The Edmonton Oilers don’t often select in the second round, mostly because they have traded away the pick over recent years in order to upgrade their team. It hasn’t always worked out either as the second-round picks have turned into the likes of William Carrier, Ivan Barbashev, Jack Studnicka, Jonas Seigenthaler, Brock Faber, and Aatu Raty.
Since 2013, the Oilers have made five selections in the second round, resulting in just two players who have even suited up for an NHL game to this point. While I have already highlighted the players they could have drafted if they kept the other picks, we’ll dive into each of the five players drafted and the talent that went after them. To wrap up, there will be a look at what the Oilers intend to do with their 2023 second-round pick.
2013 – Marc-Olivier Roy
Kicking off with someone many will not have heard of, Marc-Olivier Roy. This was the second-to-last Oilers’ second-round pick while they were still at the bottom of the league and this pick helped nobody except the other teams around them. The team originally had two second-round picks as they acquired the Anaheim Ducks’ pick in 2013 for Andrew Cogliano two years prior. Having the 56th overall pick, they traded their 37th overall selection for pick 57, also acquiring picks 88 and 96. If they would have chosen 57th, Carrier was their guy. But they then traded it for picks 83, 94, and 113. Sure they acquired draft picks, but nothing came of it.
Roy never signed an NHL contract with the Oilers or any other NHL team, but did end up playing one season for the Bakersfield Condors after two more years in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL). His first season in the American Hockey League (AHL) wasn’t bad, but he also spent time in the ECHL where he jumped back and forth for a number of years for other franchises. He just so happens to still be playing hockey overseas in Austria.
While Roy didn’t really help the Oilers at all, some of the players drafted closely after him were Tyler Bertuzzi (58th), Zach Sanford (61st), Brett Pesce (66th), Pavel Buchnevich (75th), Jake Guentzel (77th), Mattias Janmark (79th), Anthony Duclair (80th), and Carter Verhaeghe (82nd).
2016 – Tyler Benson
2016 was the final offseason before the long rebuild was finally over, but the Oilers weren’t moving down from this pick this time. They drafted 32nd overall, which nowadays is a first-round pick. With that pick, they drafted Tyler Benson, a solid player who has dominated the AHL for some time, but has just been held back due to injuries. He was given a pretty fair shot with the Oilers in 2021-22, playing 29 games, but just wasn’t able to convert his scoring ability from the minors to the NHL. He finished with one goal and one assist, while only posting one goal and three points in 38 career NHL games.
Benson did get to play two games for the Oilers this season, but nothing came of it. He was once again injured early in the season, eliminating his shot at potentially making the team out of training camp. In 217 AHL games since making the jump from junior, the winger has put up a very good 43 goals and 176 points but now finds himself as an unrestricted free agent (UFA). It remains to be seen if the Oilers bring him back again to mainly be a veteran presence for their top prospects in the AHL or allow him a chance to move on and fight for a role in the NHL.
You don’t have to look far beyond Benson at number 32 to see some much better talent that is making an impact in the NHL today. The likes of Rasmus Asplund (33rd), Andrew Peeke (34th), Jordan Kyrou (35th), Alex DeBrincat (39th), and Nathan Bastian (41st) were all taken after him and a couple of them happen to be on the Oilers’ radar right now.
2018 – Ryan McLeod
Ryan McLeod is the Oilers’ best second-round pick since Jeff Petry in 2006 and he just continues to show a ton of raw talent. Playing behind Connor McDavid in the lineup has enabled him to somewhat mirror his puck-handling and play with the puck after him. He might not get to rise up and play in the top-six and his offensive production might not have come yet, but he’s on the cusp and the Oilers have the chance to lock him in on another cheap bridge deal because of it.
Unlike the other drafts where the Oilers could have gotten a much better player, there is nobody else drafted after McLeod in 2018 who I would rather have on this team. He upped his goals-per-game from 0.13 and points-per-game from 0.3 in 2021-22 to 0.19 and 0.4 respectively in 2022-23. It will be exciting to see what he can do with even more effective third-line wingers next season.
2018 – Olivier Rodrigue
Olivier Rodrigue didn’t go far after McLeod in the second round of 2018, and goaltenders take much longer to develop than forwards. I have compared Rodrigue to Skinner in that they have followed similar development paths.
Related: Oilers’ Olivier Rodrigue Could Be the Next Stuart Skinner
This season Rodrigue impressed in the AHL, posting a .912 save percentage. He should get even more playing time next season and continue his development. This is one that is hard to judge yet as the draft was fairly recent and he had goalies like Skinner, Ilya Konovalov, and Calvin Pickard in front of him in recent seasons.
2019 – Raphael Lavoie
Raphael Lavoie is the most recent second-round pick by the Oilers selected in 2019. He is also very close to making his NHL debut as many believe that he might be on the opening night roster for next season. He has really matured over the past two seasons and he was dominant in 2022-23 finishing with 25 goals and 45 points in 61 games with the Condors.
The 6-foot-4 forward has a deadly shot and can also drive the net. There’s no doubt that Lavoie will get his first opportunity on the third or most likely fourth line if he does crack the Oilers next season.
Oilers’ Intentions With Their 2023 Second-Round Pick
The Oilers are in win-now mode and don’t necessarily have to be very active in the draft. They possess their second, sixth, and seventh-round picks this year and I don’t think moving down from their second-rounder should be an option for them. If they are going to move the pick, it should be in a deal to acquire a player and that’s it. The Oilers do have their eye on a couple of options who might be on the trade block around the league.
If the Oilers don’t trade it in the next two weeks, we will see their sixth second-round selection in the past decade (from “Lowetide: What are Oilers’ best NHL Draft bets for 2023 second-round pick?”, The Athletic, June 12, 2023). Ken Holland has drafted some talented players since he took over as general manager, so I have confidence that he can hit on another pick.