Oilers prospect Roby Järventie signs contract in Swiss League

Roby Järventie may be headed overseas.

The Edmonton Oilers prospect signed a two-year contract with HC Ambri Piotta of the National League in Switzerland on Tuesday.

“Hockey Club Ambrì Piotta is pleased to announce that it has extended the contract of forward Michael Joly until 2028 and has signed forwards Nate Schnarr and Roby Järventie until the end of the 2027/2028 season,” a press release says. 

Järventie, who will turn 24 in August, had a career season with the Bakersfield Condors, scoring 23 goals and 47 points in 61 games in the American Hockey League in 2025-26. He suited up three times with the Oilers. In total, he’s played 10 NHL games.

The former second-round pick, taken 33rd overall in the 2020 draft, finished fifth in Condors team scoring.

But is he leaving for sure?

Last March, Järventie signed a contract to play in his native Finland with his brothers, but reportedly did so to ensure he’d know he’d have a place to play in 2025. Just a few months later, he accepted a one-year, two-way deal with the Oilers.

With his contract expiring, he is a Group 6 unrestricted free agent, according to PuckPedia. Typically used to allow “tweener” players more flexibility and options, he is free to sign with any team since he’s played three pro seasons and played fewer than 80 NHL games.

Usually, the age of UFAs is 27.

In his career, Järventie has played 204 AHL games with the Belleville Senators and Bakersfield Condors, scoring 138 points. Internationally, he’s played in two U20 World Championships in 2020 and 2021 with the Finnish national team, winning a bronze and a silver medal. 

The Oilers traded Xavier Bourgault and Jake Chiasson to the Senators for the Finnish prospect and a fourth-round pick in July 2024, which was then used to acquire Vasily Podkolzin.

If he does leave, Maxim Berezkin, a 24-year-old Russian prospect playing in the KHL, has signed a one-year contract and could be heading over to North America. That may soften the blow. He was originally drafted by the Oilers in the fifth round of the 2020 draft.