David Tomášek played in the OHL for the Belleville Bulls from 2013 to 2015, and in his final junior season, his team was knocked out in the first round of the playoffs by Andrew Mangiapane’s Barrie Colts. Mangiapane scored twice in the series-clinching game, sending Tomášek and his teammates packing. For Tomášek, it meant literally packing his bags and spending the next decade playing hockey in Europe.

Fast forward almost a decade, and the story comes full circle. Now teammates with Mangiapane on the Edmonton Oilers, Tomášek made his NHL debut last game against the Calgary Flames, recording his first NHL point, which was a huge achievement for the 29-year-old who grinded his way through Europe and is finally getting his shot on the big stage.

Tomášek has also been given a golden opportunity on the Oilers, playing the net-front role on one of the NHL’s most lethal power-play units over the last few years, and it seems that, for the near future, that spot is his to lose. With that in mind, let’s explore a potential point projection for the 29-year-old rookie.

Tomášek played in five preseason games, tallying two assists, and while he wasn’t necessarily lights out, the upside was there. He’s big, rangy, and skilled, and one aspect that stood out to me throughout training camp was his soft, veteran touches to keep plays alive. An example of that was his play to bat down the puck and set up Josh Samanski against the Winnipeg Jets.

It seems the Oilers’ coaching staff noticed the upside as well. In the last preseason game against the Vancouver Canucks, we saw him take reps with Connor McDavid and company on the first-unit PP, filling the net-front role usually occupied by Zach Hyman, who remains out of the lineup. That said, he makes sense as Hyman’s replacement there — he has size, he’s a right-handed shot, and, as the SHL’s leading scorer last season, he has the instincts and know-how to put the puck in the back of the net.

In that last preseason game, his hard work paid off on the man advantage. He created a disturbance in front of the net, and on one play, just his presence while hanging out in the slot drew a defender to him, opening up a scoring chance that Leon Draisaitl capitalized on.

Fast forward to his first NHL game against the Flames. He mainly played on a line with Isaac Howard and Adam Henrique at 5v5. While that trio didn’t score, according to Natural Stat Trick, Tomášek put up some solid advanced metrics, posting a 76.92% Corsi, 100% shots-for percentage (3-0), and a 91.29% expected goals-for (xGF%).

On top of that, the former Belleville Bull played 3:37 minutes on the man advantage with the big unit, and once again, he didn’t look out of place. Sporting Nikita Nikitin’s old #86 on the back of his jersey, he was a menace in front of the net again, setting up plays, and nearly scored a couple of times off of tips in front.

Another thing that stood out is that, once again, his presence in the slot posed a threat. On Ryan Nugent-Hopkins’ opening goal, he drew Flames’ defenders to him, opening the lane for ‘Nuge’ to receive the puck and bury it.

And to top it off, he cemented his name in future Oilers trivia for the question, “Who got the primary assist on Leon Draisaitl’s 400th NHL goal?” It was Tomášek, of course, who made a nice backhand play to Draisaitl on the man advantage, allowing him to bury his milestone goal, which was also the Prague native’s first NHL point.

Moreover, what was also intriguing was that on the Oilers’ PP opportunity in OT against the Flames, instead of Nugent-Hopkins going out on the ice with the three offensive studs, McDavid, Draisaitl, and Evan Bouchard, Tomášek was given the big chance and nearly ended the game with a nice backhand attempt in front.

Overall, the fact that Tomášek has been given the PP opportunity, especially in OT, speaks volumes about the confidence the coaches have in him. Having said that, when Hyman is set to return, if Tomášek is performing well on the unit, I’d imagine they wouldn’t remove him entirely. He and Hyman could alternate net-front duties, much like Hyman and Corey Perry did last season.

The way the 29-year-old is currently being used on the PP, due to his size, offensive instincts, good shot, and a knack for the net, reminds me of the attributes of former Oiler Alex Chiasson, who played with the team from 2018–2021, also spent time on the first unit in the net-front presence role with the big guns during that period, and was the same age that Tomášek is now. Additionally, the Oilers, specifically McDavid, have been looking to Tomášek in front for a re-direct, much like the way Chiasson scored below nearly six years ago.

Chiasson scored a career-high 22 goals and 38 points (15 points on the PP) back in 2018–19 in 73 games, and followed it up with 24 points (13 points on the PP) in 65 games the next season. Realistically, I don’t think Tomášek is cracking the 20-goal plateau (though I’d love to be proven wrong), but I feel he can put up similar points on the PP if he stays in that spot throughout the season. Given that, in the hypothetical situation Tomášek plays in all 82 games and maintains his spot on the PP, I’d feel he’s capable — based on Chiasson as the net-front comparable — of putting up at least 14 points on the man advantage.

Now, what about his 5v5 point production? I feel he’s capable of putting up points at 5v5 similar to what Adam Henrique (17 points at 5v5 last season) and Mattias Janmark (14 points at 5v5 last season) did in 2024–25, which was based on playing in the middle six, and that total could be bigger if Tomášek proves capable of playing higher in the lineup.

If he puts up, say, 15 points at 5v5 and you add 15 power-play points to the equation, I’d feel a 30-point season (15G, 15A) is attainable for the Prague native, which would replace Corey Perry’s point production from last season.

That said, the NHL season is long and unpredictable. Tomášek could go through a slump or even risk not sticking with the big club. Still, the opportunity in front of him is huge. If he can reach around the 30-point mark and continue posting positive analytics, driving play, and contributing effectively at both ends, the 29-year-old’s signing could turn out to be a real home-run signing.