The Edmonton Oilers’ signing of Andrew Mangiapane is one that has members of the organization excited.
Beyond that, someone they see having a big role on the roster next season, as the team looks not just to make it to the Stanley Cup Final, as they have the last two years, but to come out on top.
Joining the Oilers on a two-year deal paying him $3.6-million annually, Mangiapane will be somewhat of a reclamation project offensively, as after undergoing shoulder surgery after the 2022-23 season, his offensive game has taken a dip from an individual standpoint — specifically in his ability to generate shots and scoring chances.
But on Wednesday, Oilers general manager Stan Bowman spoke about how the Oilers see Mangipane affecting the game further than just in the offensive zone.
The reason we were interested in Andrew is multiple. Number one, we’ve been watching him for years now and like the contributions he can make in a number of different roles. Starting out with offensively, I think he’s got the ability to play in our top six. He’s got experience playing right and left wing, so some flexibility there. Whether he’s going to play with McDavid or Draisiatl, we could try him on both lines. Certainly, he can score goals. He’s had good success doing that in his career. I think the thing other thing we like about him is just his ability to extend the play, to play sort of like a give and go game. He’s an active player, he’s also a competitive player. He’s not the most fun to play against — certainly played a lot against him when he was in Calgary, and I think you notice his ability to impact the game in a number of ways. Penalty killing, as well, is something that he’s done and he’s been good at that. So in our conversations with him, we explained how we see him helping our team.
It’s really the ultimate versatile player in our top-six. So we don’t know which centre he’ll mesh the best with, but we know it’s going to be one of those two. We definitely see him playing in our top two lines and contributing on our special teams as well. We know he can play on the power play, so we’ve got flexibility there as well. So overall, I think he checks all the boxes for the type of player that is going to bring a lot to the table with our group and I think he’s a big addition to this group.
The Oilers have had many players roll through their top-six over the years, trying to find the right fits for the likes of McDavid and Draisaitl, and Mangiapane will be the next. During his best offensive years in Calgary — running from the 2021-22 through 2023-24 seasons — his most common linemates were Mikael Backlund and Blake Coleman. They’re not elite offensive talents by any means, but players who have always excelled in the offensive zone helping generate high-quality chances.
Now, the Oilers will hope that Mangiapane can rebound from a down offensive year, and re-gain his form with Edmonton’s stars.
