Stan Bowman is not slowing down. The Oilers general manager says Edmonton is still hunting for a top six forward, and he has room to make it happen.
That is the word out of Oilers Now on Thursday, where Bowman sat down for an interview that has fans buzzing heading into the heart of free agency.
Insider Karman Gill relayed the comments, and the headline is simple. Bowman is not done. Not even close.
Based on the Stan Bowman interview today on Oilers Now, he is not done yet.
Oilers are still discussing and searching for a top six forward. He said they have never been in this position before where they can add a top six forward and still have cap space.
Edmonton finished the season 41-30-11 with 93 points, good for the second seed in the Pacific Division.
The Oilers scored 282 goals and allowed 269, a plus-13 mark that says this group can still score with anyone.
Connor McDavid put up 138 points this year. Leon Draisaitl was right behind him with 97.
Bowman is running a roster with two of the heaviest cap hits anywhere. Draisaitl sits at 14 million, McDavid at 12.5 million.
Oilers front office eyes upgrade without cap pain
And yet he says the Oilers have never been in this spot before, adding a top six forward while keeping cap room intact.
Picture trying to renovate a kitchen while the mortgage payment keeps climbing. That is roughly the math Bowman has been doing for two years.
Now he is telling reporters there is finally room to build instead of just patch.
Evan Bouchard quietly put together 95 points from the blue line, and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Zach Hyman both cracked 50 again.
That top six already has teeth. So why keep pushing for another piece?
Because Edmonton has been to the mountain and come up short more than once, and everybody in that room knows the window will not stay open forever.
Bowman did not drop a name during the interview, and nothing in his comments points to a specific target.
That is the honest read here. This is a real intention, not a finished deal, and fans should treat it that way until a signing actually lands.
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It leaves Oilers fans checking their phones for the next several days, wondering who fills that top six hole and what Bowman gives up to get there.
Should the Oilers spend big on a top six forward this summer even if it means moving a core piece?
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