The Edmonton Oilers’ four key players up front—Connor McDavid (153 points), Leon Draisaitl (128 points), Zach Hyman (83 points), and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (104 points)—all set career-high point totals during the 2022-23 season, but their point production declined last season.

While those big four are still in their peak years, matching those point totals will not be an easy task and it’s a safe bet to say that they may have already achieved their career-highs. On the other hand, with a once-in-a-lifetime talent like McDavid on the team, anything is possible, really.

Having said that, we’ve outlined five other Oilers who are in a position to surpass their career-best numbers in the upcoming 2024-25 season.

In this day and age, nothing is guaranteed, but if Philip Broberg plays a full season in 2024-25, he’s practically a lock to surpass his career-high of eight points from the 2022-23 season.

The smooth-skating Swede was inserted into the lineup during Game 4 of the Western Conference Final last postseason and performed so well that former Oiler Vincent Desharnais didn’t see the ice again. Overall, Broberg played in ten playoff games, scoring two goals and assisting on another.

Considering this, let’s project his point total for next season, assuming the current restricted free agent inks a new deal.

Early projections have him playing next to Darnell Nurse on the second pairing, on the right side. With the way the young Swede skated the puck out of his zone so smoothly and moved it efficiently in transition during the high-pressure playoffs, a modest point projection for the 23-year-old blueliner would be seven goals, and 25 assists, for a 32-point season. For comparison, Cody Ceci, who was Nurse’s regular defensive partner last season, tallied 25 points, whereas Broberg’s offensive skills are much higher.

The Oilers don’t rely heavily on their second power-play unit, but Broberg is likely to see some time there next season. If he can capitalize on those chances on the man advantage, his point total might be closer to the 35-40 point range.

Dylan Holloway’s emergence as an impact player in last playoffs suggests he’s on track to shatter his career-high of nine points next season.

Playing consistently with Draisaitl on the second line, Holloway scored at a 16-goal pace last playoffs, which is still quite the feat given the tougher competition and tighter checking in the postseason compared to the regular season.

I expect the current restricted free agent will sign a new deal and he’ll shuffle around the Oilers’ top nine next season, spending time on the second and third lines. While playing with quality centermen like Draisaitl or Adam Henrique, a conservative estimate for Holloway would be a 20-goal and 20-assist campaign, with a potential for 50 points or more if everything goes perfectly. Nonetheless, the Oilers need someone to replace Warren Foegele’s production (41 points) from last season, and Holloway is a prime candidate to do so.

Oilers’ blueliner Evan Bouchard’s point total increased from 40 points in 2022-23 to 82 points last season, a 42-point increase and a key factor was that 35 of his points came on the power play, compared to only 13 the previous season. As a result, he finished fourth in points among D-men, behind Quinn Hughes (92 points), Cale Makar (90 points), and Roman Josi (85 points).

Considering Bouchard’s dominant showing last playoffs, recording 32 points and setting a record for most assists by a D-man, the 24-year-old’s stock is definitely on the rise. His ‘Bouch Bomb’ will become more precise than it already is and his confidence could really take off. I anticipate he will follow in the footsteps of Hughes and Makar from last season and hit the 90-point mark, a feat no Oilers’ blueliner has achieved since Paul Coffey hit that mark during the 1985-86 season, going on to tally a jaw-dropping 138 points.

Viktor Arvidsson recorded back-to-back 61-point seasons from 2019 to 2021, which were career highs, as a member of the Nashville Predators. He came close to reaching that total again during the 2022-23 season with the Los Angeles Kings, tallying 59 points and he might have surpassed his career high if he hadn’t missed four games that season.

Last season, the winger played in only 18 regular-season games due to a back injury but still managed to rack up 15 points. Additionally, over the last three seasons, in 161 games with the Kings, his most frequent 5v5 linemates were Phillip Danault and Trevor Moore, both of whom are decent point producers.

That said, with early projections seeing Arvidsson as a good fit on the right side of Draisaitl, a former Hart Trophy winner, if it happens, he’s set to play with a much more offensively talented linemate compared to those from his time with the Kings. Moreover, NHL_Sid wrote a piece analyzing Arvidsson’s fit on the Oilers, having said:

Arvidsson and Draisaitl seem like a good stylistic match who can complement each other, and if the Oilers’ two Europeans mesh well together, Arvidsson could realistically surpass his career high of 61 points at the age of 31.

Jeff Skinner is definitely the dark horse pick to surpass his career-high in points among the five players listed.

He set a career-high 82 points during the 2022-23 season, and the two players the 32-year-old played with most at 5v5 over the last two seasons with the Buffalo Sabres are Alex Tuch and Tage Thompson. Yet, Skinner’s point total dipped drastically last season, totalling 46 points—a 36-point drop from the year before and his lowest point total since the 2017-18 season.

A reason his point production may have dipped last season is that the Sabres’ big 6-foot-6 centerman, Thompson, also took a step back, tallying only 56 points compared to his previous year’s 94 points. Thompson’s regression likely affected Skinner’s point total, as both players had strong chemistry during the 2022-23 season, with Thompson contributing to 66 of Skinner’s 82 points.

That said, Skinner knows how to put the puck in the back of the net, with 357 career goals to his name. However, during the season when he hit his career-high in points, it was noted that he embraced more of a playmaking role, frequently setting up Thompson, who scored 47 goals that year.

Given Skinner’s previous experience setting up a big goal-scoring centerman and the fact that the Oilers have one of their own in Draisaitl, that pair seem like a promising combination. Moreover, add in the fact that Skinner is pretty darn good at lighting the lamp himself, the two might form a recipe for offensive success, with Arvidsson rounding out the line.

Nonetheless, many factors would need to fall into place for Skinner to record a career year. However, if he and Draisaitl can build strong chemistry, the 32-year-old surpassing his career high of 82 points, isn’t out of the question. That said, an argument could be made that achieving this may be challenging without significant power play time, but it’s worth noting that Skinner is quite productive at 5v5, as 61 of his 82 career-high points were scored at even strength.

Additionally, he’ll likely play on the second-unit power play, which hasn’t seen much ice time in recent seasons. However, with a player of his calibre on the unit, they might get more opportunities when the first group isn’t clicking. Also, because he’s never played in the postseason, the new Oiler should be highly motivated in the upcoming season.

With that in mind, what are your thoughts on the Oilers who made the list of players likely to set career highs in the upcoming season? Are there any other Oilers you feel should have been included?

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