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Edmonton Oilers center Ryan Nugent-Hopkins celebrates with left winger Zach Hyman, center Leon Draisaitl, center Connor McDavid and defenseman Evan Bouchard a goal against the Calgary Flames (Walter Tychnowicz-Imagn Images)

Edmonton Oilers’ Lineup Post-Trade Deadline

Originally posted on The Hockey Writers
By Jackson Scherger | Last updated Mar 7, 2026 8:45 AM ET

A trade deadline that saw the Edmonton Oilers make a couple moves early on and then pump the brakes seemed to be overall successful, whether fans believe it or not. General manager Stan Bowman addressed some defensive and depth needs with trades for Connor Murphy, Jason Dickinson, and Colton Dach. Now it’s time to think about where these new players slot into the Oilers’ lineup for the rest of the season.

There are a lot of different ways to look at it, but I believe there is a certain recipe the Oilers should roll with to start out in the days following the deadline. Let’s look at what it could look like right now.

Forward Lines

Starting with the forward combinations, the additions of Dickinson and Dach and subtraction of Andrew Mangiapane, as well as the loss of Mattias Janmark due to shoulder surgery creates a bit of a shake-up. Here’s what I think it could look like:

Ryan Nugent-Hopkins — Connor McDavid — Zach Hyman
Jack Roslovic — Leon Draisaitl — Matt Savoie
Vasily Podkolzin — Jason Dickinson — Kasperi Kapanen
Colton Dach — Adam Henrique — Trent Frederic

Other than maybe some placement on the wings (depending on the night), the first three lines seem pretty obvious; McDavid with his two sidekicks, Draisaitl with a couple of right-handers with speed and great shots, and Dickinson between two hard-hitting wingers who can score when you need them to. Nugent-Hopkins is also a great option for an extra centre in the top-nine if needed.

There is an argument to be made that Frederic and Kapanen could switch off at some points to add some speed to the fourth line and more muscle to the third, but otherwise it should stay as is in my book.

The fourth line is the one that will need some figuring out. I originally had Josh Samanski in for Henrique, but the Oilers opted to send him down to the American Hockey League (AHL) after the deadline to make room for the new acquisitions. Henrique isn’t having his best season, but he’s a playoff performer who could use a couple of scrappy, younger guys that will cycle the puck and help wear down the other team. It just might take some time to get this line going.

Dach brings a heavy-hitting presence to the Oilers’ bottom-six as he ranks inside the NHL’s top 10 in hits. Pair that with a big veteran like Henrique and Edmonton’s second biggest hitter in Frederic, and it’s a dangerous line when they get up to full speed.

Defence Pairs

The Oilers’ defence pairs have seen a couple different experiments with some of their struggles lately. With the addition of Murphy, it’s time for them to find some permanent duos to work with going towards the playoffs. Here’s what I believe their starting point should be on the blue line:

Mattias Ekholm — Evan Bouchard
Darnell Nurse — Connor Murphy
Jake Walman — Ty Emberson

Ekholm and Bouchard staying together is a no-brainer for me. They lead all defence pairs in the NHL (with a minimum of 60 minutes played together) in expected goals for by a wide margin at 52.4. Their goals against numbers aren’t as stellar, but it is clear that both players are improving game over game and play extremely well off each other. They’ve been workhorses in the playoffs for this team in the past as well.

The Edmonton Oilers celebrate a goal scored by defensemen Evan Bouchard (Perry Nelson-Imagn Images)

Nurse’s particularly tough stretch of games (and season) has garnered a lot of criticism, but he is still a part of the team and just needs the right partner. Murphy is a stay-at-home, shutdown defender with a big frame. He will hopefully be a steady force alongside Nurse that can make them a valuable pair down the stretch.

Walman has also had his struggles lately, but he is still a great defenceman. His dynamic, two-way style would pair nicely with either Emberson or Spencer Stastney, but ultimately I think Emberson gets the edge for now. Stastney likely rotates in here and there as he’s been a stud defensively; however, Emberson has been with the team longer and plays a similar style that will work on a balanced third pair.

Oilers Goalie Question

The most questioned position in Oil Country since anyone can remember: goaltender. The Oilers made their moves earlier in the season, and despite the questions still surrounding it amid a bad game here and there, they are sticking to their guns the rest of the way. Tristan Jarry and Connor Ingram appear to be the pair that will lead this team on a potential playoff run. The question is, who’s the starter?

Of the two, Ingram has looked better in the net as of late, and I believe he should get the lion’s share of the starts for the foreseeable future. Jarry was brought in to be the starter, but hasn’t looked the part (yet) and should have to work towards that. Ideally, the Oilers get to a point late in the season where both goalies are playing well, and they can use them in more of a 1A/1B type of system. For now, Ingram is the guy.

These are all just predictions, of course, and things typically change game-to-game for Edmonton. We will see how things shake out in the coming weeks and months for this team.