Oilers recall Noah Philp and Drake Caggiula from AHL Bakersfield

Reinforcements are on their way.

The Edmonton Oilers announced Tuesday that they recalled forwards Noah Philp and Drake Caggiula from the Bakersfield Condors of the American Hockey League.

Connor McDavid suffered a lower body injury during the team’s game loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets on Monday evening. He immediately returned to Edmonton for further testing and there has been no word yet on the severity of the injury or whether he will be placed on regular injured reserve or long-term injured reserve.

A player does are eligible for the LTIR if they are expected to miss 10 games and 24 days of the season. With Evander Kane on LTIR after pre-season surgery, the Oilers currently have a bonus cushion of approximately $5.1 million available to go over the limit. salary maximum ceiling. They will use that pool with Philp and Caggiula on the active roster.

The Oilers signed Philp to a one-year entry-level contract in April 2022 after he scored 20 goals and 38 points in 36 games with the University of Alberta Golden Bears. He had a very impressive rookie season in the AHL in 2022-2023, scoring 19 goals and 37 points in 70 games with Bakersfield.

During the offseason, Philp announced that he was retiring from hockey for personal reasons. The Oilers still opted to qualify him as a restricted free agent and retained his rights while he didn’t play in 2023-2024. Back in MarchIt was reported that Philp planned to resume his professional hockey career, and he and the Oilers agreed to a one-year, $775,000 deal in July.

During training camp, Philp was one of the names competing for the center position on the team’s fourth line. The Oilers decided to keep veteran Derek Ryan, although the youngster made it a tough decision for them. At 6-foot-4 and 200 pounds, Philp brings strong skating ability and a complete two-way game. He will likely be used mainly in Edmonton’s bottom six, but Philp showed during pre-season that he can score.