Edmonton's Colton Dach embracing Oilers playoff 'bash brother' role
It’s not often you get to suit up for your hometown team in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, but Colton Dach is doing just that with the Edmonton Oilers.
After getting traded to Edmonton from the Chicago Blackhawks, Dach has returned to his roots, having grown up just outside the Alberta capital in Fort Saskatchewan. It’s been a chaotic season that now sees the 23-year-old drawing into the playoff lineup for an Oilers team that he grew up cheering for.
Monday night’s Game 1 against the Anaheim Ducks was his first taste of playoff hockey.
“It’s definitely been a whirlwind,” Dach told Daily Hive in an exclusive interview on Wednesday morning. “You go from thinking you’re in one city, and then you get traded, and you’re right back in your hometown.
“It definitely helped me a lot to come to a spot that I was familiar with. The guys have been unbelievable at welcoming and accepting me.”
COLTON DACH ‼️
The Oilers take the lead early in the third period 👀 pic.twitter.com/Y4SL8MqerD
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) April 8, 2026
It was evident from the get-go that Dach had a lot of potential to become a fan favourite in Edmonton. On top of being a local boy who grew up an Oilers fan, the hulking 6-foot-4 forward is also one of the team’s most physical players and is not afraid to drop the gloves.
Oilers fans still talk about Zack Kassian’s 2017 run, and the legend of Klim Kostin still runs deep in the minds of certain fans. It may take a bit more from Dach to join those names, but he isn’t shying away from the physicality of the playoffs.
“Don’t change my game,” Dach said of his mindset heading into the postseason. “There’s nothing really pretty about it; just go out there and work.
“I just talk to myself to get in there, get busy, get a hit in early and try to calm the nerves. Just get into the game and act like it’s a normal game.”
Dach has carved out a spot on Edmonton’s fourth line in the playoffs, forming an intimidating duo with Trent Frederic on the other wing. Those two have clicked in their brief time spent together and have been nicknamed “The Bash Brothers” by head coach Kris Knoblauch.
That will be his role and identity in the playoffs, and he’s a fan of it.
“It’s funny, it’s good,” Dach said. “My buddies sent that to me and loved it too. It’s the identity in the role that we need to play. Be heavy and hard, and this is only going to help every line.
“When [Anaheim’s defencemen] go back for pucks, they’re thinking of who’s coming at them. It’s going to be something that we’ve got to continue to do.”
Dach isn’t the only member of his family enjoying playoff hockey right now. His older brother, Kirby Dach, is currently fighting it out with the Montreal Canadiens in a first-round series against the Tampa Bay Lightning.
“It’s nice that they play on our day off,” Dach said. “We get to watch them quite a bit, and that’s always a perk. It’s also nice to have someone to root for as well.”
Brotherly love. 🥹
Colton Dach is set to make his NHL debut against his older brother Kirby Dach.
📸: @NHLBlackhawks pic.twitter.com/iGExf4UGrH
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) January 4, 2025
Colton’s main focus will remain on helping the Oilers, where he will have every opportunity to be an unexpected X-factor through his physicality and tendency to stir the pot.