Oilers’ 3 Most Overrated Players for 2025-26

The NHL season is just around the corner, and the anticipation is palpable. This is the time of year when we predict how our favourite team will do, and how individual players will perform. For the Edmonton Oilers, they have high expectations heading into this season after back-to-back Stanley Cup Final appearances, losing both times. They were so close, and fans are hoping they can get back there once again and finish the job.

There were some significant roster changes this offseason, leaving the fan base both underwhelmed and optimistic at the same time. While it’s good to be optimistic, it’s also important to be realistic. It’s in our nature to overvalue players and place unnecessary expectations on them, especially in this market. Therefore, some players have higher expectations than they should. With that said, here are the three most overrated Oilers heading into the 2025-26 season.

Isaac Howard

The Oilers acquired Isaac Howard from the Tampa Bay Lightning in exchange for forward prospect Sam O’Reilly this offseason. Howard spent the last three seasons in the NCAA, with the last two with Michigan State University. He recorded 26 goals and 52 points in 37 games last season en route to winning the Hobey Baker Award, as the top collegiate player in the nation. He’s coming in with a lot of hype and is expected to see time on a line with Connor McDavid. However, he’s on this list because he likely won’t meet those expectations out of the gate.

He hasn’t even played an NHL game yet, so it’s unrealistic to assume he will record over 60 points in his rookie season. The 21-year-old wasn’t a first-overall pick expected to make an immediate impact. He was drafted 31st overall in 2022, and it took him a few years in college to develop into an NHL-calibre player. There’s no guarantee that he will succeed immediately, and if he struggles, don’t be surprised if he sees some time in the American Hockey League (AHL). There will be a learning curve, so fans should temper their expectations. He’s a highly skilled and exciting prospect, but right now, fans are overrating him heading into training camp.

Mattias Ekholm

Mattias Ekholm was a much-needed addition to the blue line when they acquired him at the 2023 Trade Deadline. He fit like a glove paired with Evan Bouchard. He elevated Bouchard’s game, and they worked well together. The 6-foot-5, 225-pounder has recorded 24 goals and 92 points in 165 games with a plus-83 rating since the trade.

The Swedish defenceman is a calming veteran presence, but unfortunately, Father Time is catching up to him. He battled significant injuries last season, limiting him to just 65 regular-season and seven playoff games. Once he returned during the playoffs, he recorded six points, but his defensive game took a major hit. He was losing puck battles in the corners and struggled to keep up with the Florida Panthers’ elite forecheck during the Stanley Cup Final. The 35-year-old is not the player he once was, so a major regression could be imminent. If he stays healthy, don’t expect him to be the top-pairing defenceman he once was.

Andrew Mangiapane

Andrew Mangiapane was the Oilers’ big free agent splash this offseason, signing a two-year deal with a $3.6 million cap hit with the organization. But as we saw last season, free agent signings don’t always work out. Some players aren’t a good fit with the organization, as evidenced by the Viktor Arvidsson and Jeff Skinner signings. Both players came in with a lot of hype and fanfare, but ended up being disappointments. They were consistently healthy scratched in the playoffs and weren’t as impactful as initially thought. This resulted in Skinner walking to free agency and Arvidsson being traded to the Boston Bruins.