The Edmonton Oilers have released veteran winger Mike Hoffman from a professional tryout, the club announced Monday.

Hoffman, 34, joined the Oilers days before the pre-season kicked off and played in four games, scoring a goal and three assists while taking four shots on goal. With him on the ice at five-on-five, the Oilers fared well, controlling 53.7 percent of the shot attempt share, 51.9 percent of the expected goal share and 52.5 percent of the scoring chances, while breaking even in goals.

He spent last season with the San Jose Sharks, scoring 10 goals and 23 points, and there was an argument that he could’ve made the team in a depth role, given his history as a goal scorer. Oilers winger Raphael Lavoie, however, has shown he can do much of the same in the American Hockey League in recent years, and has scored a pair this pre-season so far: one on the power play on a one-timer, and another during Saturday’s game against the Seattle Kraken, where he used his size and skill to drive the net to score.

He is eligible for waivers this year, and one way to read Hoffman’s release is that Lavoie simply beat him out for the job. That’s not a surprise for any of the reasons listed above, as Lavoie could, in an ideal setting, be a bottom-six staple for the team for years to come who could provide offence. Lavoie is also 10 years younger, was drafted by the team in the second round of the 2019 draft, and has seen the organization pour resources into his development with the AHL’s Bakersfield Condors.

The Oilers pre-season continues Monday night against the Vancouver Canucks, and with the training camp roster dwindling, now’s the time where competition will ramp up to another level. Edmonton’s final pre-season games will see them hit the road for a pair of games, visiting Seattle on Wednesday and Vancouver on Friday. The regular season kicks off for the team on Wednesday, October 9th when they host the Winnipeg Jets.

Zach Laing is the Nation Network’s news director and senior columnist. He can be followed on Twitter at @zjlaing, or reached by email at zach@thenationnetwork.com.