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‘We’re not worried about this’: Oilers GM Stan Bowman on Savoie, Andersen injuries

By Zach Laing

Aug 28, 2026, 08:00 EDTUpdated: Aug 28, 2026, 02:02 EDT

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Injuries happen.

That’s the message Edmonton Oilers general manager Stan Bowman is sending in the wake of offseason injuries to forward Matt Savoie and goaltender Frederik Andersen.

“It’s not great when guys are hurt,” Bowman told Sportsnet’s Mark Spector in an interview from his Chicago-area home. “But internally, we’re not nearly as concerned or nervous about it as the fans or the media.

“We’re not worried about this. This is part of the sport, and we’ll work our way through it. And there’s an opportunity, probably, for someone else to get a better look than they may otherwise would have.”

The injuries, undoubtedly, are far from ideal, no matter the internal concern level. Savoie was slated to remain on the top line alongside Connor McDavid and Zach Hyman, and be a first-over-the-boards penalty killer after impressing in his rookie season. Andersen was rehabbing from a knee injury suffered in the playoffs, but it’s unknown whether this ailment is related.

Bowman, meanwhile, says the team will be slow-playing the veteran goaltender’s return.

“Matt’s going to miss less time than Freddie,” he said. Also, Freddie’s older. So we’re probably not going to be pushing the envelope, trying to probably give him enough time.

“I don’t want to put a timeline on it, but it’s not like he’s going to miss half a season or anything like that. It’s going to be much less than that. Probably around the training camp, we’ll have a better timeline on things. He is going to miss some time, but it’s nothing that we’re concerned about.”

Clear as mud, so they say.

That’s a lot of words to land on it being nothing of concern, but maybe that’s the pessimist after how close Kris Knoblauch would keep things to his vest when it came to injuries.

What is clear, however, is that there’s going to be another wrinkle to training camp competitions. Does Ryan Nugent-Hopkins vacate a spot on the third line to play with No. 97 and No. 18 on the top line? Can Isaac Howard or Josh Samanski take on additional work, potentially the latter on the penalty kill? Does the team embark on the professional tryout route to add another vet? Or, do they see if someone from the Bakersfield Condors, or one of their recent depth free agent signings step up?

“Howard’s in that group, where we expect them to be on the team. Then there are guys like Samanski and Quinn Hutson,” said Bowman. “Then you’ve got maybe unknown guys that are a little bit older, like Eduards Tralmaks and Aku Raty.

“Those guys are not young guys, but they’re accomplished American League players who were always going to get a look. Now, maybe they’ll get a different look.”

The 29-year-old Tralmaks and 25-year-old Raty could be interesting options. In late July, our own NHL_Sid highlighted how the Latvian possesses a skill that could make him stand out: even-strength scoring. Given the Oilers’ issues with depth scoring in recent years, he could carve something out, and combining his size at 6-foot-3, 221 lbs. with a strong forechecking ability, one has to wonder.

When it comes to the goaltending, Edmonton’s three-headed goalie monster is already paying

Zach Laing is Daily Faceoff Edmonton’s managing editor and The Nation Network’s news director. He can be followed on X at @zjlaing, or reached by email at zach.laing@bettercollective.com.

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Photoshop by Tom Kostiuk

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