With 15 goals and 24 points in 45 games, it's safe to call the Jack Roslovic experiment a success in 2025/26. He has a decent shot at career highs, and is likely to provide some depth scoring in the Stanley Cup Playoffs as well. Roslovic is on a relatively affordable deal this season ($1.5 million) and is an unrestricted free agent as of the summer.
The 29-year-old will be looking at what is likely to be his last long term National Hockey League contract. That fact may mean one of two things. Either Roslovic will be looking to leverage his successful season into as much of a pay day as possible, or he will see his chances at getting his name on the Cup shrinking, and want to play where the possibility is highest. The direction in which he leans will likely determine if he stays in Oilers colours.
Oilers can't overpay depth players
If Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl's Oilers era ends without a championship banner in the rafters, cap management will surely be one of the culprits. Between buyouts and salary retention, I doubt there's been a single season when Edmonton's GM has had the full salary cap to play with since 2015. While other teams were gaming the system to have rosters that, on paper, wildly exceeded the official limit, Edmonton routinely couldn't add offense or defense at trade deadlines because of previously misspent dollars.
Edmonton already has an arguably overpaid Darnell Nurse on a long term deal, not to mention Trent Frederic, who cashed in on term and doesn't seem to bring much to ice level. These errors add up, and if team-friendly deals can't be found, management will have to roll the dice on replacement players rather than re-signings.
Roslovic could chase payday
Now that McDavid has given up a massive dollar figure in order to chase a Cup as an Oiler and everyone else needs to be equally committed. Roslovic may want top dollar, and a good playoff run could easily push him out of the range the Oilers can pay for an aging player whose offensive contributions are more than likely going to decline. Nobody can fault him if that's the case.
Connor Brown, Corey Perry, and others before them have left Edmonton for bigger paycheques. The team felt each of those losses, but it also has to be noted that they didn't win it all with those players on board. The specific recipe, mixing talent and grit, that it takes to win it all in the NHL is a nebulous thing. Roslovic's short term success suggests he's a useful ingredient, but until the post-season really gets cooking we don't know for sure.