Sports
Oilers Have Many Connections To New Addition
EDMONTON — “It’s a small world after all.”
This lyric from a Sherman Brothers classic song perfectly encapsulates the hockey world. Often, a GM or coach will come to a team with which they have a previous relationship or interest.
The Edmonton Oilers have done this with a few current players. They can now add new addition Alec Regula to that list. Here are two connections (and one piece of trivia) about the Oilers’ latest waiver claim.
Acquired By Current Oilers GM
Current Oilers’ GM Stan Bowman was the GM of the Chicago Blackhawks for a long time. During his tenure, he executed many transactions, one of which involved Regula.
In October 2019, Bowman traded Brendan Perlini to the Detroit Red Wings for Brendan Perlini. He would spend the next three seasons with the Blackhawks until he was traded again.
More on that later.
The #Oilers have claimed defenceman Alec Regula off waivers from Boston. The right-shot blueliner, selected 67th overall by Detroit in 2018, has appeared in 22 career @NHL games with one goal. pic.twitter.com/zX9uaDcIci
— Edmonton Oilers (@EdmontonOilers) December 11, 2024
Played With A Current Oilers Defender
Regula is familiar with one of the current Oilers defenders. Evan Bouchard and Regula played together in the OHL. Both players were part of the London Knights organization and were two of the team’s three regular right-handed defenders (the third being Adam Boqvist).
Both blueliners were taken in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft. Bouchard and Boqvist were in the top ten, and Regula was selected in the third round.
Traded For Former Oiler
Lastly, Regula was involved in another trade with Oilers implications. Former Oilers forward Taylor Hall was traded to the Blackhawks. In return, the Boston Bruins received Ian Mitchell and Regula.
Regula spent all his time in the Bruins organization, playing for their AHL affiliate, the Providence Bruins. Last season, he recorded 26 points in 55 games. However, he has not played this season yet because of an injury. He has just returned healthy, so he was sent to the AHL.
Bowman isn’t shy about re-acquiring players, as his history with Brandon Saad suggests, so it’s not a major surprise that he acquired Regula.
Regardless of how small the world is, it’s very curious when a GM acquires a young player. The immediate effects of this could be interesting.
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