Reviewing the previews: How I projected the Edmonton Oilers’ Brendan Perlini, Kyle Turris, Kris Russell and Mikko Koskinen

Welcome to the reviews of the previews.

Last offseason, I took a look at 29 players who played for the Oilers in the 2021-22 season. I wrote about their season as a whole, and how I projected them for this past 2022-23 season.

Some of those players were under contract for this year. Some needed new deals and walked in free agency, and others were moved in trades.

Let’s take a look back at a couple of those players today.

Brendan Perlini

What I wrote

An RFA at the end of this season, the Oilers didn’t issue Perlini a qualifying offer and at the time of writing, is without a contract for next season. He’s a guy who I would definitley consider bringing back to the organization.

In Bakersfield last year, he really found his stride scoring 11 goals and 18 points in 18 games. He’d be a great playing down in the American League, and a solid callup if the Oilers need it.

What happened

Perlini played for the AHL’s Chicago Wolves this year scoring 10 goals and 15 points in 26 games.

Kyle Turris

What I wrote

The Oilers didn’t, and won’t be re-signing Kyle Turris, and I have a hard time imagining anyone else taking a risk on the 32-year-old. He was dealing with back issues and those are things that can really hurt guys in their 30’s in the NHL.

The situation is almost reminiscent of when the Oilers brought back Kyle Brodziak in 2018-19. While he did give the Oilers one year, he was forced out of the game afterwards due to back problems

If this is in fact the end of the road for Turris, I’d wish him nothing but the best for a guy who had a solid 776 game NHL career.

What happened

Turris sailed off into the sunset of retirement. He’s now working for the BCHL’s Coquitlam Express.

Kris Russell

What I wrote

There’s a world where the Oilers bring back Russell on a league-minimum deal, something I’d be a fan of, but he might not want to be back. The Athletic’s Daniel Nugent-Bowman reported earlier in the offseason that Russell was looking to sign with a new team, and a contender.

Russell’s a highly competitive player, so I’d imagine he wants steady ice time, rather than being a seventh, or eighth defenceman like he’d be on the Oilers.

Nonetheless, Russell’s had a long, solid career and holds the NHL record for blocked shots.

What happened

Russell retired without retiring and didn’t play this season. I’d imagine he’s done as an NHL’er.

Mikko Koskinen

What I wrote

His final season in Edmonton this year was about what you would expect from Koskinen. He’s an above-average backup, but a bad starter. There were times when Mike Smith would go down due to injury and Koskinen would be forced to step in, but the times where he was able to successfully fill in for longer stints were nearly non-existent.

Still, when he was called upon for short-stretches, or as a backup, there wasn’t much wrong with Mikko. Sure, his glove side was an issue and you’d like to see a few more of those tougher saves be made, but truth be told, he was a decent netminder.

Before the Oilers season ended in the playoffs, news had already slipped out that Koskinen was inking a long-term deal to play in the Swiss League and one has to wonder if he misread the NHL market. While we don’t know the terms on his deal overseas, the NHL goalie market is struggling right now with numerous teams that could’ve used his services.

This rabid market was maybe too hard at times on Mikko.

What happened

Sail on, Mikko. He inked a five-year deal in the Swiss League and posted a 13-17 record, 2.93 GAA and .900 save percentage in the regular season. In eight playoff games, he went 4-3-1 with a .203 GAA and .937 save percentage.