OPENING NIGHT, ONE YEAR AGO

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• G Cam Talbot
• LD Oscar Klefbom, Andrej Sekera, Brandon Davidson
• RD Adam Larsson, Mark Fayne
• C Connor McDavid, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Leon Draisaitl, Mark Letestu
• LW Milan Lucic, Benoit Pouliot, Patrick Maroon, Matt Hendricks
• RW Jordan Eberle, Nail Yakupov, Zack Kassian

• G Jonas Gustavsson
• LD Darnell Nurse
• RD Jordan Oesterle
• C Anton Lander
• LW Iiro Pakarinen
• RW Jesse Puljujarvi

11 FOR THE OILERS

• G Laurent Brossoit. Edmonton is often accused (by me) of bringing prospects along too quickly. Credit where due, the best goalie prospect has been developed nicely. He was No. 10 in save percentage among AHL starters, up from No. 17 a year ago. He has progressed well and could have a legit NHL career in my opinion. I think he is close to 50-50 to make this team out of training camp. Seriously.
• LD Griffin Reinhart. He has a tough situation, as Edmonton has so many players with major cap bonus opportunities (McDavid, Draisaitl, Puljujarvi, others). That said, the club seemed pleased with his final games during last regular season—and he made the opening night lineup in 2015-16. He is someone to watch for sure during training camp.
• LD David Musil. He has done everything he can in the AHL, and his coach (Gerry Fleming) was complimentary of his play. Waiver eligible and this could be a very interesting training camp for this player.
• RD Matt Benning. New hire who has a lot going for him (righty, nice range of skills) but of course he hasn’t played a game of pro. If he impresses, this could be a big story in training camp.
• C Jujhar Khaira. He showed very well during his callups last season, and offers the Oilers a physical forward who plays a rugged style. Can play center or wing.
• R Taylor Beck. Interesting free-agent signing is easy to overlook but the numbers and back story suggest he might be a fairly substantial addition.
• F Drake Caggiula. He has skill, grit, is an agitator and can skate well. His NHLE (82, 22-22-44) suggests he is maybe the most skilled forward among the prospects not named Jesse Puljujarvi. A very nice add.
• R Tyler Pitlick. Oilers brought him back for a reason and if he can stay healthy maybe there’s a good chapter in his Oilers story.
• F Jere Sallinen. A bit of an unknown entering camp—despite his substantial pro experience. He doesn’t project as a strong candidate for a skill line but a team looking for third and fourth liners who can help should have a long look at him.
• R Patrick Russell. Described as a power winger despite average size, it probably describes his style of play. He can score goals and that makes him worth talking about this weekend over the beverages.
• R Anton Slepyshev. The coach liked him enough last year to choose the Russian over Leon, although I suspect those blasted cap bonuses had something to do with it (Reinhart stayed up, Leon went down). He has size, speed and some skill—he will be in the mix.