Matt Savoie has scored goals in back-to-back games for the Edmonton Oilers. Sure, they lost both of them—badly, in the case of the Pittsburgh blowout—but a goal is a goal. They don't ask how it's done. They just count.
And for Oilers fans? This is exciting.
It's been a while since young talent actually developed in Edmonton. Real talent that can help an organization grow beyond just drafting superstars at the top of the order. The Oilers have been blessed with generational players like Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, but developing depth pieces, complementary scorers, and reliable secondary options? That's been a struggle.
Now, I'm not saying Matthew Savoie is the next Connor McDavid. That's a bit of a stretch. But he's a good player. He's showing he belongs at this level. He's playing well with Isaac Howard, whose presence adds another layer of youthful development to the mix. Watching these two young forwards grow together, find chemistry, and contribute offensively is fun. It's exciting. And it's happening while the team is competitive, not during some painful rebuild.
And for Oilers fans who lived through the dark years? This is what they were waiting for.
Remember the decade of despair? The endless rebuilds that never actually rebuilt anything? The Oilers drafted first overall four times in six years between 2010 and 2015. They got Taylor Hall, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Nail Yakupov, and McDavid. Hall left. Yakupov busted. And for years, the organization couldn't develop supporting players around their stars. They'd draft prospects, watch them struggle, then ship them out for rentals that never worked.
The Oilers became a graveyard for young talent. Players who showed promise elsewhere would arrive in Edmonton and stagnate. The development system was broken. The coaching was inconsistent. The losing culture was suffocating. Even when McDavid arrived, it took years before the organization figured out how to build around him properly.
Now? Things are different. Savoie's showing actual growth. He's producing. He's playing with confidence alongside Howard—another young player the Oilers traded for, not drafted and mishandled. Both came from outside the organization, which says something about Edmonton's scouting, but at least they're developing them properly now.
That's progress.
And here's the key difference from the dark years: this is happening while the Oilers are good. Savoie isn't developing during a lost season where the team's tanking for draft position. He's not getting ice time because the roster is barren and there's nobody else. He's earning his spot on a team that's trying to win a Stanley Cup.
That experience matters. Learning what it takes to contribute on a winning team matters. He's seeing how McDavid prepares, how Draisaitl approaches games, how veterans like Nugent-Hopkins handle adversity. He's playing meaningful hockey in January with playoff implications. When the postseason arrives, he won't be overwhelmed—he'll have months of high-pressure situations already under his belt.
Compare that to the development environment during the dark years. Young players were thrown into losing situations with no structure, no veteran leadership, and no accountability. They'd make mistakes, lose confidence, and either regress or leave the organization entirely. The Oilers wasted countless prospects because they had no idea how to develop them.
Now they do. Savoie's not being rushed into a role he's not ready for. He's playing with other young talent, getting manageable minutes, and contributing without being expected to carry the offence. That's sustainable development.
Two goals in two games is a small sample size, but it's a start. It's evidence that the Oilers can identify talent, acquire it, and help it grow. That's been the missing piece for over a decade. Edmonton could always land superstars—they just couldn't build depth around them.
Savoie and Howard represent a shift in philosophy. The Oilers aren't just relying on McDavid and Draisaitl to do everything. They're investing in younger players who can contribute now and grow into bigger roles later. That's how you sustain success beyond a single cup window.
For fans who suffered through the Jordan Eberle-for-Ryan Strome-for-Ryan Spooner disaster, or watched Jesse Puljujarvi never develop properly, or endured countless other developmental failures, watching Savoie score in consecutive games feels different. It feels like competence. Like the organization finally understands what it's doing.
Matthew Savoie is heating up at the perfect time. And the Oilers seem capable of nurturing that growth instead of squandering it.