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Breaking news from the ultimate Oilers’ insider, Bob Stauffer:
Philp announced his retirement from hockey in June of 2023 for personal reasons not related to the game. This after the former University of Alberta Golden Bear had enjoyed an excellent rookie pro season after being signed by the Oilers as a 23-year-old free agent the previous spring.
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As I wrote in the preliminary post to the Cult of Hockey‘s annual prospect rankings last summer:
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Edmonton also suffered the disappointing loss of Noah Philp to retirement after what had been a very promising first professional season in the AHL that had him pushing for a spot in the top 5 of my personal prospects list. He had a very decent chance of snaring a spot (presumably Bjugstad’s) in the bottom six, but just like that, he’s out of the running.
How promising was “very promising”? Consider the splits of Philp’s lone season in Bakersfield, in which it clearly took him a little time to adapt to the program. But he did adapt.
- 2022: 28GP, 3-2-50.18 points per game
- 2023: 42 GP, 16-16-320.76 points per game
This by a 6’3, 198-pound, right-shot center. Exactly the type of player the Oilers have been searching for seemingly forever, even as the role was temporarily filled by Nick Bjugstad as a rental last spring. But with Bjugstad clearly heading elsewhere (he re-signed with Arizona on Jul 01), the opportunity surely would have been there for Philp last fall.
In his absence, the Oilers made a splendid trade for another prospect fitting the general description in Jayden Grubbe. A #65 pick by the New York Rangers in the 2021 draft, the Oilers got his rights to a fifth round pick (#152) when NYR were unable to come to terms with the 6’3, 200-pound right shooting pivot. The 21-year-old checking center has had a decent pro debut of his own in 2023-24, even as his offensive totals of 7-6-13 in 56 games are a little light of what the older Philp posted in his own debut seasons.
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Although Philp’s one-year (due to his age at signing) Entry Level Contract had expired, Edmonton GM Ken Holland also took the precaution of issuing a qualifying offer last spring, knowing full well that it would be refused. That step preserved Edmonton’s RFA rights to the player, who has been sequestered on them Reserve List this season.
Now the Oilers have the rights to both. It stands to reason that the older Philp will vault ahead of Grubbe in terms of opportunity to make the big club next fall, even as there may be some lag due to his year away from the game. While he was acquired as a pro-ready player, it was always to be expected that Grubbe would need substantial time in the AHL, where he will surely play in 2024-25.
Meanwhile for the now 25-year-old Noah Philp, making the Oilers at some point during next season is a distinct possibility.
Game Day 70: Edmonton at Winnipeg
The Oilers hit the ice in Winnipeg tonight in hopes of salvaging something, anything, from a 3-game Canadian road trip that has produced a pair of disappointing regulation losses in Toronto and Ottawa.
A few line-up changes for the visitors:
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Stu Skinner will get the start, just his 7th in the last 12 games as coach Kris Knoblauch has strived to share the workload during a busy March run.
The same 6 defenders will play as in Ottawa, though beyond the write-it-in-pen first pair of Mattias Ekholm and Evan Bouchard the partnerships have changed. Darnell Nurse has been reunited with Cody Cecias have Brett Kulak with Vincent Desharnais. Worth noting these are the same three duos that teamed up during the squad’s 16-game winning streak earlier in the season.
Up front, Sam Carrick drwas the short straw after a deleterious game on the penalty kill last time out. Derek Ryan will take his spot at 4C, and also (presumably) on the first PK unit with Ryan Nugent-Hopkins.
Evander Kane draws back into the line-up and will join Ryan McLeod and Corey Perry on the third line, while Mattias Janmark drops to the fourth with Ryan and Connor Brown. The top six remained unchanged from Sunday.
A few key Oilers will look to light the lamp after lengthy goal-scoring droughts, among them Kane (0-4-4, -2 in his last 16 GP), Nugent-Hopkins (0-7-7, -1 in his last 13) and Bouchard (0-16-16, +14 in his last 13). One of these things is not like the others.
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The Oilers as a team will surely be looking for a return to form on the defensive side of the puck after allowing 11 goals in the last 2 games. In the process, they dropped significant ground to division rivals Los Angeles Kings and Vegas Golden Knights, both of whom bagged the maximum 4 standings points over those same 3 days. Edmonton’s once comfortable lead has been reduced to just 1 point over the Kings, 3 over the Golden Knights, even as the locals hold 2 games in a hand over both.
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