After deciding not to match Dylan Holloway’s two-year, $2,290,457 offer sheet from the St. Louis Blues last August, the Edmonton Oilers hoped Vasily Podkolzin, acquired for a fourth-round pick from the Vancouver Canucks, could step in as his replacement and provide value at just only $1 million per season. While Holloway has had a productive campaign so far, Podkolzin is helping to ease the loss as he’s played a key role on the team’s second line—all while earning almost $1.3 million less per season than the former Oiler.
The Moscow, Russia native got promoted to the second line with Leon Draisaitl on Oct. 25 against the Pittsburgh Penguins, where he tallied his first point as an Oiler. Since that game, aside from when the Oilers load up their first line with the dynamic duo, Podkolzin has remained a fixture alongside Draisaitl on line number two. In total, the duo has played 321:31 minutes together at 5v5, producing 16 goals and generating almost three goals per 60 minutes, according to Natural Stat Trick.
In addition, if you’ve been following my writing, you’ll know I’m a supporter of Podkolzin playing on the second line. However, I recognize that not everyone may share the same view, as a player who’s recorded only 14 points in 39 games, even while playing with this season’s potential Hart Trophy candidate in Draisaitl, might not seem like a true top-six guy. Still, I get the feeling Draisaitl genuinely wants the young Oiler playing on his line (otherwise, he wouldn’t be there)—and why wouldn’t he?
A Look at What Podkolzin Brings to Oilers’ 2nd Line
The 23-year-old Russian excels at puck retrievals, uses his big body well (leading the team with 84 hits), understands his role in getting the puck to his centerman, and is starting to hold onto it a bit longer, looking for better plays. Moreover, his tenacity on the puck mirrors the style of former Oiler Kailer Yamamoto, who, in the 2019-20 season, played alongside Draisaitl and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, which made up one of the league’s most productive lines during a 27-game stretch at that time.
The difference, though, is that Podkolzin is about five inches taller and 20 pounds heavier than Yamamoto, goes hard to the front of the net, and creates space. A recent example of his tough play in front of the net came against the Utah Hockey Club on Dec. 31. In the first period, he planted his big body in front of Utah’s netminder, fished the puck out of a pile, and passed it to Mattias Ekholm, who was creeping into the play and blasted the puck home, with Podkolzin earning a primary assist.
On top of that, while Draisaitl is a big guy himself and doesn’t need anyone to protect him, I’m sure him seeing what Podkolzin can do in a fight—like when he T.K.O.’d the 6-foot-3, 225-pound Jeremy Lauzon of the Nashville Predators earlier in the season—likely adds some comfort as well, knowing he has a tough customer in Podkolzin on his line who can step in when things get nasty.
And despite Podkolzin only being on pace for just under 30 points this season, overall, he’s allowed Draisaitl to play his cerebral game at 5v5, and as a result, the centerman is second in the league in even strength points (43 points) and first in the league in even strength goals (22 goals).
Yet, do the Oilers want more point production from Podkolzin? Of course. And I feel that in the second half of the season, it’ll come more in bunches. On Jan. 3, Oilers TV host Tony Brar posted a video of Podkolzin working on his game out early before practice, as has been noted throughout the season. That said, Podkolzin proved that putting in the work pays off. In the very next game against the Seattle Kraken on Jan. 4, the Oilers’ winger buried a one-timer off a Draisaitl pass less than a minute into the game for his first goal in 16 games.
Hopefully, the feeling of putting the puck in the net again will unlock his scoring touch. And let’s not forget, the young forward potted 14 goals as a rookie with the Canucks, showing that the scoring potential is there.
Podkolzin Ranks Among Top 5 in NHL in 3 Analytic Categories
In addition, Podkolzin started the season at the top of the league in some offensive metrics, and almost halfway through the season, it’s quite impressive that he’s maintained that level. Among forwards who have played a minimum of 150 minutes this season, Podkolzin ranks in the top five in the following categories:
• 2nd in shots for percentage (61.26%)
• 4th in expected goals for percentage (62.21 xGF%)
• 4th in high-danger chances for percentage (64.88 HDCF%)
Having said that, the eye test is my go-to, and I feel advanced metrics are there to back up the story—and for Podkolzin, they certainly do, and I’d imagine Oilers fans are crossing their fingers that he starts converting on all those opportunities.
On a different note, while Podkolzin and Draisaitl have been mainstays on the second line for most of the 2024-25 campaign, Viktor Arvidsson, who joined them earlier in the season, reunited with the duo in the game against the Los Angeles Kings on Dec. 28. Since then, they’ve been one of the Oilers’ best lines. Excluding the game against the Anaheim Ducks on Dec. 29, where they only played 4:33 together, the trio has posted a 24-12 edge in scoring chances over four games, essentially doubling their opponents’ chances when they’re on the ice at 5v5.
All things considered, the Oilers’ all-European second line is shaping up to be very promising and here’s a bold prediction for you: as mentioned earlier, in the 2019-2020 season, the Oilers’ line of Yamamoto, Nugent-Hopkins, and Draisaitl was very dominant, combining for 19 goals from Jan. 2 to Feb. 3. With the line of Podkolzin (puck retriever), Arvidsson (shooter), and Draisaitl (elite playmaker), I’ll make a bold call and say history will repeat itself, and they’ll go on a similar heater in 2025.
That said, with Podkolzin finding the back of the net early in 2025, gaining even more confidence, and continuing his extra work before practices while fine-tuning his game, and gelling even more with his linemates, I’m anticipating a big second half of the season for the young Oilers forward.
With that in mind, what are your predictions for Podkolzin in the second half of the 2024-25 season?
