Matt Tomkins To Make Oilers Debut Sunday Against Rangers

After Edmonton’s 4-0 win over the Islanders on Saturday, coach Mike Babcock announced that Matt Tomkins will make his Oilers debut tonight against the Rangers at Madison Square Garden, via Stephen Whyno of the Associated Press.

The nod comes on the second night of a back-to-back, with Tristan Jarry coming off his second consecutive shutout. Edmonton recalled Tomkins from AHL Bakersfield under emergency conditions on October 23 after placing Devon Levi on injured reserve with an undisclosed injury. Frederik Andersen remains on long-term injured reserve.

A Sherwood Park, Alberta, native, Tomkins played his junior hockey for the Sherwood Park Crusaders of the Alberta Junior Hockey League. While with the Crusaders, Tomkins was selected in the seventh round (199th overall) by the Blackhawks in 2012 and also announced his commitment to Ohio State University not long after. Tomkins played 67 games across four seasons for the Buckeyes with a 28-26-7 record and a .898 save percentage.

After his time in Columbus came to an end, Tomkins spent the next four seasons with the Blackhawks’ AHL and ECHL affiliates, the Rockford IceHogs and Indy Fuel, appearing in a total of 115 games. After his contract expired, Tomkins took his talents across the pond, spending two seasons in the Swedish Hockey League, one with Frölunda HC and one with Färjestad BK, and posting a .910 save percentage across 65 games. While with Frölunda in 2022, Tomkins represented Canada at the Winter Olympics. Although Canada fell short of a medal, Tomkins went 2-1 in three starts with a 1.01 GAA and a .963 save percentage.

Tomkins returned to North America on a two-year deal with Tampa Bay in May 2023, terminating the final year of his Färjestad contract. He went 3-2-1 with a 3.33 GAA and an .892 save percentage in six games with the Lightning in 2023-24. Tonight will be the 32-year-old’s first NHL appearance since April 17, 2024, and the seventh of his career.

Tomkins signed a two-year, two-way deal with his hometown club on July 1, 2025. It carries an $812.5K cap hit and expires at the end of this season. He spent all of last season in Bakersfield.