Oilers Could Circle Back on Over $8M in Veteran Contracts Midseason

The Edmonton Oilers might not be done offering deals and extensions this summer. According to recent speculation, the team may reconsider the idea of signing a couple of veteran NHL players. One is up for a new deal, while the other saw his deal expire, having recently retired.

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First, there was speculation that Edmonton might have been among the five teams that reached out to player agent Allan Walsh and inquired about the seriousness of veteran goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury’s retirement intentions. For now, the answer is that he’s serious. However, what happens later in the 2025-26 season is unclear.

While the Oilers opted to stay the course in net this summer with Stuart Skinner and Calvin Pickard, there’s a growing sense that management remains open to upgrading in net, and if Fleury makes it known that he’s open to the idea of joining a contender, the Oilers would be keenly interested.

Fleury had a $2.5 million contract with the Minnesota Wild last season. He could get nearly as much in 2025-26, even if he only plays part of the season. Edmonton would have to find a way to make the cap situation work, but reports are they might already be looking to move out another active contract to give themselves some cap flexibility.

Oilers Could Circle Back on One Of Their Own Guys

Also potentially on their radar is a team-friendly deal for Mattias Ekholm. Bob Stauffer discussed some of the items on the Oilers’ summer to-do list, and while a new extension for Connor McDavid was at the top of the list, a new deal for defensemen Jake Walman and Ekholm is on the list as well.

The Ekholm contract is intriguing because, while still a top-four and quite useful, he’s now 35 and will be 36 when his current contract ends. A short-term deal makes the most sense, but Ekholm might be looking for a longer-term deal to finish out his NHL career. That won’t be an easy decision given his age and recent injury history.

It is believed that Edmonton and Ekholm have held preliminary talks about staying, but nothing to the level that would be considered serious. What is Ekholm worth? And how important is he to the Oilers’ blue line?

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