Fans have a right to their opinion, and those who back the Edmonton Oilers are a passionate group. Will some fans put a new player in the doghouse this year?

In the last few years, several players have taken heavy criticism from the fanbase. Darnell Nurse, Stuart Skinner, Tristan Jarry, Trent Frederic, Evan Bouchard, and Jake Walman come to mind. Nurse and Skinner have both been traded away in the last year.

That said, there are limits. Making things personal is disrespectful, as professional athletes are people too. Unfortunately, our online culture has allowed a small number of people to cross the line. Hopefully, people will criticize pro athletes respectfully. The vast majority of people are already on board.

Let’s take a look at current Oilers who are under the microscope.

Jarry arrived in a trade from the Pittsburgh Penguins on Dec. 12th, 2025. The veteran goalie played well in his first few games and then got injured. He was unable to regain his form for the rest of the year. There also were rumblings about teammates not being satisfied with Jarry’s practice habits. Bob Stauffer said, “I watched him yesterday in practice, and he was getting beat in practice, and finally one of the leaders, you could see him [say], ‘You’ve got to push it more.” DFO Edmonton’s Jason Gregor also added on his show, “I watched practice yesterday, and I know it’s only practice, but I was watching drill after drill and Jarry was getting lit up in practice. I haven’t seen a goalie give up that many goals for awhile.”

Since the former Oil King was brought in to stabilize the goaltending position, a number of fans were frustrated. However, he wasn’t one hundred percent and was playing behind a porous team defence. Hopefully Jarry will find his game again with new coach Mike Babcock’s more defensive system. The Oilers’ current number one goalie is confident he will get back on track.

Frederic was acquired in a trade with the Boston Bruins on March 4, 2025. He was an effective player with the Eastern franchise. In the 2022-23 and 2023-24 seasons, the American forward scored 17 and 18 goals, respectively. Frederic also had a knack for getting under the skin of the opposition. He could be on the ice causing havoc with the other team’s top skaters and put pucks in their net. These kinds of players are rare in today’s NHL, so the Oilers traded for Frederic. In June 2025, they decided to sign him to an eight-year deal at $3.85 million a year.

Unfortunately, the rugged player arrived with an ankle injury and has taken time to find his game. He spoke to Bob Stauffer about this in the summer.  There were flashes last year, but many fans want to see more from Frederic. Like every contract in the league, his contract looks different after Leo Carlsson signed a mind-blowing offer sheet with the Philadelphia Flyers. The Anaheim Ducks matched it and will be paying their young centre $18 million a year for the next eight years. Every team’s cap limit is also going to be much higher than expected. After these massive changes in the financial landscape of the NHL, Frederic’s contract looks quite good. Time will tell if he can perform consistently.

The stoic defenseman has been criticized for his defensive play at times. At the same time, Bouchard is clearly one of the top defencemen in the league. He had 21 goals and 74 assists in 82 games last year. Most fanbases would be over the moon if they had a 95-point defenceman. There’s also the fact that Bouchard’s contract looks amazing right now.

At times, Bouchard has been prone to turning over the puck. However, he is on the ice a lot and has many puck touches. Some of the other top defencemen in the NHL also turn the puck over. In that light, this seems like a harsh critique of his game.

Here are the top 10 defencemen in the league last year by giveaways:

However, Edmonton is an avid hockey market, and even small mistakes can be fodder for criticism. There isn’t just a guy from college radio and one blogger in the dressing room after the game. This isn’t Long Island.

The Oilers’ No. 2 is also an introverted individual, not unlike the team’s last coach, Kris Knoblauch. Bouchard isn’t overly emotional and keeps his cards close to his chest. In the extroverted North American sports culture, these athletes are often misunderstood. Silent can be strong.

Things looked great when the Oilers picked up Walman from the San Jose Sharks on March 6, 2025. Walman fit in perfectly when he arrived, and his two-way play made an immediate impact. He was also good friends with one of the team’s leaders, Zach Hyman. They grew up together playing hockey in Toronto.

Walman can skate, can shoot, and competes hard. According to NHL Edge, his top skating speed is in the 98th percentile. However, he had a down year in 2025-26 after picking up an injury. His -17 was indicative of his poor performance; only one other player had a worse plus-minus on the team. One positive sign is that Walman was arguably the Oilers’ best defenceman in the playoffs. He picked up four assists in the six games against the Anaheim Ducks and appeared to be on track again. His contract also looks a lot more appealing after the NHL’s wild summer. Hopefully, Walman can bounce back this year and be an important part of the Oilers’ D-core.

Given the vocal fans of the Oilers, it’s inevitable that players will be criticized. Let’s see who enters the spotlight next.

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