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In the end, the Edmonton Oilers’ decision not to match the offer sheets defenseman Philip Broberg and forward Dylan Holloway received from the St. Louis Blues on Aug. 13 was much more about the future than the present.

Sure, Broberg, 23, and Holloway, 22, could have been a part of the Oilers’ success going forward, as they were in helping them reach Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final against the Florida Panthers last season before falling one win short of their first championship since 1990. But the Oilers’ difficult choice to let the two restricted free agents join the Blues focused on a bigger picture in which they need to fit Leon Draisaitl, Evan Bouchard, and, eventually, Connor McDavid into their long-term salary cap structure while also leaving the short-term flexibility to maneuver under its confines and make another run at the Cup this season.

That included having space to keep Evander Kane and his $5.125 million salary cap hit off long-term injured reserve while it’s determined whether he’ll require sports hernia surgery.

If Edmonton had matched the contracts given by St. Louis to Broberg (two years, $9.16 million; $4.58 million average annual value) and Holloway (two years, $4.58 million; $2.9 million AAV), it would have been challenging. Thus, when the Oilers’ decision-making week ended on Tuesday, they chose to accept the Blues’ compensation – a second-round pick in the 2025 NHL Draft for Broberg and a third-round pick for Holloway in the same year – and move forward.

Oilers’ general manager, Stan Bowman, clarified that his decision was not a reflection on the players. He emphasized that he had no concerns regarding the players, but instead, it was a business decision based on the team’s short and long-term financial viability, specifically relating to the salary cap.

The appointment of Bowman as the Oilers GM on July 24, replacing Ken Holland whose five-year contract ended on July 1, was immediately put to the test with the twin offer sheets. The Oilers’ decisions regarding Broberg and Holloway will be put to the test over time, and there will definitely be a lot of discussion about whether they could have taken any alternative actions before Aug. 13 to prevent this situation.

Looking forward, there are more significant priorities, starting with Draisaitl. He is in the final season of his eight-year contract, which values at $68 million ($8.5 million AAV), and he is eligible to be an unrestricted free agent on July 1, 2025. Bowman has started preliminary talks with the 28-year-old forward’s agent, Mike Luit, but chose not to divulge the specifics.

“Don’t interpret that negatively,” he stated. “I simply don’t wish to assign specific timelines to it or anything like that. We’ve started the process and if there are any updates, we will surely contact everyone and keep them informed.”

Apart from McDavid, Draisaitl is the most crucial player for the Oilers. He ranked seventh in the NHL last season, scoring 106 points (41 goals, 65 assists) in 81 regular-season games and third in the Stanley Cup Playoffs with 31 points (10 goals, 21 assists) in 25 games. Despite a projected rise in the salary cap from $88 million this season, having Broberg and Holloway on a $7.48 million AAV contract in 2025-26 could have been limiting, especially with Bouchard entering his final season of a two-year $7.8 million contract ($3.9 million AAV). The 24-year-old defenseman is set to become a restricted free agent with arbitration rights from July 1 next year.

The day also marks when McDavid can sign a new contract with Edmonton. The captain of the Oilers, aged 27, has two seasons remaining on his eight-year agreement worth $100 million ($12.5 million AAV). If he doesn’t sign a new contract before it expires, he will become an unrestricted free agent.

The Oilers were weighing what to do about the offer sheets to Broberg and Holloway, with all of that hanging over their heads.

Bowman said, “If we had followed the other scenarios – either matching both or one of them – we would have been in a significantly different position regarding the salary cap for this current season, not to mention future years. That’s why we took the action we did.”

Bowman emphasized the significance of avoiding placing Kane on the long-term injured list. While it remains uncertain if the 33-year-old forward will be sidelined, even if he requires surgery and is out for a considerable length of time, Edmonton anticipates his return within this season. Therefore, they would need to secure enough salary cap space to include him on their active roster.

If Kane doesn’t go on LTI and the Oilers maintain unused salary cap space, their available space will increase throughout the season. This will allow them the flexibility to recruit additional players prior to the 2025 NHL Trade Deadline, thereby strengthening their lineup for the playoffs.

Bowman explained, “When you activate a player after using long-term injury for several months, you begin with no cap space and have to work on building it up. Therefore, you won’t be able to increase it sufficiently in just a month or so. These considerations were all part of our decision-making process.”

Once the decision was made not to match the offer sheets, the Oilers made three trades for younger players. They acquired forward Vasily Podkolzin, 23, from the Vancouver Canucks (for a fourth-round pick in 2025) and defenseman Ty Emberson, 24, from the San Jose Sharks (for defenseman Cody Ceci and a third-round pick in 2025) on Sunday and defenseman prospect Paul Fischer, 19, plus a third-round pick in the 2028 NHL Draft from the Blues (for future considerations) on Monday.

Transferring Ceci, who has one year left on his four-year, $13 million contract ($3.25 AAV), resulted in more salary cap space for this season. However, it also means that Edmonton is now missing three of its top seven defensemen from the previous season, as Broberg and Vincent Desharnais (who signed with Vancouver) have also left.

The Oilers will try to get by — at least to begin the season — with what they have, including Emberson and Josh Brown, who was signed to a three-year, $3 million contract ($1 million AAV) on July 1.

Bowman stated, “We currently have a different group than before, and we’re optimistic that some of these defensemen will step up and take on bigger roles. Additionally, this situation provides us with a potential opportunity to accumulate some cap space and compete. If circumstances require and we decide to add to our team, this scenario could make that possible.”