For most of the season, we’ve seen a lot of exceptional play from the Edmonton Oilers’ late-round picks in the CHL. Dalyn Wakely, Connor Clattenburg and William Nicholl all have started strong this season.

On the collegiate side, only one late pick has really created a stir, which was Shane Lachance. This is a player the Oilers should sign soon. In the last few weeks, another late pick on the collegiate side has started to make waves. His name is Matt Copponi, a 7th-round pick in the 2023 draft out of Merrimack College.

In the off-season, he transferred to Boston University to become a teammate of Lachance. Perhaps that was the reason for the slow start, but whatever the reason, Copponi sputtered out of the gate. However, when the calendar turned to November, Copponi started to really gain traction. In his last four games, Copponi has seven points. This is a serious development given a couple of other factors. Copponi is a senior, so this is a critical year for signing with the Oilers. He is also a right-shot center with a motor. That is an area of need in the Oilers prospect depth chart. Can Copponi get signed?

More on this new development, the long journey of Sam O’Reilly and much more in this week’s Oilers Prospect Report.

Copponi is an interesting case study. He was selected as a 20-year-old after being passed over a couple of times. This is a fairly rare strategy by NHL teams. However, it is one that has worked for the Oilers in the past. Vinny Desharnais was famously a late overage draft pick who has blossomed into an NHL player. However, it is a very rare occurrence and the success rate is low.

The key right now is for Copponi to get signed by the Oilers. His play this week will help. Let’s have a look. Copponi has a good idea of what to do in the offensive zone. He has nice vision and is very patient with the puck. This pass was lucky no question, but I really like his patience to bring the play back outside and around the net drawing all the attention down low.

He also has very good hands in close.

At this time, the Oilers have two centers signed in Bakersfield, Jayden Grubbe and James Hamblin. Noah Philp is a likely candidate to be re-signed as well. However, it is wide open after that. It should also be noted that Copponi can play right wing as well. He may be better suited to the wing professionally. At 5’11” and 180 pounds, he might have some challenges playing the pivot. In terms of who he plays like, he really is a right-shot James Hamblin. A bit smaller. Very good skater with excellent all-around skills. There is a role for a player like Copponi in the organization. How he finishes the remainder of the year will determine whether Oilers management sees it the same way.

What a journey for Sam O’Reilly. He has gone from top-line center between two potential Team Canada World Junior wingers in Easton Cowan and Denver Barkey to playing third-line left wing… as a right shot!

His play has not been stellar, but it has not been undisciplined or uninspired. Yet the London coaching staff seems to have issues. If that was not clear, in a game this week where Cowan, Barkey and San Jose draft pick, Kasper Halttunen, were out, O’Reilly still slotted in as the third-line left winger.

This week in four games O’Reilly only registered a goal and an assist. However, I thought his last two games of the week were quite inspiring. Almost like a middle finger to the coaching staff. Take a look at this series of forechecks by O’Reilly on this play that led to a great goal by William Nichol.

Now to be fair to the coaching staff, O’Reilly is still the go-to penalty killer on the team. In this clip, in what might be a preview of the future, he and William Nichol team up to score a great short-handed goal.

However, my absolute favourite part of the week was when O’Reilly scored a shoot-out winner for the London Knights. O’Reilly was the sixth player selected to shoot despite all of the absences on the team. Not that a player would tank anything, but you could understand if O’Reilly’s morale would have been low. Instead, he buried the winner for a 2-1 win.

O’Reilly will likely get a push given that Cowan, Barky and Halttunen will all be part of their country’s respective U20 teams for the annual Christmas tournament. Given what has happened to the player, it would be incumbent on him to take advantage of the situation.

Luca Munzenberger has tied his career best in point totals not even a third of the way through his season. Now, he is a senior and growth in point totals should be expected. Also, his career high was only five points, so getting to five points in game ten isn’t elite performance. Of course, it’s important to note that this player has been saddled in a program that is not blessed with high-end offensive talent and the coaching staff designs their tactics to win games 2-1.

This week in his only game, Munzenberger had two assists. Neither was particularly spectacular, but each play gives you clues about the player. The first is a “good ol’ off the glass and out” play leading to an assist. However, I want you to watch Munzenberger gather the puck and explode out the backside using nothing but crossovers. Munzenberger is a very strong skater.

The other clip has two interesting components to it despite the fact it was a second assist on an empty net goal. First, Munzenberger is playing the right side. He has done this a lot this year. Secondly, watch him defend the blueline and force the chip in instead of allowing entry. He makes a great knockdown and turns the puck up the ice.

Munzenberger is in his final year. I would be fairly surprised if the Oilers do not sign him and he doesn’t see games late this season in Bakersfield. He has great size and is a very good skater. I think there is offence in his game that hasn’t been there yet. He also plays a position where the Oilers lack depth. For me, Munzenberger is a no-brainer signing.

This player has elicited a lot of enthusiastic takes about his future on social media. This was pretty easy to predict. He was traded for a player who made major contributions to the success of the Oilers, he’s from the Edmonton area, and the Oilers have not scored from the wing position much this season.

Unfortunately for Savoie, his point totals have led to a lot of concern among the fanbase. Savoie is only 4-6-10 in 16 games. This week Savoie only had one assist in three games. To his defence, Savoie has most of his point totals at 5v5. That’s great. He is also plus four which is a measure that is important for young players. His total is second on the team for a team that has a negative goal total at 5v5 this season. That is also great.

He also gives you looks every game that makes you think about his potential. This week it was a great assist on a Noah Philp goal. This pass is a NHL calibre pass and it is what Savoie will do in the NHL. He is not Jeff Skinner. He is not going to try and create his own offence. He is going to get the puck with an idea of what to do and make that play quickly. Then he will move to another spot. Watch this pass and the lane that he had to make it into.

Savoie does need to increase his scoring totals. He does need to show an ability to create some offence on his own even if that will not be his style in the NHL. However, the fact he is creating at 5v5 is a great sign. The Condors’ powerplay is atrocious and continues to be the same set-up it has been for some time with Seth Griffith running the show. It is at 9% and the team refuses to change its set-up or personnel with any sense of commitment. A more effective powerplay leads to cheap points that add to totals.

Nevertheless, Savoie will not see powerplay time of any significance with the Oilers in the near future. As such, his 5v5 totals are very encouraging. His defensive responsibility is also encouraging. For me, we need to be patient with this player. Let him work through his rookie season. Remember he has played more center than he should have and he plays for a team that is 27th in scoring. He isn’t surrounded by a lot of high-end scorers at the moment.

Shane Lachance continues his strong scoring totals. He is at slightly more than a point per game and is tied for the team lead with Cole Eiserman who was taken 20th overall in the past NHL draft. Lachance deserves notice by the Oilers. His skating is improved although I still do not like his overall balance. Signing early as a professional and getting him so professional help in the area should lead to improvements.

Eemil Vinni has taken the primary goaltending role for the HIFK U20 team. Vinni has a .890 save percentage and a 2.22 goals-against average. Encouraging signs given he is coming off of back surgery.

Brady Stonehouse is back with Ottawa after off-season shoulder surgery. He has played seven games registering two goals and an assist. His shot totals are encouraging at 31 in those seven games. As his tempo increases, I would expect Stonehouse’s scoring totals to follow in lockstep.

That’s it for this week’s report. Have a great week everyone.