Edmonton Oilers in hot pursuit of trade involving highly touted prospect: report
The Edmonton Oilers want to get younger next season, and it sounds like they are being aggressive in pursuit of that.
It was a quiet start to free agency for GM Stan Bowman, signing middle-six winger Andrew Mangiapane along with a couple of AHL additions. The majority of the noise in Edmonton came from the things that the Oilers didn’t do.
They lost both Corey Perry and Connor Brown to different teams, failed to upgrade the NHL goaltending, and didn’t get that surefire impact winger to play next to Leon Draisaitl. For many fans, it was a frustrating day to root for the Oilers, especially when Connor McDavid is reportedly weighing his future heading into next summer.
The good thing is that the offseason has only just begun. Losing Perry and Brown stings, but both of those players are on the older side of things. Youth and speed are needed for this Oilers team moving forward, and it appears they are fiercely chasing that goal.
According to NHL insider Frank Seravalli, the Oilers nearly traded for 2025 Hobey Baker winner Isaac Howard this week, who is currently at an impasse with the Tampa Bay Lightning.
“There’s many people around the league that thought the Oilers were getting Isaac Howard,” Seravalli said on Sports 1440 on Wednesday morning. “I think even people close to Isaac Howard thought that he was going to Edmonton.
“The Oilers, to my understanding, had told Tampa that they could and would do a late first-round pick in exchange for Howard’s rights, and that apparently wasn’t good enough.”
I'm all for the Isaac Howard to #Oilers trade murmurs… could step into the lineup and provide some youthful energy in the top-six.
26-26-52 in 37 GP with Michigan State last season… 2025 Hobey Baker winner
Would immediately jump Savoie as the best EDM prospect.
— Preston Hodgkinson (@NHLHodgkinson) July 2, 2025
The 21-year-old left-winger was initially drafted 31st overall in the 2021 NHL draft by the Lightning. Howard’s performance since then has only raised his stock as he put up an incredible season at Michigan State last year, notching 26 goals and 56 points in just 37 games.
Howard impressed so much that he was named the 2025 Hobey Baker winner, given out to the top NCAA player. He beat out other notable NHL prospects such as Washington Capitals top pick Ryan Leonard and Minnesota Wild defenceman Zeev Buium.
Tampa Bay would love to sign him, but Howard has indicated that he is not interested in staying in the Lightning organization. This puts Tampa in a spot where they either trade Howard to a team he’s willing to sign with, or wait until next summer when their rights expire and they lose him to free agency for a late-second-round pick as compensation.
The preference for Lightning would be to get something much better in exchange for a prospect of Howard’s stature.
Seravalli went on to say that Tampa Bay, which has been very successful over this decade, has become arrogant in how they are handling this player. Perhaps a bit blindsided that a high-end player is refusing to play for them, and that might be clouding up potential trades like the one with the Oilers.
Edmonton should continue to push for Howard if it’s a possibility. He would instantly become the organization’s top prospect and could make his NHL debut this coming season.
The Oilers are in desperate need of cheap, effective, impact wingers, and having both Howard and Matthew Savoie playing meaningful minutes would help that along quite a bit.
We will have to wait and see if Bowman can swing a deal for the youngster.