The Edmonton Oilers came up short again this season and lost for the second straight campaign against the Florida Panthers in the Stanley Cup Final. As fans begin to speculate what the Oilers’ offseason will look like, here is the latest news and rumours surrounding the Oilers as the 2025 NHL Draft and free agency approach.
Stan Bowman Talks at Press Conference
Oilers’ general manager Stan Bowman spoke to the media at a press conference recently and was asked about his plans for the offseason. He made sure not to expose too much and kept his cards close to his chest, but he did reveal a few things that have fans talking, specifically mentioning he would look into addressing the goaltending and forward depth situation.
Bowman says forwards and goaltending are the main areas they’ll look into addressing. Expects the D to remain pretty set. Wants some fresh faces in the lineup and possibly some more youth.
— Ryan Rishaug (@TSNRyanRishaug) June 20, 2025
It’s hard to place blame on either Stuart Skinner or Calvin Pickard this postseason, but it’s also tough to avoid trying to bring in a true starting goaltender. Depending on who you ask, Oilers fans are split down the middle on whether they should keep either of them as a backup or if they should look for two new goaltenders. Either way, it seems like they’ll at least gauge the market to see what they can do to improve.
Related: Oilers-Panthers McDavid Blockbuster a Ridiculous Suggestion That Will Never Happen
If the Oilers are looking to make some changes to their forward depth, I would expect some trades to be made before the upcoming draft to clear some cap space and give them some flexibility to try and spend big this summer. They tried to get Mikko Rantanen at the 2025 Trade Deadline and came up short, maybe they would consider targeting Nikolaj Ehlers or Brock Boeser?
Time will tell.
McDavid Talks Future in Edmonton
Connor McDavid is eligible for a contract extension as of July 1st, 2025, and while most fans aren’t worried about him leaving, there is already growing speculation that he would consider signing with another team, and his comments only added fuel to that fire.
McDavid on his priorities for considering staying. Question from @DNBsports pic.twitter.com/ldFNBG7koQ
— Ryan Rishaug (@TSNRyanRishaug) June 19, 2025
His number one priority remains winning a Stanley Cup, which the Oilers seem to be capable of doing at least once over the next several seasons, but it seems like McDavid is willing to wait a while and put some pressure on the organization to make sure they don’t take a step backwards.
This seems to be a fair way of handling things, and it shouldn’t concern Oilers fans. Leon Draisaitl waited a few months to sign his extension and fans were worried as every day passed, but eventually, he signed an extension. That is exactly what will happen with McDavid, and while he waits to see what the team does to put a winning team around him, he forces their hand making them have to be aggressive this summer, which is exactly what Oilers fans have been wanting to see for a while.
We will see what happens this summer, but until McDavid and the Oilers announce an extension has been reached, plenty of rumours and potential trades will surface from pundits looking at where he could fit on their team.
It should be an interesting summer for the Oilers, as they try to get back to the Stanley Cup Final for a third straight season, and finally, win their first Stanley Cup since 1990.
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