The Edmonton Oilers are expected to bring in an additional forward before the 2026-27 season starts. General manager Stan Bowman was already likely to sign a player in this position before the team announced a series of injuries. It was announced on August 26 that four players, including forwards Mattias Janmark and Matt Savoie, would miss training camp.
Due to these injuries, Oilers NOW host Bob Stauffer believes Edmonton will now target a specific forward. “Matt Savoie (who took significant strides after the Olympic Break last season) and Mattias Janmark are both PK’ers,” Stauffer posted on Twitter. “In theory, the Edmonton Oilers have the cap space to look at potentially bringing in a current UFA with PK experience.”
While Stauffer did not specifically name any targets, the Edmonton Journal’s David Staples has. According to the analyst, the Oilers could soon target Curtis Lazar, David Kampf, Adam Henrique, or Philipp Kurashev. Of the quartet, Staples believes that Kurashev has an edge over the others for three reasons.
For starters, the forward is the youngest player on the list, and Edmonton would likely prefer to sign someone under 30. Secondly, Bowman previously drafted Kurashev when the exec was with the Chicago Blackhawks. The Oilers GM clearly sees something in the forward. And finally, the former Blackhawks player is a center and can take face-offs.
Edmonton Oilers may Have to Free up Funds to Sign Underrated Philipp Kurashev
Kurashev had his best NHL campaign with the Blackhawks in the 2023-24 season. The center recorded 54 points (18 goals) in an increased role with the club that year. He, however, has not been able to recreate such an offensive outburst in subsequent seasons. Nevertheless, the center did post a respectable 20 points in just 43 games with the San Jose Sharks this past campaign.
The Edmonton Oilers would not exactly be bringing in Kurashev to light up the scoreboard, though. As Stauffer and Staples point out, the club mostly needs help on the PK and at the face-off dot. Interestingly enough, The Athletic’s Chris Johnston rated Kurashev higher than fellow veterans Vladimir Tarasenko and Patrik Laine in his UFA rankings.
According to the NHL insider, Kurashev should earn a new contract in the neighborhood of two years, $3.4 million AAV. At the moment, the Edmonton Oilers would not be able to afford such a contract. According to PuckPedia.com, Bowman has just under $2 million in projected cap space. Because it is so late in the summer, the UFA center would likely be open to receiving less money, though.
Edmonton Beat Writer Also Links Club to Lazar
Johnston’s colleague, Allan Mitchell, also hinted that the Edmonton Oilers could look to bring in another forward due to the injury crisis. The beat writer specifically mentioned an “inexpensive addition” such as Lazar. As Mitchell points out, Lazar excelled at face-offs with the Oilers in 2025-26. In fact, the veteran had the best face-off win percentage of any Edmonton player last season.
Ultimately, Bowman and the Oilers may have to choose between the younger and more offensive Kurashev or the face-off specialist in Lazar. Both players would likely cost around the same amount of money for the upcoming campaign.
Oilers Linked to Former 50-Point Blackhawks Star Amid Injury Crisis