The Oilers weren’t able to get Raphael Lavoie through waivers this year.
According to Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff, Lavoie was one of two players claimed by the Vegas Golden Knights.
The other players that the Oilers placed on waivers on Sunday (forward Drake Caggiula, defenceman Josh Brown, and goaltender Olivier Rodrigue) cleared through and will be assigned to the Bakersfield Condors of the American Hockey League.
Vegas also selected forward Cole Schwindt from the Calgary Flames, while forward Zach Aston-Reese was acquired by the Columbus Blue Jackets and goaltenders Jiri Patera and James Reimer were taken by the Vancouver Canucks and Anaheim Ducks.
Selected by the Oilers in the second round of the 2019 NHL Draft, Lavoie has produced at the minor-league level but hasn’t been given much of a look with the big-league club. He cleared through waivers last fall and was held off the scoresheet in seven games with Edmonton.
Listed at 6-foot-4, 215 pounds, the right-winger has all of the tools to be a successful scorer in the NHL. Lavoie is big, strong, and has a hard and accurate shot. He scored 25 goals in 61 games with the Condors in 2022-23 and 28 goals in 66 games with Bakersfield in 2023-24.
Lavoie came into training camp as one of a handful of forwards competing for a spot on the Oilers’ fourth line. Edmonton ultimately chose to keep veteran forwards Corey Perry and Derek Ryan on the roster over Lavoie, who scored one goal during the pre-season.
Both Lavoie and Schwindt figure to battle for playing time on Vegas’ fourth line with Keegan Kolesar and Brett Howden. If the Golden Knights want to send either player to the AHL, they’ll both have to go through waivers again.
Lavoie is yet another top draft pick from the Ken Holland era to head out the door. The team lost 2019 and 2020 first-round picks Philip Broberg and Dylan Holloway this summer when they signed offer sheets with the St. Louis Blues. The Oilers also traded struggling 2021 first-round pick Xavier Bourgault to the Ottawa Senators earlier in the off-season.
