Over the course of this five-part series, where I’ve gone through the questions that will define what is arguably the most consequential offseason in Edmonton Oilers history, I’ve looked at a lot of different things.

I kicked things off with a look at the coaching staff, which was clearly the first question that the organization itself wanted to address, and from there, I dug into some roster-related questions. The Oilers do not need to make sweeping changes to their roster to be competitive.

They could bring back a handful of their pending free agents, they could add a young player to the forward, or they could dabble in the veteran free agent market.

It wouldn’t be a particularly flashy offseason, but as much as the 2025-26 season was disappointing, I think it’s important to remember that this team isn’t that far away from being a contender.

Even with just a few small moves, they should be considered one of the top contenders in the West.

The Oilers should have their sights aimed higher, though.

This is a front office that should be looking to do more than be in the conversation in the Pacific Division or the Western Conference. That’s the bare minimum, but they should be trying to make the kind of moves that put the rest of the league on notice that they’re back.

The Oilers don’t have a lot of prospects in their system that other teams would hold in high regard.

Isaac Howard is the most notable prospect, but if you’re looking to make a move for a player like Jordan Kyrou in St. Louis, who has scored 30 goals multiple times in his career, then simply dangling Howard in the deal won’t be enough.

Pieces like Howard, Quinn Hutson, Beau Akey, and even the 2028 first-round pick might be able to get you a good player, but there will be some big names on the trade market this summer and those names don’t get you into those kinds of conversations.

Kyrou and his St. Louis teammate, Robert Thomas, are both likely going to be available this summer. Would the Nashville Predators consider blowing it up and making either Juuse Saros or Filip Forsberg available? That would be something.

There will be names that aren’t being discussed right now that will be on the market and if the Oilers want to be able to take a big swing, they’ll have to make some really tough decisions.

First off, they would have to have the money to make it work, which is something I talked about earlier in this series.

Secondly, with the free agent market being as weak as it is, every team that is trying to make major improvements this summer is going to be trying to do it via the trade market.

Also, with the cap going up, there are also going to be fewer teams in cap hell and that means there won’t be as many quality players that teams are just itching to get rid of for the sake of freeing up cap space.

That means there could be some pretty intense bidding wars with other teams and most them will all have deeper prospect pools that they can reach into.

Teams like San Jose and Chicago, who are both expected to be active on the trade market, have multiple A+ pieces that they could dangle.

If the Oilers want to go after a piece like Kyrou or want to try to convince a team to trade another bona fide 30-goal scorer, then the asking price probably starts with Matt Savoie.

Considering how well he developed last season and how cheap he will be next year as a player who’s still on his entry-level contract, I think Savoie should be very, very close to untouchable.

It would take a hell of a trade for me to consider including him in a package and I don’t think that’s likely.

I really want to see Stan Bowman take a big swing but my fear is that it just isn’t a realistic expectation right now.

After looking at every angle of this off-season through this five-part series, I just think I’ve come to the conclusion that this summer might not be as exciting as I had once hoped it would be.

I really want to be wrong on this but if a truly elite top-six piece pops up on the trade market, there are going to be a dozen teams making a call and putting together their best offer.

I’m not sure that the Oilers will have enough to keep up in those bidding wars.

Now, maybe a player uses their no-trade clause or something to force their way to Edmonton because they want to go to a contender, but even that feels like a stretch considering how many other contenders are looking for scoring.

This summer is going to be all about getting creative.

Stan Bowman must find players who are being undervalued by their current organizations and swoop in.

We are far more likely to see another Vasiliy Podkolzin-esque deal than we are a big, multi-piece blockbuster.

That might be disappointing to read, but I think it’s the reality of the situation.

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