The Edmonton Oilers have signed left-shot defenceman Slater Koekkoek to a one-year contract worth $850,000. Koekkoek spent the 2019-20 season with the Chicago Blackhawks.
The Edmonton Oilers have signed Slater Koekkoek to a 1 year deal.
— Darren Dreger (@DarrenDreger) December 26, 2020
Slater Koekkoek Signs With Edmonton Oilers
The Edmonton Oilers have made a fairly minor addition to their team with the signing of the former top-ten pick Slater Koekkoek. Last season with the Blackhawks, Koekkoek scored one goal and nine assists for ten points in 42 games. This gave him a pace of roughly 20 points in a full 82 game NHL season. He also played in some bubble-playoff action, scoring one goal and two assists for three points in nine games played.
In terms of possession, Koekkoek was very solid. He posted a Corsi of 52.1 percent. His offensive output might not be as good as it seems, however, as he had a PDO of 100.4, meaning there was some luck involved.
Where He Fits
After it was announced that Oilers defenceman Oscar Klefbom will miss the entirety of the 2020-21 season, the team will have some holes in their D-core. While the addition of Koekoek obviously does not fill the void of Klefbom, who scored 34 points in just 62 games last season, it still provides some depth for Edmonton. With their number one gone, the Oilers are going to need as much defensive depth as they can get.
There is a possibility Koekkoek could slot into Edmonton’s third pairing in a shutdown role. The more likely scenario, however, would have him as Edmonton’s extra defenceman. With several young defencemen such as Ethan Bear and Caleb Jones starting to get time on Edmonton’s blueline, it’s hard to see Koekkoek edging either of them out. Similarly, two of Edmonton’s top prospects, Philip Broberg and Evan Bouchard, are both defencemen, and could each be given an opportunity to make the team.
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