3 Reasons Jake DeBrusk Makes Sense for the Oilers
Every trade rumour has two lives. There’s the loud one — cap hits, contracts, insiders batting names around — and then there’s the quieter question underneath: does this player actually make sense here?
That’s why the Jake DeBrusk link to the Edmonton Oilers is interesting. Strip away the noise, and you’re left with a player who checks boxes the Oilers have been circling for years.
Reason 1: DeBrusk Would Bring Secondary Scoring that Actually Sticks
The Oilers don’t need another reclamation project on the wing. They’ve tried that road often enough. What they need is someone who can score without being hand-fed top-line minutes, and DeBrusk has shown that repeatedly.
He’s a 25-goal winger in real terms, not theoretical ones. Three times in the last four seasons, he’s cleared that mark. And even in a down year, he flirted with 20 goals. That matters on a team where opponents spend entire nights scheming to suffocate Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl. DeBrusk doesn’t need to be the star; he just needs space, and Edmonton creates space better than almost anyone.
Reason 2: DeBrusk Brings an Effective Power-Play Fit
There’s a kind of hockey player who looks better on video clips than in real games. DeBrusk is the opposite. His value shows up in the hard areas. He’s solid around the net, on second chances, on broken plays.
That's precisely what Edmonton’s power play has leaned on when it’s been at its best: he gets inside. He works. He doesn’t float, looking for a perfect seam pass. Put him on a unit with Draisaitl, and the attention shifts. The goalie’s eyes move, and rebounds become goals. It’s not glamorous hockey, but it puts numbers on the scoreboard.
Reason 3: DeBrusk Would Probably Value Playing in His Hometown — with a Caveat
Edmonton is home to DeBrusk. That can scare people, and sometimes it should. Not every player thrives under that kind of spotlight. But DeBrusk isn’t 22 anymore. He’s 29, established, and knows who he is as a player. He wouldn’t be coming in as a saviour — he’d be coming in as a complementary piece. That matters. For some players, that’s the difference between pressure and purpose.
This isn’t a must-do trade. But it’s the kind of rumour that lingers because it feels grounded. It makes sense. DeBrusk fits the Oilers in the way the best additions usually do — not loudly, not desperately, but logically.