Oilers GM Stan Bowman cites cap crunch in not matching Blues’ offer sheets

The decision to allow two players to leave town wasn’t an easy one for a returning general manager.

When speaking to the media on Tuesday, Edmonton Oilers GM Stan Bowman explained why the team was unable to match the offer sheets tendered by the St. Louis Blues for forward Dylan Holloway and defenseman Philip Broberg.

“We took our time and exhausted all opportunities,” Bowman said. “And decided not to match. This came down to a business decision, relative to our short-term as well as our long-term viability for our roster with the salary cap. We moved forward with best moves going into training camp.”

Bowman admitted that the Oilers’ brass pondered matching either Broberg or Holloway, individually, along with seeing they could afford to re-sign both players.

“What we tried to do was to come up with how our team would look under each scenario. What we decided made the most sense from where we were today.”

Last week, the Blues offer-sheeted Broberg and Holloway each to two-year contracts. Even though the Oilers had seven full days to match the contracts, Bowman and company realized they didn’t have the space to do so.

He also pointed out that the decision not to match St. Louis’ offers had nothing to do with the quality of Broberg and Holloway.

“With that, we were able to do some other transactions once we decided that we were not going to match the offer sheets.”

One of those deals came on Sunday, as Edmonton acquired Vasily Podkolzin from the Vancouver Canucks for Cody Ceci. The Oilers also received a 2028 third-round draft, along with prospect Paul Fischer, from the Blues for future considerations.

“We feel like we’ve been able to accomplish a few things, which gives us a lot of flexibility and options moving forward.”

Broberg’s contract will carry a $4,580,917 AAV through the 2025-26 season, while Holloway will be receiving $2,290,457 over the next two years. In return, the Oilers received a second-round pick for Broberg, and a third-rounder for Holloway. Both picks are for the 2025 NHL Draft.

It was Bowman’s first notable decision as a member of the Oilers. The former Chicago Blackhawks executive was hired by Edmonton last month.