Revisiting the 2015 NHL entry draft - how did the Oilers make out?

The Bear pick

Round five - Ethan Bear, 124th overall - Basically a rinse and repeat of Jones. He did put up a 21 point season once for the Oilers so we thought we might have some cheap puck moving help from the blueline in Ethan Bear for a while, but he has yet to eclipse that total in his career. In the 2021 offseason, he would go on to be moved to Carolina for Warren Foegele, a solid trade for the Oilers as he had more success in Edmonton than Bear had in Carolina.

Bear ended up being traded to Washington for Lane Pederson, who actually plays for the Condors right now, and just re-upped in free agency for the Capitals. At this point Bear and Jones are mirror copies of each other - bottom pairing d-men. Still, that's pretty good for a fifth round pick.

Hit or Miss? Let's call this one a hit, considering where Bear was picked.

Did the Oilers miss out on anybody after taking Bear? Yes, the Oilers unfortunately missed out on two picks as Kirill Kaprizov was taken by Minnesota after Bear and Troy Terry was taken by Anaheim after Bear as well. Honourable mention to Nikko Mikola (St. Louis) who although he's played less games and hasn't scored as much as Bear is a tougher, more physical player than Bear.

It stings a bit missing out on Kaprizov or Terry, however, as the Oilers top six forward group would look a lot different today if they had taken either one of those guys. Although not a failure with this pick, it does sting a bit to know they could've done better, but, in the Oilers' defence, by the fifth round the draft is basically a crapshoot at best.