their run to the 2024 Stanley Cup Final but no playing time last postseason. He scored one goal and six points in 36 NHL games last season and also had eight points in 13 games for AHL Bakersfield after clearing waivers, his first minor-league action in nearly a decade.
Ryan ends his rather remarkable pro career with 82 goals, 127 assists, and 209 points in 606 NHL regular-season games with a +14 rating. He was also one of the better faceoff-takers of the last decade, winning 55.3% of his draws.
PHR congratulates Ryan on his persevering career and wishes him the best in his post-playing future.
Image courtesy of Walter Tychnowicz-Imagn Images.
Connor McDavid Seeking Three-To-Five-Year Extension
- Although some noise was made at Team Canada’s Olympic orientation camp regarding Connor McDavid‘s extension talks with the Edmonton Oilers, not much was made about the potential length of a new contract. McDavid signed a max-term eight-year contract with the Oilers back in 2017, but Pagnotta doesn’t believe that’ll be the case this time around. He asserts that the industry belief is that McDavid will prioritize a three-to-five-year deal, with the idea that a five-year deal would cost the Oilers approximately $17MM a year. Should McDavid’s camp push the term lower, his salary could reach the $20MM per season mark.
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Zach Hyman Unsure He’ll Be Ready To Start The Season
Back in late May, Oilers winger Zach Hyman suffered a dislocated wrist in the Western Conference Final, resulting in surgery that kept him out for the rest of their playoff run. The veteran told NHL.com’s Dan Rosen that while his recovery is on track, he’s unsure if he’ll be cleared by the time the regular season gets underway in early October.
Unlike 2019, when he was working his way back from a knee issue, Hyman has been able to skate regularly but still needs a brace on his wrist. His ability to build up strength on that wrist will go a long way toward determining if he’ll be cleared for opening night. He has one more meeting scheduled with the surgeon as well.
In 2023-24, Hyman surprised many with a 54-goal season after reaching the 30-goal plateau for just the first time in his career the year before. That meant expectations for him were quite high heading into last season. However, he wasn’t able to produce anywhere near that level. In 73 games, he notched 27 goals (still tied for the third-best mark in his career) along with 17 assists and produced at a somewhat similar clip in the playoffs before the injury, tallying six goals and five helpers in 15 contests.
As things stand, Edmonton projects to have less than $226K of cap space heading into the season, per PuckPedia. That doesn’t give them much in the way of wiggle room for injury insurance if Hyman isn’t available to start the season; the minimum salary is $775K. Meanwhile, for Hyman to become LTIR-eligible (which would open up some short-term flexibility), he’d have to miss at least the first 10 games and 24 days of the season and at this point, there’s no guarantee he’d need to miss that much time if he’s not available on opening night. Accordingly, Hyman’s availability (or lack thereof) will be one of the key storylines heading into training camp next month for the Oilers.
Poll: Who Is The Early Favorite To Win The 2026 Calder Trophy?
The hockey world was treated to a true gift by the race for the 2025 Calder Trophy, awarded annually to the NHL’s top rookie. The class lived up to years of expectations, headlined by Montreal Canadiens defenseman Lane Hutson tying Larry Murphy for the most assists by a rookie defender. He took home the Calder ahead of San Jose Sharks top center Macklin Celebrini and Calgary Flames starting goaltender Dustin Wolf – who both managed star-studded and historic performances of their own. The heap of talent left players who could have won the trophy outright in seemingly any other year – options like 26-goal-scorer Matvei Michkov. A rookie class so strong will be impossible to follow up, but the group in 2025-26 seem to have a great chance to come close.
Early predictions will have the Calder Trophy staying put through in 2026. The Canadiens are set to award star rookie Ivan Demidov with his first NHL season, after he led KHL super-club SKA St. Petersburg with in scoring with 49 points in 62 games last season. He was a sheer force at Russia’s top level, showing a pace, strength, and finesse that was unmatched by his competition. Demidov finished the year with five points in six Gagarin Cup Playoff matchups, before scoring four points in his first seven games with Montreal.
Demidov is now set to assume a key role in the Canadiens’ lineup. It’s hard to imagine he won’t play true top-line minutes. He offers the in-tight skill and low-zone grit to perfectly complement spot-shooter Cole Caufield and playmaking, two-way center Nick Suzuki. The stars will be Demidov’s ceiling if he gets a full year to such talented players. He nearly recorded a 20-30-50 season in the KHL – a league often lauded as near-equal to the NHL. That standing could set him up for 60, or even 70, points in his first year with Montreal.
It will be a tight race to catch up to, and overcome, Demidov. A slew of star collegiate players signed their entry-level contracts at the end of the season, and could easily be set for major minutes of their own. Sam Rinzel fills a need for right-shot defense for the Blackhawks and Oliver Moore seemed to bring his slick-passing to Chicago, Gabe Perreault looked like a strong utility player with the New York Rangers, and Ryan Leonard showed an ability to match the Washington Capitals’ pace.
And yet, all four could be outdone by Minnesota Wild defenseman Zeev Buium, who managed an impressive 98 points in 83 games at the University of Denver. He appeared in four Stanley Cup Playoff games, but only managed one assist. Also atop the defense charts is top KHL defender Alexander Nikishin, who ended a stalemate when he finally joined the Carolina Hurricanes for the playoffs. Nikishin ranked second on SKA St. Petersburg with 46 points in 61 games, and matched Buium’s postseason statline.
Even still, the OHL could emerge. Sam Dickinson served as the star of the 2025 Memorial Cup-winning London Knights, and seems well-primed for a big role with the desolate San Jose Sharks. He could be joined by the reigning ‘OHL Player of the Year’ Michael Misa, who managed an incredible 62 goals and 134 points in 65 OHL games last season. Misa was drafted second in this year’s class, with New York Islanders defenseman Matthew Schaefer the only selection before him. The smooth-moving, sharp-eyed Schaefer could be another Calder candidate, though he hasn’t played a season-game since sustaining a broken collarbone during the World Junior Championships last December.
It will be hard for any player to rival the record-breaking heights that Hutson reached last season, but the list of candidates looking to follow him up seems endless. Any one of the aforementioned players could find their way into a star role, or the award could go to someone entirely different – like 2025 Hobey Baker Award-winner and Edmonton Oilers winger Isaac Howard.
With so much talent on the board, who do you think will win the 2026 Calder Trophy? If you choose ‘Other’, comment your pick below!
Who Is The Early Favorite To Win The 2026 Calder Trophy?
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Ivan Demidov, Canadiens 49% (477)
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Alexander Nikishin, Hurricanes 14% (132)
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Zeev Buium, Wild 13% (122)
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Matthew Schaefer, Islanders 10% (100)
Total votes: 966
Mobile users click here to vote.
McDavid Comments On Contract Situation
As Canada’s Olympic orientation camp got underway today, plenty of the focus was on Connor McDavid’s contract situation with the Oilers, namely that an extension hasn’t been completed yet. Speaking with reporters today including Sportsnet’s Eric Francis, the center indicated that he has every intention to win with Edmonton and that is his only focus. However, when asked if he’d be okay opening the season without a deal, McDavid indicated that all options are on the table.
At this point, it doesn’t appear as if there have been any substantive conversations between the two sides. TSN’s Ryan Rishaug reports (Twitter link) that there hasn’t been a back-and-forth between the Oilers and McDavid’s camp regarding either salary or term. Given that McDavid could plausibly sign a short-term or a long-term deal, it’s not a situation as simple as focusing on an eight-year deal and only worrying about the money. He’ll carry a $12.5MM AAV for the upcoming season and is expected to beat that by several million per season whenever he puts pen to paper on a new deal.
New Fan Park Pushed Forward In Edmonton
The city of Edmonton is one step closer to receiving a new fan park outside of Rogers Place, as the city council voted in favor of the proposed master agreement with Oilers Entertainment Group (OEG). This will clear the way for the proposed construction of the $250MM downtown event park, Village at Ice District land work, and demolition of the coliseum, per Keith Gerein of the Edmonton Journal.
Tyson Barrie Announces Retirement
Amid his participation in yesterday’s Avalanche alumni game, defenseman Tyson Barrie confirmed to Nathan Rudolph of the DNVR Avalanche podcast that he’s retired.
A third-round pick of the Avalanche in 2009, Barrie was a highly intriguing offensive option out of the WHL’s Kelowna Rockets and quickly looked like he could be something of a steal. He led the league in assists by a defenseman in his post-draft year and was named the WHL’s top defenseman as a result, but concerns about the righty’s size and defensive acumen meant he returned for a fourth and final season of junior hockey before making the jump to the pro ranks in 2011-12. Even then, he spent most of that year in the minors and only received 10 NHL games.
He slowly worked his way up the Avs’ depth chart, seeing less and less AHL time each season before earning his final recall in November 2013, early in his age-22 season. While he checked in as a fringe top-four option at even strength, he overtook Erik Johnson as Colorado’s top power-play quarterback and ended up recording a 13-25–38 scoring line in 64 games over the balance of the campaign. Those 0.59 points per game placed him inside the top-15 among NHL rearguards that year.
The 2014-15 campaign marked Barrie’s true coming of age. He broke the 50-point plateau – the first of four times he’d end up doing so in his career – while serving as Colorado’s de facto No. 1 option for a good portion of the season with Johnson injured. He would continue averaging north of 21 minutes per game for the remainder of his Colorado tenure, twice earning fringe votes for year-end All-Star honors.
Colorado didn’t have a ton of team success during Barrie’s six-year run as a full-timer there, though, only making the playoffs three times and winning a round once. His struggles away from the puck played a significant role in that. Only once, his final season in Denver, did Barrie manage to record a positive expected rating based on shot quality generated and allowed when he was on the ice at even strength. He posted a negative actual plus/minus rating in his last four years for Colorado, including a league-worst -34 mark in the Avs’ disastrous 22-win season in 2016-17.
Entering the 2019-20 season, Barrie was a pending unrestricted free agent and had been made redundant with Cale Makar‘s emergence in the preceding postseason. That kicked off the latter journeyman phase of his career, beginning with a July 1 blockbuster that sent him to the Maple Leafs in exchange for Nazem Kadri. It didn’t work out all that well for Barrie or Toronto. He was no longer his club’s top power play option, sitting behind Morgan Rielly on the Leafs’ power play pyramid, and his offensive output declined to a more pedestrian 5-34–39 scoring line in 70 games as a result.
With Barrie’s point production his only real calling card, the fit in Toronto obviously wasn’t going to be a long-term one. They let him become a free agent during the COVID-laced 2020 offseason, and he proceeded to land a one-year, $3.75MM “prove-it” deal with the Oilers.
Barrie was plopped onto a top power-play unit in Edmonton with the two-headed monster of Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid – the league’s two leading scorers in the shortened 2021 season – and responded with the best campaign of his career. He recorded 48 points in the truncated 56-game schedule, leading the NHL in scoring among defenders. His defensive deficiencies remained quite visible, though. He only managed a +5 rating compared to regular partner Darnell Nurse‘s +27 mark, and as Edmonton was swept in the first round of the playoffs, Barrie became the first defenseman in league history to lead the position in scoring while not receiving a single Norris Trophy vote.
While Barrie remained a fine puck-mover for the Oilers, his production never quite found that gear again. His minutes began to drop back below the 20-minute mark, and at the 2023 deadline, he was sent to the Predators in the deal that landed Edmonton two-way dynamo Mattias Ekholm.
Nashville marked the last real turning point in Barrie’s career, and it wasn’t for the better. While he was still quite effective for the Preds down the stretch after the trade, recording 12 points in 24 games, that didn’t last very long. In 2023-24 – the final year of a three-year, $13.5MM extension he signed with Edmonton – Barrie tumbled down Nashville’s depth chart and ended up becoming a routine healthy scratch by the time the season ended. As such, he was limited to just one goal and 15 points in 41 games and only drew into the Preds’ playoff lineup once in their first-round loss to the Canucks.
Ahead of his age-33 season and with his value at an all-time low, Barrie ended up needing to settle for a professional tryout with the Flames to participate in an NHL training camp last fall. He did convert that into a $1.25MM contract in early October, but the fit wasn’t quite what Calgary hoped for. He only logged 13 appearances for the club and even ended up on waivers and cleared, seeing his first AHL action in over a decade with the Calgary Wranglers.
Barrie was a free agent this summer, and there was no reported interest in him on the open market. He hangs up his skates with 822 games played in 14 seasons, 23rd among his rather stacked draft class. He scored 110 goals and added 398 assists for 508 points, 10th in the league among defensemen since he debuted back in the 2011-12 season. He averaged just over 21 minutes per night for his career and made $47.85MM in estimated total earnings, per PuckPedia.
All of us at PHR congratulate Barrie on his fine career and wish him the best in his next steps.
Image courtesy of Sergei Belski-Imagn Images.
Connor McDavid, Oilers Still Talking Extension
Despite being one of the biggest storylines of the offseason, superstar Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers have yet to reach an agreement on a contract extension. However, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman believes there’s a clear window where both sides could come together to get a deal done.
With one year remaining on his deal, McDavid would be set for unrestricted free agency next offseason if an extension with the Oilers cannot be worked out. But on his 32 Thoughts podcast, Friedman noted his belief that the two sides can come together following Team Canada’s Olympic Camp (Aug. 26-28) and before Oilers training camp kicks off.
“At the start of camp, I could see it. I just think everyone wants to get it done,” said Friedman, who added his belief that both sides would be motivated to get it done before training camp to avoid any potential distractions. “I would expect between Olympic camp and training camp that they sit down and say, ‘How’s this going?'”
While talks have dragged on longer than the Oilers might prefer, a departure has always seemed unlikely for the four-time Hart Memorial Trophy winner. GM Stan Bowman further removed doubt in late July when he noted that extension talks were ongoing and heading in a positive direction. At the time, Bowman said he was “very encouraged” by his early conversations with McDavid’s agent, Judd Moldaver.
The real question isn’t if the extension will get worked out, but when and for how much annually. McDavid’s current contract carries a $12.5MM AAV, and it’s conceivable he’ll aim for the highest annual salary in the league — a mark currently held by teammate Leon Draisaitl, whose new deal carries a $14MM AAV over the next five seasons.
McDavid tallied 26 goals and 100 points in 67 games last season, notching the seventh 100-point campaign of his already remarkable career. He followed that up with a league-leading 33 points in the playoffs.
Oilers Notes: Berezkin, Gregor, Nicholl
Winger Maxim Berezkin is one of the more intriguing players in Edmonton’s prospect pool. The 23-year-old was a fifth-round pick back in 2020, going 138th overall but has become somewhat of a later bloomer after becoming a full-time KHL player three years ago. He’s coming off his best season at that level, one that saw him produce 15 goals and 27 assists in 66 regular season games while adding 14 points in 21 playoff contests with KHL Lokomotiv Yaroslavl as they won the Gagarin Cup.
Berezkin signed a new one-year to remain in the KHL back in May but that shouldn’t be viewed as a sign that he doesn’t want to come to North America. In an interview with Daria Tuboltseva for Vseprosport, he indicated that he still intends to sign with Edmonton but that he felt it would be best for his development to spend this season back home over potentially spending this year in the minors with AHL Bakersfield. Now, whenever he ultimately signs, Berezkin will be capped at a one-year entry-level deal.
More from Edmonton:
- There has been some speculation that the Oilers will be looking at some tryouts heading into training camp. One player who hasn’t had discussions with Edmonton on that front yet is winger Noah Gregor, according to Jim Matheson of the Edmonton Journal. An Alberta native, Gregor has had to go the PTO route to secure a full contract before and after putting up just four goals and three assists in 52 games last season between Ottawa and San Jose, there’s a good chance he’ll have to settle for a tryout in the coming weeks.
- Prospect Will Nicholl won’t be starting his 2025-26 for quite a while. His junior team, the London Knights of the OHL, announced (Twitter link) that the forward underwent successful upper-body surgery earlier this summer and will miss four to six months. The 19-year-old was a seventh-round pick back in 2024 and had a solid showing last season, picking up 21 goals and 36 assists in 66 games. Edmonton must sign Nicholl by June 1st or relinquish his rights so it’s fair to say the few months he does play this season will be crucial.