4 Oilers breakout candidates for the 2026-27 season
The Edmonton Oilers have hit a major organizational fork in the road after being bounced from the playoffs in the first round last year.
Connor McDavid’s sweetheart two-year extension kicks in this season, and by the time next summer rolls around when he’s eligible to extend, there will be plenty of noise about what his future looks like. As much as it’s hard to picture him playing elsewhere, the same was once said about Wayne Gretzky, and look at what happened there.
It’s going to be crucial for the whole team to have a good season, and there are three breakout candidates primed to help push the team forward.
Matt Savoie
Simply put, it could be a meteoric rise for Savoie this season. After starting last season toiling away in the Oilers’ bottom six, he was moved to the top line after the Olympic break, scoring nine goals and 19 points in 24 games, nearly the same number he put up in the first 58 games of the season.
It will be up to Savoie to seize the opportunity in front of him and stick on the Oilers’ top line alongside McDavid — and even if he ends up alongside Leon Draisaitl on the second line — he’ll be in for a big season. The Dynamic Duo tends to get the most out of their linemates in terms of production, and........
