How 4 inspired moves by Oilers GM Ken Holland pay off in the Stanley Cup Final

Edmonton Oilers general manager Ken Holland is finishing his five-year contract this month.

It’s been a crazy adventure.

Holland’s Oilers have made the playoffs every year, reached the conference finals in 2022 and are now two wins away from winning the Stanley Cup this season.

In many NHL cities, that kind of resume would be considered premium, but Edmonton is home to Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl and a mountain of expectations.

As Holland’s time with the team appears to be coming to an end, here’s a look at the four most inspired moves Holland made while in charge of the Oilers roster.

In Oilers history, no NHL free agent has offered anything comparable to what Zach Hyman brought with him from the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Not only does he bring offense (117-97-214 in 235 regular season games, 29-19-48 in 51 playoff games), but Hyman also brings boundless energy and determination.

He also has clarity, and perfectly summarized the first three games of the final.

“I think we are 3-0 down because we gave them gifts. It’s not like we were absolutely dominated, these were moments of play where they showed a little more maturity than us and they didn’t do us any favors. If we can eliminate those freebies and play like we can, we’ll give ourselves a chance. We just need it to get the momentum going,” he said.

Game 4 was a turning point, with Hyman becoming part of the solution, as he has since his arrival three years ago. He built on that with a goal in the Game 5 win.

Holland has made two other deals that rival the Hyman signing, but this is the biggest trade since his time with the Oilers.

At the 2023 deadline, Holland sent defenseman Tyson Barrie and a boatload of picks and prospects to the Nashville Predators for veteran defenseman Mattias Ekholm.

Since then, Ekholm has brought quality to a team aiming for the Stanley Cup.

In 100 regular season games with Edmonton, Ekholm scored 15-44-69 and was on the ice for 67 percent (119-59) of the total goals scored at five-on-five.

He did this while playing against elites most of the time.

He is an impact player.

In his two playoff series with the Oilers, Ekholm’s on-ice goal percentage at five-on-five is 58 percent (30-22), including 21-13 this season.

Ekholm has been hailed as the long-awaited replacement for Oscar Klefbom, who lost his NHL career to injury late in the 2020 playoffs.

The truth is that Ekholm is more than that, as he is a founding part of a great team in Edmonton.

This was by far the best trade Holland has made as Oilers general manager. No chance the club would go this far without him.

Kris Knoblauch

The day the Netherlands made a coaching change by installing Kris Knoblauch represented more than a little risk.

His predecessor at the position, Jay Woodcroft, was very popular despite the slow start to the 2023-24 season. Additionally, Woodcroft, like Knoblauch, had no NHL head coaching experience when the change was made.

Traditionally, after hiring a young bench coach, an NHL team turns to a “big name” coach who can guide the underperforming team to a respectable record.

Knoblauch was a perfect candidate and there is no denying that. He coached the team to an incredible 46-18-5 record and led the Oilers to their first Stanley Cup since 1990.

The journey so far includes dozens of examples of decisions made by the coach that seemed out of time with traditional coach wisdom, but those decisions were critical to victory.

The decision to rest starter Stuart Skinner midway through the playoffs, then reinstate him after a few days off; finding defensive pairs that worked when one or more triggered a leak; overseeing some outstanding special teams performances; telling veterans they were sitting at a time when no one wants to be left out of the starting lineup.

Whatever happens, Knoblauch’s reputation as a smart coach who knows the pulse of his team is well established. He’s not going anywhere.

The day Holland arrived in Edmonton, a word bubble reflecting Oilers fans would have had no mention of Philip Broberg.

Early Dutch media often mentioned Broberg. He liked Broberg and publicly expressed his desire to select him in the upcoming draft.

It was one of the most confusing moments in Oilers history. New manager shortlists first choice? This has probably happened before. Do it publicly? Unusual.

Holland and the Oilers actually selected Broberg with the No. 8 selection in the 2019 draft.

The best way to evaluate any prospect, even a top-10 prospect, is to look at his progress over the five seasons following his draft.

Fans were outraged when Broberg’s name was called, and that anger was justified. The U.S. National Team Development Program graduated a small army of elite talent that summer. Of those available, Trevor Zegras, Matt Boldy and Cole Caufield have had great success in the NHL since draft day.

For Broberg, the road to the success he’s enjoyed this spring has been longer.

Holland was drafted out of need, and Broberg wasn’t the obvious choice at No. 8 that season. It’s the kind of risk that angers educated draft followers, and Oilers fans have been schooled for more than a decade in the wisdom of the draft. From the summer of 2007 to the spring of 2017, discussion projects dominated blogs, websites, radio and social media – sometimes as early as Halloween night.

The math on Broberg suggests he was ready some time ago, certainly in the fall of last season. The Oilers had the luxury of parking him in the minors for a rainy day, and that day happened in the playoffs.

Currently playing big minutes on the second pairing with Darnell Nurse, a conservative estimate would also easily make Broberg one of the top four defensemen available to Knoblauch right now.

If you draft a player out of order, you better be right. Broberg proves Holland right in real time.

Five years later

It’s been an eventful five years for Holland and the Oilers. Fans have pointed out (rightly) the glaring mistakes in trades, free agency and at the draft table while also recognizing the good work.

Holland’s final evaluation as Oilers general manager is for the future. If the Oilers win the Stanley Cup, most fans will be swept away by this achievement.

Those who remain convinced that there is a better way will struggle to find followers.

Everyone loves parties.

The Netherlands’ top four stocks have contributed greatly to the current situation.

His old-school style never sat well with the new-world Oilers fan base.

Maybe it doesn’t matter at all.

(Photo by Mattias Ekholm and Zach Hyman: Joe Nicholson / USA Today)