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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 chosen to match the contracts offered 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 quite challenging. However, the Oilers decided to accept the compensation from the Blues when their decision-making week ended on Tuesday. This included a second-round pick in the 2025 NHL Draft for Broberg and a third-round pick in the same draft for Holloway, allowing them to move forward.

“The players aren’t the issue here,” asserted Stan Bowman, the general manager of the Oilers. “I need to be clear about that. I had no worries whatsoever about the players. This was a business decision that we made based on our short-term and long-term financial sustainability, considering the salary cap,” he added.

Bowman, who took over as Oilers GM from Ken Holland on July 24 after Holland’s five-year contract ended on July 1, faced a significant early challenge with the twin offer sheets. The decision to go with Broberg and Holloway will be assessed over time to determine if it was the right one for the Oilers. It’s certain to spark ample discussion about whether they could have made different moves prior to Aug. 13 to prevent this situation.

Moving forward, there are more significant matters to address, starting with Draisaitl who is about to enter his last season of an eight-year contract worth $68 million ($8.5 million AAV). He will have the chance to become an unrestricted free agent on July 1, 2025. Bowman stated that he has started preliminary talks with the 28-year-old forward’s agent Mike Luit, but refused to disclose any specifics.

“He advised not to interpret any negativity from his statement. He expressed his reluctance to set timelines on the process. He confirmed the initiation of the process and assured that updates would be communicated as and when available,” he said.

Apart from McDavid, Draisaitl is the most crucial player for the Oilers, ranking seventh in the NHL last season with 106 points (41 goals, 65 assists) across 81 regular-season games and securing third place in the Stanley Cup Playoffs with 31 points (10 goals, 21 assists) in 25 games. Even though the salary cap is predicted to rise from $88 million this season, a combined $7.48 million AAV for Broberg and Holloway in 2025-26 could have posed limitations, especially with Bouchard entering the last season of his two-year, $7.8 million contract ($3.9 million AAV). The 24-year-old defenseman will be eligible to become a restricted free agent with arbitration rights on July 1 next year.

This is also the day when McDavid will be able to sign a new contract with Edmonton. The captain of the Oilers, aged 27, has two seasons remaining on his eight-year, $100-million contract (with an AAV of $12.5 million) and will transform into an unrestricted free agent if he fails to sign a new deal before its expiration.

The Oilers had to make decisions about the offer sheets to Broberg and Holloway, with all of that looming over their heads.

Bowman explained, “Had we matched both or even just one of the other scenarios, our position with this season’s salary cap would have been drastically different, not to mention the impact on future years. That’s why we made the decision we did.”

Bowman emphasized the need to avoid placing Kane on long-term injured reserve. Whether the 33-year-old forward will miss any games remains uncertain. Even if surgery is required, leading to a prolonged absence, Edmonton is hopeful for his return within this season. Therefore, they need to ensure they have enough salary cap space to include him on their active roster.

If Kane isn’t put on Long Term Injury (LTI) and the Oilers still have some salary cap space, their space will increase as the season goes on. This will allow them the opportunity to bring in new players prior to the 2025 NHL Trade Deadline, strengthening their lineup before playoff season.

Bowman stated, “If a player is on long-term injury for several months, and then gets activated, you begin with zero cap space and have to work to build it back up. It’s not possible to accomplish this in just a month or so. These were all considerations in 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.

The transfer of Ceci, who still has a season left on his four-year, $13 million contract ($3.25 AAV), has freed up additional salary cap for this season. However, this move also leaves Edmonton short of three of its top seven defensemen from the previous season, as Broberg and Vincent Desharnais (now 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 that while they now have a different group of defensemen, there’s hope that some might step up and take on larger roles. He also noted that this situation provides a better chance to accumulate cap space and potentially make additions to the team if the circumstances demand it.