Brown and four more players are placed on waivers while Philp is loaned to Bakersfield to start the year.
Brown and four more players are placed on waivers while Philp is loaned to Bakersfield to start the year.
The opening night roster is set.
The Oilers announced their final round of roster cuts on Sunday morning, chopping the roster down to 20 names, plus PTO invite Travis Dermott. Four players, including free agent acquisition Josh Brown, will hit waivers, while Noah Philp will be loaned to Bakersfield to start the year.
Waiving Brown comes as a bit of a surprise, considering he was given a three-year deal to play on the team's bottom defence pair, but he simply wasn't up to par during the pre-season. This means Troy Stecher will likely slot in next to Brett Kulak to start the year. An NHL contract for Travis Dermott is likely in the works as well, though it's still possible the Oilers don't take any scratches with them into the regular season.
Among the forwards, it's a little surprising that Noah Philp won't break camp with the team, especially considering that means they're entering the season with only 12 forwards on the roster. That it was even a discussion is a testament to his extremely impressive training camp, and it shouldn't be long before Philp gets his shot with the Oilers.
The player with the biggest risk of being claimed on waivers is Raphael Lavoie, who showed considerable offensive pop during the pre-season. He would be a savvy waiver claim for a rebuilding team with room for a young scorer in their bottom six. If he passes through unscathed, he should get his chance in Edmonton at some point this season.
Drake Caggiula had a good camp for a player with a very slim chance at making the team and will be an important veteran presence in Bakersfield if he passes through waivers. Olivier Rodrigue had some growing pains in training camp and will have to fight Collin Delia for starts in Bakersfield. He'll get every chance to become the starter there and should fight for a backup role in Edmonton next season.
Now that the roster is set, the Oilers get their first test of the regular season at home on Wednesday against the Winnipeg Jets.
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