The Edmonton Oilers are halfway to the 16 wins required to win the Stanley Cup. A large percentage of the team’s most precious assets are pushing for the championship, and a large of future assets have been sent away in order to acquire immediate help for areas of need.
The organization has been offloading high picks for years now, so there are very few blue-chip prospects down on the farm. The 2024-25 edition of the farm team didn’t make the playoffs.
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Based on those two facts, it would be easy to dismiss 2024-25 as a wasted season for the club.
In fact, several players took a step forward this season. Those young prospects represent future Oilers, and one of those prospects could help as soon as this fall.
In Matt Savoie, the Oilers have a plug-and-play right winger who could slide into the lineup this fall. He’s entering the second year of an affordable entry deal, so he offers the team a potentially impressive value contract for the season to come.
Here’s why.
The season
In Bakersfield, Savoie stayed healthy, showed consistent production and put himself to succeed at the next level.
Edmonton acquired Savoie in the summer of 2024, but he didn’t get a real shot at making the Oilers’ lineup during training camp in the fall. The Oilers were built to win, and the right-wing depth chart boasted several veterans (Zach Hyman, Viktor Arvidsson, Connor Brown and Corey Perry) who were guaranteed roster spots and playing time.
When cracks did appear in Edmonton during the regular season, general manager Stan Bowman found workarounds (like claiming Kasperi Kapanen on waivers) and resisted a recall for Savoie.
The team’s top prospect thrived in California. The No. 9 pick in the 2022 draft had one of the best freshman seasons (age 20) in Condors history. In the 10 years Bakersfield has served as the Oilers’ top minor-league affiliate, six notable prospect forwards have scored well at even strength in their age-20 seasons.
| Player | Year | EV Pts-Game |
|---|---|---|
|
Tyler Benson |
2018-19 |
0.62 |
|
Matthew Savoie |
2024-25 |
0.59 |
|
Kailer Yamamoto |
2018-19 |
0.44 |
|
Ryan McLeod |
2019-20 |
0.32 |
|
Xavier Bourgault |
2022-23 |
0.32 |
|
Dylan Holloway |
2021-22 |
0.3 |
Even-strength points per game. All numbers via AHL.
Offence in the AHL is hard to come by at five-on-five, but Savoie showed well on a Condors team that had multiple injuries and constantly changing roster alignments.
Scoring even-strength points at 20 does not guarantee NHL success. The top name on this list, Tyler Benson, lacked foot speed. That one thing had a severe on his NHL chances.
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Savoie has plus speed, but size is often mentioned as a possible issue for the skill winger. An easy style, production and physical comparable for Savoie is former Condors right winger Kailer Yamamoto. The young winger had immediate AHL success despite playing in the league at a listed 153 pounds (and 5 feet 8 inches). He wore down quickly in the NHL, and often lost the puck due to a hard hit. Savoie is a smaller forward, but at 179 pounds (and one inch more in height), isn’t quite a match for Yamamoto.
Injury may be an issue for Savoie in the future, but he played in 66 AHL and four NHL games in 2024-25. He answered the bell as a rookie pro.
Progression
Rookie AHL players, especially those who are 20, often take time to find their way offensively. The ability to outscore at even strength before Christmas is even more pronounced.
Savoie took 20 games to find the range as an offensive contributor, but was useful early in outscoring and progressed into a strong possession forward as the year rolled along.
| Games | Points (All Strengths) | EV GF-GA (Pct) |
|---|---|---|
|
1-20 |
4G-11P (.55) |
14-9 (61) |
|
21-40 |
8G-20P (1.00) |
15-5 (75) |
|
41-60 |
6-19P (.95) |
20-12 (63) |
|
61-66 |
1G-4P (.67) |
6-4 (60) |
|
Total |
19G-54P (.82) |
55-30 (65) |
All numbers via AHL.com
Savoie delivered in all aspects of the game as a rookie pro, but the outscoring at even strength is a remarkable total. When the rookie was off the ice in 2024-25, the Condors’ even-strength goal share (132-140) was 48.5 percent.
That’s a solid rookie season in an area of the game generally associated with AHL veterans.
Overcoming obstacles
Savoie was set up nicely by the Oilers organization as the Condors prepared for the regular season. Young wingers coming out of junior often have a hard time pushing play and getting into plus offensive situations. NHL teams usually have a veteran centre (often paid a premium) who can make things happen in the AHL for just this purpose.
Management secured three such centres for 2024-25. The opening-night lineup featured Lane Pederson, James Hamblin and Noah Philp. Savoie’s first point came in that first game (with Philp as his linemate) of the season, and his first goal came in the second game with Hamblin playing in the middle.
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As the season wore along, the veteran centres suffered injuries or (in the case of Philp) were recalled to the NHL. The depth at a very important position grew thin, exposing the team’s young skill wingers. Through it all, Savoie’s scoring rates were consistent (as shown above), owing to his substantial talent and his ability to make skill plays at this level. It’s worth noting he got some help from some veteran wingers (specifically Drake Caggiula).
The future
One of the reasons Savoie had success in the AHL this season? Foot speed. He was the fastest man in the league at the All-Star competition, and put those good wheels to work over the entire campaign.
Savoie was a high draft pick, and top-10 selections often play rookie seasons in the NHL. The Oilers are not a building organization, so Savoie spent the year in the AHL.
A player can stall in this kind of situation. It’s happened before in Oilers history. Magnus Paajarvi (No. 10 in 2009) made the NHL at 19, played well as a rookie and then had a difficult time making plays with the puck in the years that followed. Recently retired Sam Gagner was the No. 6 selection in 2007, was rushed to the NHL that fall and had immediate offensive success. He didn’t develop as hoped in the finer areas of the game, and his career peak may have been impacted by being rushed by Oilers management at the time.
Savoie spent his time in the minors and flourished. He has graduated by any reasonable measure. Edmonton is where Savoie’s future lies. ETA is this fall.
(Photo: Andy Devlin / NHLI via Getty Images)
This news was originally published on this post .
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