Edmonton Oilers lose rights to Matej Blumel after June deadline

In random prospect news, I wanted to do a quick post about Matel Blumel after our friends at PuckPedia revealed that the Oilers had lost the rights to the former 100th overall pick after deciding not to sign him before the June 1st deadline.

 

Back in 2019, the Oilers used their fourth pick at the NHL Entry Draft (100th overall) to select the 6’0″ Blumel who was in his second year of draft eligibility. A long term project to be sure, Blumel spent his last two seasons with Pardubice HC of the Czech League where he registered 21 goals and 37 points in 80 games played, which was obviously not enough for Ken Holland to feel like he merited a spot on the 50-man contract list despite finishing this past season in the top-30 in scoring.

In case you’ve never heard Blumel’s name before just now, here is the scouting report I was able to find for him shortly after he was drafted. From Bill Placzek, Draft Site:

I suppose it was simply not meant to be for the Oilers and Blumel, but I don’t know how much of a surprise that necessarily is for a former fourth-round pick. Either way, we wish Blumel all the best as he continues on in his professional career.