Edmonton Oilers GM Stan Bowman responds to fan backlash over Formenton signing
The Edmonton Oilers knew signing Alex Formenton would draw backlash.
It’s been a week since the Oilers inked the 27-year-old forward to a one-year, $850,000 contract. The reaction since then among the Edmonton faithful has been sharp and swift, with large swathes condemning the move, including a fan-led petition asking the organization to reverse the signing, reaching over 60,000 signatures.
Formenton was one of five hockey players who were acquitted last year in the 2018 Hockey Canada sexual assault case that drew headlines across the country. Though he was acquitted on all charges, it doesn’t appear to have swayed a large section of the public’s opinion on whether or not he should be allowed back into the league.
Speaking to the media on Wednesday morning, Oilers GM Stan Bowman was asked about the intense blowback to the move.
“We knew going into it that this was something that wasn’t going to be universally accepted or embraced,” Bowman said. “That was why we spent as much time as we did going through the details of it and going through our due diligence to make sure we believed it was the right decision to make.
“I understand that people are going to view it differently, and that’s okay. We don’t all have to agree on everything here, and people are entitled to their opinions and to have strong feelings on it. I totally respect that; I think that makes sense.”
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The Oilers are no stranger to giving people second chances in the NHL. Bowman himself carried some serious baggage from his days with the Chicago Blackhawks, as did newly hired head coach Mike Babcock before he came to Edmonton.
On the player side, the Oilers have welcomed controversial players such as Evander Kane, Corey Perry, and even offered Jake Virtanen a PTO back in 2022. The Formenton signing isn’t exactly an out-of-character move for the organization.
Bowman seemed confident the background work the team had done on Formenton was sufficient to justify signing him.
“We did put a lot of time and consideration into that,” Bowman said. “We also knew that it is something that is a polarizing topic, and that’s why we did spend as much time looking into it to get us to the point where we do feel comfortable that Alex is a member of our team, and we believe he’s going to be an asset to our team on the ice, but also as a teammate.
“I’ve had a lot of conversations with Alex, and he’s grown a lot in the intervening years from where he was then to where he is now. He’s shown that growth. For that reason, we understand the way that people feel passionately about it; we respect that, and we’re going to move forward.”
Another factor that appears to have played a big role in Formenton’s arrival in the Alberta capital is the fact that he was the only player of the five involved in the scandal to be instantly reinstated by Hockey Canada following the trial.
Bowman says the organization looked into the reasons why that happened, but did not share any with reporters on Wednesday.
“That was a big factor to us,” Bowman said. “We spent a lot of time finding out why was there a different treatment of Alex than there was of the other players. There were specific reasons why that was the case, which gave us the willingness to move forward with Alex relative to the other players.
“I don’t want to get into those details, but we did spend a lot of time understanding. The people at Hockey Canada, obviously, they were very close to it. They had a lot of information that isn’t out there in the public, and they made that decision for a reason.”
At one point, Formenton did look like a promising young player in the NHL. He played a big role for the Ottawa Senators during the 2021-22 season, but has been out of the league ever since.
Middling numbers overseas, combined with his involvement in the Hockey Canada scandal, have tarnished his reputation to a degree. For some fans, the outrage over the signing can’t be waved away with any amount of on-ice success.
Regardless, it appears that Oilers fans should prepare to see Formenton pull over that orange and blue jersey once the regular season begins.