Mike Hoffman Released From Try...

The Edmonton Oilers' roster grows smaller by the day. The Oilers announced this morning that they've released forward Mike Hoffman from his professional tryout and cut him from the training camp roster.

The veteran winger was a long shot to make camp, signing a PTO after a difficult 2023-24 season in San Jose. As a scoring winger and powerplay specialist, the 34-year-old veteran had no chance of cracking the Oilers' top six.

Despite that, Hoffman had a productive pre-season. Playing most of his four games as a veteran filling out an inexperienced lineup, Hoffman led the Oilers in pre-season points with 4 (1G, 3A), including a powerplay goal in the split-squad game in Calgary.

Hoffman also filled in for Leon Draisaitl on the powerplay when the latter was out of the lineup on Saturday night, not once looking out of place.

With his solid performance in Edmonton, it wouldn't be surprising at all to see Hoffman catch on with a rebuilding team as a veteran presence and powerplay triggerman like he was in San Jose last year. With 228 career goals to his name, Hoffman could be a valuable addition to a team like Calgary, Anaheim, or Columbus.

As for the Oilers, releasing Hoffman leaves more room for players fighting for roster spots. Noah Philp, James Hamblin, and Raphael Lavoie all have a shot at making this team, and the coaching staff will want to give them as many opportunities as possible to show them what they've got.

They'll get their next look at the three young forwards tonight against Vancouver at 7:00 MT.