The Edmonton Oilers made a couple of roster moves last week, sending Isaac Howard to the American Hockey League and Troy Stecher on waivers in order to make room for Zach Hyman to come off the LTIR.

Neither of these moves was unexpected. Once the roster started getting healthy again, the Oilers knew they would have to make moves both to clear space and open roster spots. Before Stecher was waived, the Oilers were carrying eight defencemen, and there simply is not enough room for everyone. Even though neither player has exactly lit it up in the early going, the Oilers believe that both Alec Regula and Ty Emberson have higher ceilings and would prefer to keep them on the roster. Emberson, in particular, if he keeps up his current scoring rate of 1-2-3 in 16 games, would finish with around 15 points, which would beat his previous high of 13. A points-per-game mark of 0.1875 is roughly what you would want from a bottom-pairing defenceman.

With that in mind, Stecher was the odd man out and got caught in a numbers game. He was placed on waivers and claimed by the Toronto Maple Leafs, whose blue line has reportedly had trouble moving the puck. Stecher was not waived because he was not doing anything wrong. It was literally a numbers issue. Too many defencemen, not enough ice time. Good luck to him in Toronto. It looks like he has a real chance to get more minutes there.

As for Howard, we all knew that once the Oilers got healthier, he would be sent down to Bakersfield. As a player on an ELC, he does not require waivers, and while he did not perform badly during his time with the big club, going 2-1-3 in 17 games with a minus two, he also did not perform well enough to justify staying over more seasoned players. He showed he was not ready for a top-six role in the early going and was eventually demoted to the fourth line, even sitting out as a healthy scratch last week. Howard had never played an AHL game before, coming straight from the US college ranks, and while that is impressive, he did begin to look overwhelmed as the competition stiffened.

There is nothing wrong with that. It is not unusual for a first-year NHL player. Howard now goes to the AHL, where the pace will be a bit slower, the competition a bit easier, and he will have time to build his confidence. It is refreshing to see the Oilers recognize where a player is at developmentally instead of doing what they used to do, which was hand veterans like Sam Gagner and Jesse Puljujärvi undeserved minutes because they simply had no better options.

This means that in the battle of the rookies, Matt Savoie is dominating early on. Savoie has 73 AHL regular-season games and two playoff games under his belt, so it is no mystery why he looks more comfortable. He has five points so far to Howard’s three.

Letestu is currently the head coach of the Pacific Division-leading Colorado Eagles of the AHL, the affiliate of the Colorado Avalanche. He stepped into the role this past summer after putting in the work: one season coaching in the AJHL, then four years as an assistant and development coach with the Cleveland Monsters of the AHL. Congratulations to him, except when he plays Bakersfield, who also reside in the AHL’s Pacific Division and currently sit seventh.

Fans will remember Letestu as a bottom-six forward for the Oilers for three seasons during the decade of darkness. He signed with the Oilers in 2015-16, just in time for Rogers Place to open. Born in Elk Point, he came here specifically to play for his hometown team. Before that, he spent time in the Pittsburgh and Columbus systems, and after the Oilers chose not to re-sign him, he returned to Columbus before finishing his career with the Winnipeg Jets in 2019-20. He will always be remembered as a hometown guy willing to join a rebuilding team when the Oilers badly needed veteran leadership.

Like Letestu, Smith was also hired as a coach this off-season, returning to Edmonton to take over the Oil Kings. This is a homecoming for Smith, who spent the bulk of his NHL career with the Oilers and served as their captain. His coaching career has been an absolute grind. He has been an assistant coach with the Ottawa Senators, an associate coach with the Prince George Cougars in the WHL, head coach of the Kelowna Rockets, and, most recently, an assistant with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms in the AHL.

Now he has the Oil Kings sitting first in the WHL’s Eastern Conference with a 17-4-1-1 record. Could another WHL championship or Memorial Cup run be in the Oil Kings’ future? With the way they are rolling, it is definitely possible.

Congratulations to Smith. Hopefully, he keeps it up. I would love to catch an Oil Kings win when I use my free subscriber tickets from Oilers Plus.

Marjala is heating up in a big way. He now has 2-11-13 in 14 games for the Condors. The minus two means he is not getting called up anytime soon, but offensively, he is absolutely putting himself on the radar for either a late-season call-up or a shot next season. There is no need to rush him. He is now second in Condors scoring. A 0.93 points-per-game pace is extremely impressive for a player in his first North American pro season.

Marjala has developed strong chemistry with Hutson, which explains why both players are climbing the scoring charts. They are a big reason why Bakersfield has moved from eighth to seventh in the division. Hutson now has 6-6-12 in 14 games with a plus-three and 14 penalty minutes, placing him third in team scoring. The rookie pro started the season with the Oilers, playing two NHL games and performing about as expected for a first-year player. His current 0.86 points-per-game mark is excellent. He is a player worth keeping a close eye on and could easily be among the first forward callups this year, although Howard may challenge him for that spot later.

Järventie has climbed to fifth in Condors scoring with 6-4-10 in just 10 games, tied with Hutson for most goals. He also brings some snarl, sitting top five on the team with 1.2 penalty minutes per game. When the Oilers traded away Xavier Bourgault and struggling prospect Jake Chiasson to Belleville for Järventie, many fans shrugged. Bourgault has been solid for Belleville with 6-6-12 in 15 games, while Chiasson has only one assist. The change of scenery, though, appears to have benefitted Järventie immensely. He looks energized, confident, and capable of much more.

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