The Edmonton Oilers have added to their defensive depth via the waiver wire.
The team announced on Wednesday that they claimed Alec Regula from the Boston Bruins. The 6-foot-4, right-handed defenceman hasn’t played yet this season because of an injury and was placed on waivers on Tuesday to be assigned to the American Hockey League.
The #Oilers have claimed defenceman Alec Regula off waivers from Boston. The right-shot blueliner, selected 67th overall by Detroit in 2018, has appeared in 22 career @NHL games with one goal. pic.twitter.com/zX9uaDcIci
— Edmonton Oilers (@EdmontonOilers) December 11, 2024
Born in West Bloomfield, Michigan, Regula won the USHL Championship with the Chicago Steel in 2016-17 before joining the London Knights of the OHL for his pre-draft season. He posted 25 points over 67 games along with a plus-23 rating in 2017-18 and was selected in the third round of that summer’s draft by the Detroit Red Wings.
The Wings went through a front office change after the 2018-19 season, with long-time general manager Ken Holland leaving to make room for former captain and franchise icon Steve Yzerman. A few days into the 2019-20 season, Yzerman traded Regula to the Chicago Blackhawks for winger Brendan Perlini.
After teammate Evan Bouchard graduated to the professional ranks, Regula became London’s top defenceman who was used in all situations. He scored 60 points over 56 games in 2019-20 and posted a plus-39 rating in a season that ultimately ended early because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Knights had a 45-15-2 record when the season ended and were a solid bet to compete for the Memorial Cup.
Regula scored three goals and four points in 16 games in his professional debut with the Rockford IceHogs of the AHL during the shortened 2021 season. He was called up to Chicago in May and appeared in three games with the club. Over the next two seasons, Regula went back and forth between the AHL and NHL, scoring one goal in 19 games with the Hawks.
Following the 2022-23 season, Regula was traded along with Ian Mitchell to the Bruins for Taylor Hall and Nick Foligno. The move was mostly a salary cap dump for Boston but they landed themselves an interesting depth defender in the deal. Regula scored 26 points in 55 games for the Providence Bruins in 2023-24 and led the league with a plus-36 rating.
After that showing in the AHL, Regula appeared poised to compete for a spot on the blueline in Boston. Instead, he suffered a knee injury during the off-season and hasn’t played yet in 2024-25. The Bruins tried to get Regula through waivers so that he could get up to speed playing with Providence but the Oilers decided to give the young defender an opportunity.
According to Puck Pedia, the Oilers are $255k over the salary cap ceiling with the addition of Regula, who’s on a one-year, $775k contract. Edmonton can use the Long-Term Injured Reserve cushion in this situation or they can send somebody else down to the Bakersfield Condors. There are no players currently on the team’s active roster who can be sent to the AHL without waivers.
