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Oilers prospect Tommy Lafrenière set to join Western Michigan for 2026-27 season

One of the Edmonton Oilers’ top prospects will be heading to college this fall. On Wednesday morning, Edmonton Journal’s Jim Matheson reported that 2025 third-round pick Tommy Lafrenière will join Western Michigan University for the 2026-27 season. Oilers draft winger Tommy Lafreniere who had 41 goals for Kamloops this season is off to powerhouse Western…

Oilers loan forward James Hamblin back to the Bakersfield Condors

The Edmonton Oilers loaned forward James Hamblin back to the AHL’s Bakersfield Condors on Wednesday morning. Hamblin was recalled from the Condors on an emergency basis on Tuesday ahead of the Oilers’ contest against the Utah Mammoth. The 26-year-old travelled to Utah, but did not play, as the Oilers defeated the Mammoth 5-2. The decision…

When the Oilers decide to commit, they are a Cup contender

You would go crazy trying to figure out why the Edmonton Oilers’ range of play has been so volatile this season. Some games they look like a team destined for the draft lottery, and others, like last night, remind you why overlooking them to make another deep playoff run is foolish. The Oilers controlled the…

How to watch the Maple Leafs (when the Maple Leafs aren't remotely worth watching)

For the first time in a decade, the Maple Leafs are playing out a stretch run with no playoff implications. While they haven’t been mathematically eliminated quite yet, the Leafs have been a dead team skating since the week after the Olympic break, when they vowed to make a late playoff push and then immediately face-planted to the tune of eight straight losses. It’s over. This team stinks. Hello darkness my old friend, and all that. But that’s the twist this time, because it’s been ten years ...

Preview: Albany Regional

The Albany region features two conference champions — Michigan, winners of the Big Ten, and Bentley, winners of Atlantic Hockey for the second season in a row.Michigan and Bentley are joined by Minnesota-Duluth and Penn State. UMD is coming off a double-overtime loss to Denver in the NCHC Championship.Penn State was defeated by Michigan, 5-2, in the semifinals of the Big Ten Tournament, and is one...

NHL

Western Michigan Re-Loads the Tank For NCAAs

The end of the NCHC season for Western Michigan didn’t go to plan with the loss in the  Tournament semifinal game to Denver. A game that could’ve gone either way ended in heartbreak for WMU, an OT loss at Denver.But Western has won plenty over the last few years, and can just as easily reset and turn its attention to the NCAA Tournament, where it will have another chance to earn hardware.There...

Preview: Sioux Falls Regional

All four teams arrived here Tuesday ahead of Thursday’s opening round of the NCAA Tournament, and if there’s a snapshot that captures the chaos of the 2025–26 season, it’s this — the only conference champion in the building is the No. 4 seed.That would be Merrimack.Not only that, the Warriors are the only team in this regional that advanced past its conference quarterfinals.Figure that one...

Hunger Games For Michigan State

The last two seasons, Michigan State went right from emotional Big Ten Tournament championship victories, into the cauldron of the NCAA Tournament Regionals.Each time, the Spartans left disappointed.So this year, coming off a loss in the Big Ten semifinals to Ohio State, the Spartans will have not played for 10 days. In other words, they have time to rest, to re-focus, and re-generate the hunger.No...

NCAA Tournament: Worcester Regional Preview

It’s East meets West in the Worcester Regional, with two Big Ten teams, an ECAC team and a Hockey East team rounding out the group. Both first-round matchups feature teams that have never played each other, with Michigan State-Connecticut and Dartmouth-Wisconsin.The games also pit college hockey “blue bloods” — historically dominant programs — against smaller schools or ones with less established...

Hillier, Merrimack Have Come a Long Way Since 2023

The last time Merrimack found itself in this position, Mark Hillier was still a sophomore, a piece of the puzzle rather than the one holding it together.A lot has changed since then.Back in 2023, the Warriors reached the Hockey East championship game, only to fall to Boston University in overtime — a night decided by a single flash of brilliance from Lane Hutson. They pushed on to the NCAA Tournament...

Make It A Hockey Night

The cat to the left is not HBIC CEO Meg, but Meg is sleeping noisily next to me. I sit here and giggle quietly as she snores audibly enough that she's competing with the hockey game on TV, but I'm somewhat envious of her as I could use more sleep after what was a busy weekend. Between being up early to watch the U SPORTS National Championships to running around to watch PWHL hockey to just trying to get some stuff done around the house, I burned the candle at both ends this weekend so I'm taki...

NHL

Oilers’ Ryan Nugent-Hopkins reaches 800 point plateau in NHL career

Ryan Nugent-Hopkins has achieved another major milestone.  The longest-tenured Edmonton Oiler notched his 800th NHL point on Tuesday night during the first period against the Utah Mammoth. He recorded the second assist on Jack Roslovic’s 1-1 tying goal at 14:27.  The 32-year-old is having another productive offensive season, with 18 goals and 52 points in…

Oilers recall James Hamblin from Condors on emergency basis

The Edmonton Oilers made an emergency recall on Tuesday before their game against the Utah Mammoth. James Hamblin has been called up from the Bakersfield Condors. The 26-year-old Edmonton native has scored 23 goals and 14 assists in 54 games in the AHL. Hamblin played a combined 41 NHL games in the 2022-23 and 2023-24…

An early look at which unrestricted free agents the Oilers should re-sign

The National Hockey League’s regular season ends in less than a month, and who knows how long the Edmonton Oilers will be playing extra hockey. Right now, it’s not looking good for the back-to-back Western Conference champions. Leon Draisaitl is out for the regular season and his status for the start of the playoffs is…