Although hockey fans in Edmonton have been widely appreciative of the job Oilers CEO Jeff Jackson has done as the team’s interim general manager, don’t count on him staying in that role on a permanent basis.

Jackson, 59, has consistently stated since Ken Holland departed the organization last month that he does not wish to remain in the GM role longer than he has to, and he reiterated that assertion in a segment during Tuesday’s edition of The Bob McCown Podcast.

“I don’t want to be the general manager,” Jackson said. “I’m an active CEO, so I’m involved in the day-to-day [operations], but I think being with the team on a daily basis, like a GM has to do, doesn’t work for me and my family, and that’s a discussion I had with Daryl Katz right from the get-go.”

With Jackson at the helm, the Oilers were one of the National Hockey League’s busiest teams in the early days of the unrestricted free agency period, agreeing to terms with Jeff Skinner, Viktor Arvidsson, and Josh Brown while also re-signing Adam Henrique, Mattias Janmark, Connor Brown, Corey Perry, Troy Stecher, and Calvin Pickard.

Jackson has also dipped into the trade market, most notably sending forwards Ryan McLeod and Tyler Tullio to the Buffalo Sabres back on July 5 in exchange for top prospect Matt Savoie. Then, on Monday, the Oilers traded Xavier Bourgault and Jake Chiasson to the Ottawa Senators for Roby Jarventie and a 2025 fourth-round pick.

The Oilers have had four different interim and permanent GMs during the Connor McDavid — Peter Chiarelli, Keith Gretzky, Holland, and Jackson — and whomever they hire this offseason will become the fifth. Jackson confirmed to McCown that he intends to finish the process of hiring a new GM soon.

“I’m working through that process right now,” Jackson said. “I’ve spoken with a number of candidates and making my way through that … [I] hope to have a decision on that front, I don’t wanna put a timeframe on it, but it’s probably in the next week to 10 days, sort of thing, I would think.”

Before joining the Oilers organization in 2023, Jackson was a prominent player agent whose clients included McDavid, Alex DeBrincat, Quinton Byfield, and Aaron Ekblad. He also played in the NHL with the Toronto Maple Leafs, New York Rangers, Quebec Nordiques, and Chicago Blackhawks and later served as assistant general manager of the Maple Leafs from 2007 to 2010.