Oilers: Kyle Turris’ Keys to Success, Profile and Expectations
Kyle Turris has been putting in the work this offseason to try and become an NHL regular again. Is that going to be enough to get him a roster spot?
After signing a 2 year, $1.65 million deal in October of 2020, Kyle Turris has only played in 27 games for the Edmonton Oilers. He has been unable to get back to his early-career form where he was having 20 goal seasons regularly. I think this is a season he will get a longer look, not a center, but as a winger.
Stats From The Past:
Keys To Success:
1. Get Penalty Kill Minutes- With the loss of Jujhar Khaira and Riley Sheahan there will be time on the penalty kill that need to be made up for. If Turris is able to be a shorthanded specialist he will have something to add to the lineup even if he isn’t having a strong offensive season.
2. Stay In The Lineup- Adding to my previous point, Turris needs to do anything and everything possible to stay in the lineup once he gets in. I think Turris is going to have a short leash with the team once again this year. In order for him to stay in the lineup he may have to do things that he has never been asked to do in his career before. As an aging player, Turris will have to adapt his game if he wants to continue playing in the NHL.
3. Winger vs Center- With the added center depth with the signing of Derek Ryan, Kyle Turris will not be forced to play center. Being a slower skater, winger should be a better spot for Turris. This will also help him focus more on offence as he will not be required to be as involved in the defensive game playing wing. I think putting him on the wing is only going to make him have more confidence on the ice which will increase his play.
Expectation:
With Mark Spector reporting that Josh Archibald is unvaccinated, he likely would miss more than 30 games due to quarantine from traveling in and out of the USA.
With this being the case I think the Oilers are more likely to use Kyle Turris instead of Josh Archibald. When a player is going to miss more than a 3rd of the season because of the quarantine rules, it will be hard for the coach to rely on him. This is good news if you are Kyle Turris, the fact you can play every game I think puts him ahead of Archibald in the winger depth chart.