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Apr 27, 2025; Montreal, Quebec, CAN; Washington Capitals left wing Andrew Mangiapane (88) celebrates with his teammates at the bench his goal against the Montreal Canadiens during the third period in game four of the first round of the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Bell Centre. Mandatory Credit: David Kirouac-Imagn Images David Kirouac-Imagn Images

New Forward Could Solve Oilers Top-Six Issue

Originally posted on Breakaway on SI | By Jacob Punturi | Last updated Aug 13, 2025 7:00 AM ET

The Edmonton Oilers are approaching the 2025-2026 season looking to repeat most of last season. It was the second year in a row that the Oilers captured the Western Conference title, only to lose to the Florida Panthers in the Stanley Cup Finals.

Perhaps the biggest changes the Oilers are navigating this upcoming season is a shakeup to their forward group. The team sent out veteran winger Evander Kane earlier in the summer, shipping him to the Vancouver Canucks and keeping him in the Pacific Division. They also allowed forwards Connor Brown, Corey Perry and Jeff Skinner to leave via free agency, opening four potential spots on the team’s opening-night roster.

One of the players certain to occupy a spot is veteran winger Andrew Mangiapane. The Oilers signed the former Calgary Flames and Washington Capitals forward to a two-year, $7.2 million deal. With an average annual salary of $3.6 million, Mangiapane is expected to fill out the team’s top-nine group at minimum and hopefully even more, but what is the actual ceiling for the 29-year-old left winger?

”I just wanted to come in here and play my game,” he said after signing with the Oilers. “Help the team whatever way possible to win and hopefully get them over the finish line this year I'm excited to be here, excited to be an Oiler and excited to get things going already.”

What exactly is Mangiapane’s game at this stage of his career? Aside from a breakout 35-goal season in 2021-2022, he’s been a reliable 15-20 goal scorer in the NHL. Last season with the Washington Capitals, he recorded 14 goals and added 14 assists for 28 points in 81 points.

That’s not the most impressive statistics to see if you’re the Oilers. Playing alongside Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl is sure to elevate Mangiapane’s production, but can he keep up with them for an entire season?

What creates questions is that Mangiapane is a quick skater, but not one of the consistently faster in the league. With the Capitals last season, that wasn’t an issue. The team loved to slow down the pace and use it to make bursts of speed that much more valuable, and it fit into Mangiapane’s skill set. His top speed burst reached last season was 22.54 miles per hour (mph), which ranked in the 64th percentile. He recorded just four bursts of more than 23 mph. The league average last year was 3.7.

Why that can be a problem is McDavid and Draisaitl are lightning quick in all three zones on the ice. If Mangiapane cannot keep pace, he’ll struggle to be in on any scoring chance.

If he can get into the offensive zone, however, he can help the top six. According to NHL EDGE statistics from last season, the Oilers are right to believe he can contribute in some of the most dangerous areas of the ice. Last year with the Caps, Mangiapane recorded seven goals on 40 shots on goal in the high-danger zones. That’s goal total ranked in the 70th percentile among all NHL skaters last season, despite averaging just over 13 minutes of ice time per contest.

If the expectation for Mangiapane is that he’ll approach that career-high total of 35 goals or exceed 55 points in 2025-2026, there will be nothing but disappointment. But if the expectation is 15-25 goals and 45 points, then Mangiapane can absolutely deliver for the Edmonton Oilers’ top-six.

This article first appeared on Breakaway on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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