Oilers activate Alec Regula from injured reserve

The Edmonton Oilers have activated defenceman Alec Regula from the injured reserve, the club announced Tuesday.

Regula last played in the Oilers’ second game of the regular season against the Vancouver Canucks, leaving the game shaken up after taking a pair of big hits from Evander Kane. Placed on the injured reserve on October 19th, and has been skating with the team since shortly afterwards.

The 25-year-old defenceman hasn’t played much hockey in recent years, missing the entirety of the 2024-25 season due to a knee injury. The Oilers claimed him on waivers on Dec. 11th, 2024, helping him work his way back from injury.

He impressed during pre-season for the Oilers despite the limited play in recent years, making the big club out of camp and starting the season on the second pairing alongside Darnell Nurse. The pair played 24 minutes of five-on-five time in those first two games of the season, getting outscored 1-0, but with them on the ice, the Oilers outshot the opposition 14-8 and controlled 70.1 percent of the expected goal share.

At the time of writing, it’s unknown if Regula will draw back into the lineup Tuesday night as they face the Dallas Stars.

The Oilers don’t need to make a roster move for Regula to be activated from the injured reserve as the team has been running a 22-man roster, but with forwards Zach Hyman and Mattias Janmark returning from injury soon, and Kasperi Kapanen still weeks away, that will surely change. Rumours have swirled this week about a potential trade coming down the pipes regarding the Oilers, with the team reportedly trying to find Troy Stecher a “soft landing spot,” according to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman.

For the Oilers to get the remaining three on the active roster, the team will need to move three players off the active roster, either by trade, by placing a player on waivers, or by sending a player without waiver eligibility down to the American Hockey League.

Nonetheless, the Oilers will be an interesting team to follow in the coming weeks.