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Oilers Under Fire for Roster Decisions—Pressure on Mangiapane

Originally posted on NHL Trade Talk | By Jim Parsons | Last updated Jul 2, 2025 12:41 PM ET

After falling short in back-to-back Stanley Cup Finals against the Florida Panthers, the Edmonton Oilers are losing steam as one of the perennial favorites to compete for the NHL’s biggest prize. The last 12 months of roster decisions haven’t helped that. Nor did Tuesday’s opening to free agency.

Despite an impressive run to the championship round in both 2024 and 2025, the team has steadily lost key contributors. The 2025 team performed slightly worse than the 2024 team. This 2026 team appears to be slightly weaker than last season’s. It’s a troubling trend that raises questions about the front office’s long-term vision.

The Oilers Have Lost Key Players in the Previous 12 Months

Gone is forward Ryan McLeod, who notched 53 points last season with the Buffalo Sabres and recently signed a new deal for $5 million per season. Also out is defenseman Philip Broberg, who wanted to leave because of a lack of opportunity. Dylan Holloway had a breakout season with the St. Louis Blues, and Cody Ceci signed a new deal with the LA Kings for $4.5 million per season.

Granted, some of these are likely overpays by their news teams, but these are all serviceable players. In fact, some of them are going to be quite good as their NHL careers continue on.

Tuesday, veterans like Corey Perry and Connor Brown found new homes. This was after an Evander Kane trade sent the forward to the Vancouver Canucks and a Viktor Arvidsson trade saw him wind up in Boston. Jeff Skinner wasn’t re-signed, nor was John Klingberg.

All in all, it’s a tremendous rate of turnover from two near-championship teams.

These departures follow a major leadership shift: former GM Ken Holland stepped down after the 2024 campaign, replaced first by interim CEO Jeff Jackson and now new GM Stan Bowman.

What Has Bowman Done to Help The Oilers?

It would be unfair not to include Bowman’s response to losing so many key names. Additions like Jake Walman, Kasperi Kapanen, and Vasily Podkolzin have been good ones. On Tuesday, at the tail end of day one in free agency, Edmonton signed Andrew Mangiapane to a very reasonable two-year deal.

The latest addition, Mangiapane, brings hope but also uncertainty. A former 35-goal scorer with Calgary in 2021-22, Mangiapane posted 14 goals and 14 assists last year in a limited bottom-six role with the Capitals. He’s never again reached the 35-goal mark before or since that 2021-22 season, but his high compete level, skill, and penalty-killing ability offer value.

The question becomes, is that enough to offset the Oilers’ losses?

Right now, the answer appears to be no. The Oilers will be a solid team, and they’ll likely compete for a playoff spot. However, this team, as constructed, is not nearly as strong as the two teams that came before it. Should the Oilers trade Adam Henrique or go into the season with the same goaltending (which seems likely), the team will be even weaker.

While management insists the current roster isn’t set in stone, the question remains: is patchwork depth enough to keep Edmonton in Cup contention, or is their championship window quietly closing? The Oilers are placing a lot of hope on the idea that Mangiapane is the right guy. If he’s not, the Oilers have a serious problem.

This article first appeared on NHL Trade Talk and was syndicated with permission.

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