Oilers sign defenceman Ty Emberson to two-year extension

Emberson just wrapped up his first regular season with the Oilers, appearing in 76 games, scoring two goals and 13 points while averaging 15:07 in ice-time per game. He saw his ice-time elevate a few minutes per game towards the end of the season as the team dealt with injuries, and Emberson found himself lead all Oilers defencemen in shorthanded ice-time by season’s end.

He scored his first two goals with the Oilers late in the season, both in games against the San Jose Sharks.

In early January, Emberson said he was open to re-signing with the club.

“If it happens to work out, I’d be excited. I love it here … and hopefully can spend more time here.”

The Oilers held their own with him on the ice at five-on-five, controlling 49.5 percent of the shot attempt share, 50.4 percent of the scoring chance share, 50.28 percent of the expected goal share but just 43.9 percent of the actual goal share. While the Oilers shot 8.3 percent with him on the ice, he didn’t get much help in the goaltending department with a .895 save percentage.

Individually, Emberson drove offence at a five percent rate below league average and defence at a three percent rate below league average, according to HockeyViz. While he did lead Oilers defencemen in shorthanded ice-time, he had some struggles there, providing penalty kill work at a two percent rate below league average. Still, HockeyViz pegged his overall contributions as a high-end third-pairing defenceman, or a low-end second-paring defencemn.

He joined the Oilers last August as the team worked their way through the St. Louis Blues’ offer sheets of Dylan Holloway and Philip Broberg. Ember was acquired from the San Jose Sharks in exchange for defenceman Cody Ceci and a third-round pick in 2025.

Emberson is one of two restricted free agents on the Oilers NHL roster along with Evan Bouchard. The Oilers are projected to enter the offseason with roughly $9.4-million in cap space.

The blue liner will see his first playoff action next week when the Oilers begin their first round series against the Los Angeles Kings.