The Edmonton Oilers’ first-round exit to the Anaheim Ducks was certainly disappointing, but I recently wrote that there were some silver linings to an otherwise unfulfilled season.

One of them was the growth of Vasily Podkolzin.

Podkolzin was a physical menace in the regular season, leading the team with 242 hits and six fights, both increases from a year ago. But above all, he set a career high in points with 37 (19 goals, 18 assists), while looking noticeably more confident with the puck and emerging as a leader on the team.

With that in mind, we chatted with his skills coach, Ned Lukacevic, about the differences he saw in Podkolzin’s game compared to a year ago, where he’s improved in several areas, and what the outlook is for their August offseason training sessions.

Q: Podkolzin set a career-high in points with 37. What are your thoughts on that, and how does it feel to watch him accomplish it?

“I wouldn’t say I’m surprised because you can see last year with the bit of opportunity that he was getting. He was having some success. You could see he was kind of just at the tip of the iceberg with what he can do with an opportunity.

We both talked about that point range, him and I, around the 40-point mark, and he was right on the nose.

It’s just amazing to watch. He put in a lot of work and battled through a lot of hardships.

Whether you know him personally or not, it’s inspiring to see someone put their head down and continually do the right things for the team — fighting, blocking shots, leading the team in hits, playing hard, and being reliable. It’s not easy to play that way every single night. Pods has earned every bit of the success and rewards that have come from his efforts.”

Q: What do you think were the biggest factors behind him breaking through like that?

“He got an opportunity to continue playing with Draisaitl, right? Then Draisaitl goes down, he plays a bit with McDavid, gets rewarded, and builds some confidence from there. And sometimes things kind of happen for you. It doesn’t always happen like that for everyone, but the chips sometimes fall into place when they’re supposed to.

And then obviously, it’s all about timing. And I believe his time had come.

A lot of players’ time comes, but they don’t take advantage of it or rise to the occasion. But Podkolzin did. He trained hard in the offseason. He knew exactly what he had to do when more opportunity opened up for him.

Edmonton Oilers

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This is getting Vasilly 🤪 #LetsGoOilers

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4:41 AM · Jan 18, 2026

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And I think with his hard work and effort, he was rewarded with a few bounces. Then he slowly built confidence and started finding his way onto the scoresheet more, and eventually started picking corners. And when that happens, it kind of compounds. And sometimes that’s all it takes, just that opportunity.

And once you get it, your season can take off, and your career can take off too.”

Q: Is there something you noticed in his game from the beginning of the season to the end that improved over the course of the year?

“I just thought he was carrying the puck more and holding onto it a little longer. He wasn’t just throwing the puck away to get rid of it.

seanpangs

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Vasily Podkolzin doing his best Pavel Bure impression. Jokes aside, Podkolzin sure has had some extra jump in his skating lately.

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4:35 AM · Mar 11, 2026

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He was hanging onto it more and passing up just an “okay” play for a better one. Even in the playoffs, he’d have the puck, turn back with it, and look for a better play. I also loved how he was shooting the puck more and being more assertive.

I also thought that when he was in a scoring position, and he’d receive the puck, it was on and off his stick so quickly. And I think that in times before, it would come off his stick a little slower than it should have.

So, I thought that he had more of a killer instinct from the get-go this........

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