2024 Edmonton Oilers prospects
Depth hopefuls #16-20
One strategy the Edmonton Oilers have deployed more frequently in recent years is to draft players in their second or even third year of eligibility. Such players tend to come from off the radar, generally as overlooked in “this” year’s draft rankings as they were in “last” year’s actual draft. The theory is that not all players progress by the same timetable, and many make significant steps in their theoretical Draft +1 or Draft +2 seasons that offer a glimmer of pro potential.
Three of the seven youngsters selected by Edmonton in 2024 were eligible but passed over a year ago, two of those three in 2022 as well. The squad similarly drafted a 20-year-old in 2023, another in 2022. In all, the Oilers have chosen eleven such hopefuls in the past ten drafts, a clear majority of them 20 if not 21 (for internationals) years old. Not an unheard-of strategy of course, but the Oil seem to employ it more frequently than other squads. (No stats readily available, unfortunately.)
By far the lion’s share of such picks occur in the very late rounds, the most famous recent example being Edmonton’s selection of Vincent Desharnais at age 20 in the seventh round back in 2016. It wasn’t until 2023 that he finally got his NHL shot and subsequently made the most of it, to the point that he quickly priced his way out of Edmonton with no RFA rights due to his relatively advanced age.
Because they are typically late picks of late bloomers, prospects of this nature tend to congregate in the “depth prospects” part of the pile. This year, three such players landed between #s 16-20 in our rankings, while a fourth hopeful in that range was never drafted at all but signed as an over-age junior. The fifth serves as a “control”, a player drafted at 18 when his future development was unknown.
All are currently 20 or 21 years old. How do they stack up?
#20 RD Albin Sundin
(new to list) age 20 (as of Aug 13), 6’2, 198 lbs, drafted #183 in 2024
- Albin Sundin is known as a two-way defenseman. Adept at using timing and the poke check to break up attacks, and can play a physical game at times. Could stand to improve his skating ability.
— Elite Prospects Draft Guide (2024)
For each player featured in this post, we’ll show their stats (courtesy EliteProspects) from age 16, with a red line indicating when they were first draft-eligible and a blue one underscoring when they were actually drafted or signed, followed by a thumbnail scouting report for each from the year they were actually drafted/signed, at whatever age.
In the case of Albin Sundin, the player was just beginning to establish himself in 2022, having made the switch from U18 to U20 during the season. Since then, some very promising progress from U20 right into the Swedish Hockey League, where he played 10 games for Frolunda as an 18-year-old, then 18 GP plus 14 more in the playoffs a year later. While his usage was sparse indeed at first (roughly 3:00 per game in both regular seasons), it soared to a more meaningful 11:41 during that postseason run. Moreover, it ramped up from 8 minutes per game in the first round to 15 in Round Two, with both series going the limit.
A strapping right shot d-man who just turned 20 a few days ago, Sundin’s progress over the two years between draft eligibility and selection has moved the needle from “meh” to “maybe”.
Expectations in 2024-25: He’s now penciled in as a full-timer in Frolunda, where he can continue to round out his game for the foreseeable future. The Oilers can afford to be patient as they hold his North American rights until 2028.
#19 RC Matt Copponi
(last year #23) age 21, 5’11, 174 lbs, drafted #216 in 2023
Scouting report from :
- For Copponi, it’s all about being in the right place at the right time, supporting the puck low in the defensive zone and below the hashmarks in the offensive third. Always offering himself as an outlet to his defenceman in transition. Probing for and finding shooting opportunities off-puck, sneaking in and out of his opponents’ blindspots to pop open for scoring chances.
— Elite Prospects Draft Guide (2023)
When he first became eligible in 2021, Matt Copponi was coming off a lost season in which the prep school team he nominally captained didn’t play a single game due to COVID. He remained under the radar after a so-so first year at Merrimack College, but captured Edmonton’s attention when he tripled his production in his sophomore season, enough that the Oilers nabbed him just before the end of the draft. A “21st round pick” in the established tradition of Vincent Desharnais.
Copponi continued his upward trajectory in 2023-24, scoring 3 more points in 7 fewer games, leading the Warriors in scoring. The Masachusetts native was featured by the local Sun Chronicle which says in part:
- The former three-year stalwart at Merrimack College… transferred to Boston University to join the the Frozen Four semifinalist Terriers for next season.
He recently finished a strong junior season in North Andover with Merrimack, totaling 32 points (with 25 assists) in 30 games to lead the Warriors in scoring. That included a 12-game point streak during the Hockey East season, while he also proved his value defensively by blocking 31 shots.
It was a marked change in his goals-to-assists ratio which was nearly 1:1 the year prior. However they are generated, there is plenty to like in a points-per-game trajectory that has progressed from 0.36 to 0.78 to 1.07 over three seasons.
Expectations for 2024-25: Copponi has transferred to Boston University where he’ll play his senior campaign the national semifinalist Terriers. He’ll need to adapt quickly and seize a role with his new club to advance his pro contract hopes, which will come into focus at season’s end.
#18 LD Luca Munzenberger
(last year #16) age 21, 6’2, 201 lbs, drafted #90 in 2021
- Defensively responsible bottom pairing defender with size and solid mobility. Makes simple plays to alleviate pressure and makes a good first pass out of the defensive zone. Does not make much of an impact offensively but has a good point shot.
— Dobber Prospects (2021)
The “control” player of the quintet featured in this post, Munzenberger was drafted at 18, his first year of eligibility. He was selected in the third round (#90 overall), significantly higher than anyone else in the group. Like most of the others, he too virtually lost a development year to COVID.
It’s now three seasons later and he certainly has lived up to the low-impact offence touted by Dobber, scoring just 1-10-11 in 92 games at University of Vermont. The only obvious progress in his boxcars can be found is in his plus/minus column, itself somewhat reflective of the gradual improvement of Catamounts over that time. It’s not a strong program, posting a dismal 32-64-10 record over the German defender’s three years there including 18-48-6 in conference play.
That said, boxcars are not exactly the best way to analyze stay-at-home defencemen, though a near absence of scoring at this level is not a good sign. He does bring size and decent skating as seen first hand when he played not one, not two but, impossibly, three World Junior tournaments right here in Edmonton. (Sounds weird, doesn’t it. You kinda had to be there.)
He also brings physicality and aggressiveness. Of some 1610 NCAA skaters last season, just 40 collected as many as 50 PIM, and Munzenberger was one of them.
Expectations for 2024-25: One last season at Vermont to make his case, and then it’s decision time for both the player and the organization that holds his rights. I have little doubt that a pro career awaits, but on which side of the pond?
#17 RC Dalyn Wakely
(new to list) age 20, 6’0, 198 lbs, drafted #192 in 2024
- Every team needs players like Wakely. He battles for pucks mercilessly, takes hits to make plays, and dishes out even more punishment than he takes. Around the net, he digs for pucks and creates space for his teammates by engaging as many defenders as possible. Along the boards, he throws reverse hits, rolls with contact, and attacks the middle.
— Elite Prospects Draft Guide (2024)
An intriguing pick from the depths of the sixth round, Dalyn Wakely is going to be an easy player to like, though for Oil fans that’s apt to be at some distance for awhile. That said, he’s already at the age most CHL draft picks turn pro, one of the benefits of drafting a third-year-eligible.
The boxcar stats above show the rapidity of his rise, from a lost season to COVID to a decent 20-goal season as an OHL rookie (his would-be Draft year), to 30 and then to 39, all with North Bay Battalion. More impressive still, the trajectory of the assists column from a modest 14 and 19 to a whopping 65, and similarly points from 34 to 49 to 104. That latter total landed him in third in league scoring.
Then there’s that plus/minus column that sees Wakely, a member of Curve Lake First Nation, rise from +6 to +24 to a ridiculous +54 this past season, also third best in the OHL. This on a team that in all situations scored 300 goals and allowed 240.
The right-shot pivot went on to score 13 goals in the playoffs, second most in the league, before the Battalion were stopped in the conference finals for the third straight year.
In addition to his on-ice exploits, Wakely has other accomplishments to his name. In 2023 he was named the OHL’s Humanitarian of the Year, then received the same honour from the 60-team CHL. This feature from the local BayToday gives the back story:
- Wakely originated Wake’s Sake, which saw him and a rotating cast of teammates serve every Tuesday from November through the end of the Ontario Hockey League regular season at the Gathering Place, a community kitchen serving North Bay’s homeless and low-income populations. During the visits, Wakely and teammates prepared and served meals while building friendships across the community.
Perhaps there is some fatal flaw in his game, but both the scouting report and the community involvement cited above fairly scream “character” which is an excellent foundation. The numbers shout “improving rapidly”. An interesting player to follow, at whatever distance.
Expectations for 2024-25: First decision is where does Wakely play? Three different leagues are possible: AHL (Bakersfield Condors). ECHL (Fort Wayne Komets), or OHL, back in North Bay for an over-age season. The big question is where will he get the best opportunity to get ice time and continue to raise his game? Best guess here is after three full years of junior it’s time for a higher level, in whichever pro league fits best.
#16 RW James Stefan
(new to list) age 21, 6’0, 185 lbs, signed as an entry-level free agent in 2024
- Stefan has a good head on his shoulders. Offense has never been a problem, with the winger set to crack the 50-goal, 100-point club this season. Stefan had a decent showing with Ottawa at the Buffalo Prospect Challenge last summer, showing a nice combination of puck skills, physicality and defensive awareness. I don’t see him being a full-time NHLer but he’s rounded enough to be a potential call-up option.
— Steven Ellis of Daily Faceoff (2024, a week before the signing)
The last player of our set is the one guy who never did get picked in the NHL draft after three years of eligibility. Somewhat ironic given his dad Patrik went first overall in that same NHL Draft a quarter century earlier. James Stefan was signed by the Oilers last March, just as his last of five (!) junior regular seasons came to an end and before the playoffs, thus the kink in the blue line above.
The native of Laguna Beach, CA was least affected by COVID having relocated to the USHL in the problematic 2020-21 season, his nominal draft year. Otherwise he was anchored in Portland, ultimately playing 295 games of major junior.
He found another level in 2023-24, with 50-51-101, +47 in 67 games in his final, over-age junior season. Known as a shoot-first player, the right-shot winger led the WHL with 354 shots on goal, some 5.3 per game.
Expectations for 2024-25: Stefan turned 21 earlier this month, meaning he’ll go directly to the pro ranks. Like Wakely, he’ll be aiming to make the Condors but might be better served to get a longer runway in Double A. It’s not like any of these mid-level prospects is on the cusp of the NHL; their long slow road to the pros is preamble for what’s to come.
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