Oilers re-sign top AHL goalscorer Lavoie to one-year contract
The Edmonton Oilers have re-signed their top AHL goalscorer to a new contract.
Raphael Lavoie, a second-round pick of the club from 2019, signed a one-year, two-way contract with the Oilers this morning that carries a $775,000 cap hit at the NHL level.
The 23-year-old led the AHL’s Bakersfield Condors with 28 goals last season.
WELCOME BACK RAPH đŸ‘‹
The #Oilers have re-signed forward Raphael Lavoie to a one-year, two-way contract with an AAV of $775,000 at the @NHL level.#LetsGoOilers pic.twitter.com/qhGjeh8K0o
— Edmonton Oilers (@EdmontonOilers) July 8, 2024
Though Lavoie has been among the Condors’ best players over the last few seasons, he has been hard-pressed to get an opportunity at the NHL level with the Oilers. He made his debut in the big leagues last season, appearing in seven games with Edmonton and picking up no points with limited ice time.
Lavoie’s professional career got off to a rocky start after he came over to the AHL in 2020-21. He scored just 18 goals across his first two seasons with the Condors before exploding in 2022-23 with 25 goals and 45 points in 61 games.
He kept that pace up this past season, hitting a career-high 28 goals and 50 points in 66 AHL games. His skillset suggests that he would thrive in a more offensive environment, which might be his biggest hurdle in making the NHL.
The Oilers have plenty of offensive players in their lineup, but the top three lines are more-or-less set at the NHL level. There is not a lot of room to put Lavoie in a position to succeed with the Oilers unless the team shuffles some pieces around or an injury occurs.
One thing is certain: there isn’t much use in putting Lavoie on the Oilers’ fourth line with defensive specialists. That nerfs the main appeal of his game, which is his shot and offensive prowess. As it stands, the Oilers don’t have much reason to clear the way for Lavoie unless the player forces the issue by having a good training camp.
Getting Lavoie locked up for next season now pushes the team’s pending RFA’s down to just two more players looking for new deals: Dylan Holloway and Philip Broberg.