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‘I work my balls off’: Babcock and Oilers’ newcomers ready to make camp impact

By Michael Menzies

Sep 18, 2026, 09:00 EDTUpdated: Sep 18, 2026, 04:42 EDT

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Get ready for a lot of one-liners from Mike Babcock. On day one of Edmonton Oilers training camp, he responded to a question about line combinations with this:

“I wouldn’t read a bunch into them, because I did them on a napkin in the summer.”

If that wasn’t the quip of the day, it could be this:

“I work my balls off every shift,” said newcomer Mathieu Joseph.

Or, it could be some of the banter between Leon Draisaitl and TSN’s Ryan Rishaug regarding how similar lines could be from captains’ skates:

“You know as much as I do. Actually, no, you don’t,” said Draisaitl with a smile. “I know a lot more than you do.”

Hockey is back. The preseason arrives Saturday with a contest against the Winnipeg Jets.

How will Mike Babcock structure the Oilers’ forward lines?

For Babcock, it was his first day in the Oilers tracksuit, lacing up the skates, and getting an up-close-and-personal look at his players.

There weren’t a lot of stops and starts, or time on the whiteboard. Instead, Babcock’s voice boomed throughout the Downtown Community Arena.

“I guess what we’re trying to do is send the message out how we want to play and create that as much as we can,” said Babcock. “We’ve asked them to learn the details and then find your game within our game. So if you know the details and everyone’s detailed, everybody on the team can be important. Sometimes, when you’re not detailed enough, no one knows where to go, and only the best guys get to be important.”

Babcock said he expects to start Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl together, play them together at home, and split them up on the road. There are three pairs of forwards he envisions for the top three lines. After that?

“I’d like to tell you something, but I got nothing to tell you,” he said.

Another sticking point is whether the skilled players will play on the penalty kill. McDavid was in a semi-regular rotation a year ago on the PK, but is that the easiest method to reduce his minutes?

“We’re going to try to make sure his minutes are reasonable so he can play every night,” said Babcock. “We’re not taking away power-play time. And if we want them to penalty kill, that means we’re taking away 5-on-5 time.

“But when you take away 5-on-5 time, now your third and fourth lines get to play. We want everyone to play. So Connor and I’ve been working on that and talking about it. We’ll get it figured out.”

What role will newcomers Ryan Shea and Mathieu Joseph play?

Ryan Shea’s first day in Oilers apparel was spent paired with Evan Bouchard. Edmonton’s biggest ticket on July 1 went to Shea on his five-year, $20-million pact.

He’s been getting to know his new teammates over the summer, made to feel welcome by the Oilers leadership group, as he figures to be here a while and build off his breakout campaign in 2025-26. He’ll show what he has to offer in whatever role he’s given, while speaking with an air of confidence.

“I know what I’m capable of,” said Shea.

“I know what I do well, and I’m sure they’ve watched plenty of tape to know what I do well as well. I’m just gonna play my role, whatever that may be. Hopefully it gets us inches closer to our ultimate goal.”

Mathieu Joseph is no stranger to an NHL training camp. The Oilers are his fifth stop in the league, once a Stanley Cup champion with the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2020-21.

Last season didn’t go so well, but DJ Smith knows what he’s about, having coached him in Ottawa, as well as recruiting him to Los Angeles after his contract was terminated in February.

Joseph isn’t taking this opportunity for granted.

“I’m a hard worker,” he said. “I work my balls off every shift. Hopefully I can get a role on the penalty kill. I think I can be dangerous offensively as well. I like to buzz around out there and disrupt the other team’s power play.

“But I think in general, as a leader, I think I can bring some experience in the room as well. I’m a positive guy. Every day I show up with a big smile on my face and I feel really privileged to be in this league. Every year that I step up at training camp, it feels like it’s my first year coming in. I think I’m just going to try to bring that joy every day and be positive around everybody.”

Michael Menzies is an Oilersnation columnist and co-host of PreGaming and Oilersnation After Dark. He’s also been the play-by-play voice of the Bonnyville Pontiacs in the AJHL since 2019. With seven years of news experience as the Editor-at-Large of Lakeland Connect in Bonnyville, Menzies collects vinyl, books, and stomach issues. Follow him on X at Menzies_4.

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