Edmonton Oilers prospect Noah Philp retires at 24

Daniel Nugent-Bowman of The Athletic spoke with Ken Holland and asked whether six of the team’s restricted free agents, Evan Bouchard, Klim Kostin, Ryan McLeod, Olivier Rodrigue, Raphael Lavoie, and Noah Philp, would be issued qualifying offers.

It was then that Holland broke the news that Philp announced his retirement from pro hockey.

“Philp is not playing hockey next year. He’s made a decision to call it a career. It was a very, very difficult year for him. He told us he wants to be around Calgary and close to his family and friends. For personal reasons, he’s not playing hockey.

He made great progress. We liked him. We wanted to re-sign him. We offered him a two-year contract. We were anxious to see what he could do in training camp. But he’s not interested.”

Philp played in the Western Hockey League (WHL) for the Kootenay Ice beginning in the 2015-16 season; after two seasons in Kootenay, he took his talents to the Seattle Thunderbirds, where he would shine. During the 2017-18 campaign, he notched 14 goals and 50 points in 71 games. The following year he registered 26 goals and 49 assists for 75 points in 71 games. He signed an American League Tryout contract with the Stockton Heat, playing two games to round out that season.

Philp then took his talents to Canadian University; he tallied 27 points in 28 games with the University of Alberta Golden Bears in the USports League. USports returned to action following the COVID-19 pandemic in the 2021-22 season, Philp scored eight goals in eight games and 14 points in seven playoff games.

Last spring, he signed a one-year, entry-level contract with the Oilers; he was then sent to the AHL to play for the Bakersfield Condors. He notched 19 goals and 37 points in 70 games this past season.