Who will win the Oilers’ fourth-line centre battle?
The Edmonton Oilers’ roster heading into the 2024-25 NHL season is, outside of a few open spots here and there, set in stone.
While the defence will have a few spots to sort out over the next few weeks, the forward group is almost completely cemented. Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl will man the top two lines with a cast of wingers that now includes Viktor Arvidsson and Jeff Skinner. Adam Henrique is pencilled as the team’s third-line centre, while a bevy of returning vets are expected to once again pull the rope down the lineup.
Yet there is a single spot left in the Oilers forward group that has no solid name attached to it. The fourth-line centre role is still very much up for grabs, and four players in training camp are vying to snatch it before the team opens up its regular season schedule 14 days from now.
Veteran Derek Ryan is the incumbent, but he is being challenged by AHL farmhands James Hamblin and Lane Pederson. Upstart Noah Philp, who has impressed in training camp thus far, is also in the mix.
It seems like the Oilers are well aware of this, as all four players will be in the lineup against the Winnipeg Jets tonight. Ryan will play on the wing while the other three take their turn centring a line.
Interesting tidbit for tonight’s game is that all of Derek Ryan, Noah Philp, James Hamblin, and Lane Pederson will be playing.
Those four are in direct competition for the #Oilers 4C spot…they’ll all play C tonight except Ryan, who will move to the wing.
— Preston Hodgkinson (@NHLHodgkinson) September 25, 2024
As it stands, Derek Ryan should probably be the favourite to win the spot, purely based on seniority and the fact that he was a fixture on the team’s solid penalty kill in both the regular season and playoffs. Yet, that doesn’t mean the job is safely in Ryan’s hands just yet.
At 37 years old, the ever-approaching Father Time is grabbing at the heels of Ryan, and it may finally catch up with him if he cannot show something at some point this preseason. Meanwhile, he has three young and hungry players more than willing to usurp him this offseason.
Noah Philp is probably the guy to do it if Ryan cannot hold onto the spot. The 26-year-old has been a standout throughout training camp so far, and despite taking all of last season off to deal with personal issues, it looks like he may be ready to take that next leap into the NHL.
He has yet to get on the scoresheet this preseason, but he has shown a solid two-way acumen and brings with him an NHL-sized frame at six-foot-three, 198 lbs. If Philp can continue to show that he is a dependable player, there is a good chance he can leapfrog the veteran Ryan in time for the season opener against the Jets on October 9.
If not Philp, Hamblin is next in line to take that spot. Unlike Philp, Hamblin got into NHL games last season and looked pretty good. He wasn’t the most productive player, notching just two goals and three points in 31 games, but he offered a consistent and dependable game.
Hamblin has looked alright at training camp but hasn’t blown the socks off of anybody. He’s also the smallest of the bunch, standing at just five-foot-10 and 185 lbs. If the Oilers want to slow-play Philp by starting him in the AHL, then Hamblin could wind up being the one that beats out Ryan in the end.
Pederson is also in this discussion, but up to this point, he hasn’t done much to raise his stock. He hasn’t been horrible by any stretch, but he hasn’t been particularly good. If Pederson wants to crack this roster, he’ll have to do more to stand out.
The spot is Ryan’s to lose at the moment, with Philp having the best shot at upsetting the veteran and a dark horse Hamblin waiting in the wings.
It may not be the sexiest roster battle, but Oilers fans will be keeping a close eye on it over the next few weeks.