Philp is tough to defend. When he senses an opportunity to get to the net or is at the net, defenders who are NHL size have a great deal of difficulty neutralizing him. The part of Philp’s game that has been developing throughout this year is offence in another way. Watch his other two goals from this week.

These two goals are coming from a player who clearly has more confidence in his ability to score. There is skill and patience and a thought process to what he is trying to accomplish on these plays. In essence, this makes him a more difficult player to deal with on a shift. He can use his size and speed and beat players physically, or he can use creativity and skill to beat them just the same.

There is no question Philp will be a black ace in the next 24 hours. Whether it stops there or leads to time in the playoffs is yet to be determined. I just know if I were in Oilers management, I would feel quite uncomfortable at the moment.

Sam O’Reilly

Coming down the pipe is another right-shot center. This one is quite a bit younger at 19 years old, but he has a lot of promise. Sam O’Reilly had an excellent breakout season, scoring at a 1.15 points per game clip, up from his .82 points per game in his draft year. He also increased his shot throughput this year by .5 shots per game as well.

This was a key for this defender converted to forward. Could he score at rates that would make him a middle-six NHL prospect? He did that without a doubt. What’s been even more impressive is his playoff performance. Remember, O’Reilly is considered a 200-foot center who has a tremendous understanding of how to play the defensive game required of him. In the playoffs, defence is very important, so O’Reilly has been getting a lot of hard match-ups. That has not stopped his offence. In eight games, O’Reilly is 5-10-15 with a very strong 24 shots on net. His scoring totals rank him 17th in OHL playoff scoring. At even strength, O’Reilly is tenth in the league. He is also +15 in those games. To say O’Reilly is putting an exclamation mark on his draft plus one season would be an understatement.

His offence is coming from all parts of the game. I talked early in the season about how I thought his passing was an underrated part of his game. Look at this primary assist on an Easton Cowan goal.

He also has a very high offensive IQ. Watch this entire sequence. First, he makes an incredibly quick decision and executes a tremendous backhand pass. Then watch him get lost behind the play and just quietly slide into the slot for the easy tap.

Finally, watch this 200-foot shift in overtime and his goal to win the series.

This is probably the most expected style of O’Reilly’s goal. Skating all over the ice in all three zones and then driving to the net to collect the loose change.

O’Reilly’s team is through to the OHL semi-finals, having played only eight games. However, now the competition will get much tougher. This will be an excellent chance to see whether the development that has occurred through the first two weeks carries forward.

Maxim Beryozkin

The player in Europe that I am most certain can play with the Edmonton Oilers is one that Stan Bowman has not signed yet. Yes, there is Tomasek and Leppanen, but Maxim Beryozkin is the player I have the most confidence in playing NHL games for some duration.

He’s a right-shot winger. That checks a box. He’s 6’4″ and 215 pounds. That checks a box. He loves to play physically and is very good along the walls. Check again. He also has strong offensive skills. Check! The other notable, and maybe most important element, the young man loves to play in high-stakes games. Last year, he broke out in the KHL playoffs, finishing third in scoring. This season, he is 12th in scoring with nine points in nine games. However, on a points per game basis, he is seventh as his team has only played nine games.

Now I know a lot of people are talking about the goal he scored yesterday and it is sublime. However, the play I want to highlight is this assist from last week again. This is an NHL style of play.

He loves to go to the net and he loves to engage players physically. For those who have watched him all season, you can see that he is really starting to understand how difficult he is to handle. Remember, the ice surface he is playing on allows players to avoid contact. That is very tough to do on an NHL surface. Beryozkin relishes physical play and that is a plus.

Now, here is the goal. There is one thing I want to highlight other than the immense skill. Look at his skating. I still don’t really understand where the concern with his skating came from. I know I’ve made comments that it is average, but that means it is NHL average. It is not poor by any stretch. He will not have any issues getting around the rink. The play itself is world-class offensive skill. Great hands. Great patience. Great shot.

Maxim Beryozkin can play in Edmonton, I believe. Whether the Oilers can sign the player out of Russia is the only question.

News and Notes

Matt Copponi signed his ATO and came to Bakersfield. He got into three games and was noticeable in all three. He is a high-energy player who definitely shows some good skill. He ended the season with two assists in those three games. Here is a clip of his second assist that definitely shows skill.

Copponi still needs to be signed by the Oilers before August 15, 2025, in order for his rights to be maintained. He has shown the Oilers enough signs that I think it would be worth the contract.

Dalyn Wakely, another right-shot center, continues to have an impressive playoff run. In the 10 games to date, he is 6-12-18 with 35 shots on net. This is the Dalyn Wakely that I am sure the Oilers thought they were signing. He is hard to play against. He plays physical and a little greasy. His Colts team plays game six tonight with a chance to close out the series.

That’s it for this week. As always, send me your thoughts here or on the X to @bcurlock. Have a great week and Happy Easter.