Oilers Sign Scottie Upshall To PTO

The Edmonton Oilers have 13 forwards signed to contracts that we can essentially write-in on the NHL roster for opening day on October 6th. Earlier Sunday, the Oilers added what is likely to be the 14th forward to their roster, agreeing to a PTO with veteran Scottie Upshall.

Upshall, an Alberta native, will report to camp with the Oilers in just a few weeks, and will fight for a spot on the club’s 23-man roster.

Upshall was in a similiar position a year ago, signing a PTO with the St. Louis Blues before signing a contract with the club. Upshall played on the Blues’ fourth line, forming a nice duo with Kyle Brodziak, who the Oilers signed this past July 1st.

Upshall is a gritty veteran forward that brings a physical style to the table, while also bringing decent scoring numbers and penalty killing ability to the table. His possession stats weren’t great last year, just a 47.1% Corsi For %, but Upshall started only 30.8% of his shifts in the offensive zone. He was clearly a defensive specialist for the Blues.

Upshall suited up in 63 games for the Blues a year ago, registering 7-12-19 with a -1 +/- rating.

In terms of where Upshall could fit, the fourth line makes the most sense. He’s a left-shot winger, but is listed as a right winger, meaning he likely could fit on either side of Brodziak. I do think a line of Upshall-Brodziak-Kassian makes a lot of sense, and I think you might see that when the Oilers take the ice in Sweden in a month and a half.

It’s also possible that the Oilers envision Upshall as an extra forward, someone who can fill in during slumps and injuries. Even players like that usually get 40-50 games a season, so it isn’t like Upshall would be wasted in that spot. Either way, he’s a strong veteran depth forward.

Does Upshall push the needle? No, no one available at this time of year pushes the needle. That said, he’s an upgrade on internal options like Patrick Russell and Brad Malone, and Upshall certainly upgrades the bottom of Edmonton’s roster and the PK units.

It might not work out, Upshall is 34 and players usually slow down around that age, but I think it’s a low-risk situation that could really benefit the club heading into next season.

I’m a fan of Upshall, and by extension of this PTO decision. Now it’s up to Upshall to see if he can push his way onto the roster. I imagine he’ll be battling the likes of Malone, Pontus Aberg and possibly even Drake Caggiula for playing time this season.

Final Thought:

Upshall is a strong PTO option for the club, but I don’t think they should stop there. I’d still invite center Nick Shore to camp, and I think adding a defender is paramount at this time. Tobias Enstrom would be my pick for a PTO on the blueline. He might not be able to replace Sekera, but he could certainly lessen the blow of last week’s injury news.