It’s no secret that the Edmonton Oilers have struggled with secondary scoring and depth this season. While the recent call-up of Connor Clattenburg does address some of the physicality, energy, and compete concerns with the Oilers bottom six, it does little to solve the scoring issues.

The one thing that the AHL affiliate of the Edmonton Oilers does have is NHL-ready playmakers that can generate offence themselves.

Let’s take a look at the recent performances of Bakersfield Condors forwards that could be a scoring solution for the Oilers.

Quinn Hutson

Just like for goalies, sometimes organizations need to go with the hot hand for who is in the forward lineup. Quinn Hutson is certainly that. The Boston University alumni have been on a heater for the Condors and leads the entire team in goals with eight and points with 16.

Hutson plays a meticulous thinker’s game, which thrives in terms of timing and positioning. He shows good play anticipation and hockey IQ, which could complement forwards like Andrew Mangiapane, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, and even bring out more scoring from forwards like David Tomasek and Jasper Kapanen.

While he isn’t as high-paced a forward as the Oilers might like, Hutson’s skill thrives despite his speed. He could be a high-quality offensive zone presence that would allow for better play facilitation and more sustained offensive zone pressure.

He’s certainly played well enough with 13 points across his past seven games to deserve to be the first call-up.

Viljami Marjala

The dark horse signing of Marjala for the Oilers has shown some early results. The former fifth-rounder has shown sneaky consistency in Bakersfield, and is one of the under-the-radar contributors. He’s played a strong top-six role with the Condors all season, and this is due to his playmaking ability.

Much like Hutson, Marjala looks to be a strong play facilitator, but his deception drives his timing, Marjala thrives as an on-ice manipulator more than an opportunist. From look-offs to fakes and beyond, every move of his has some element of unpredictability.

This deception-fueled puck skills also display his senses, and moderate skating means he could complement most of the current roster players for the Oilers as a secondary offence generator.

Roby Järventie

If the Oilers are searching for a rush attacker leaning more sniper than a passer, look no further than Järventie.

After some awful injuries in preceding campaigns, Järventie is finally able to show just how good a player he can be. The Finn is a more run and gun type scorer so expect him barging in on rush plays and being a quaility finisher in transition chances more than as a zone asset.

Järventie has shown that he can dictate the pace of play. With NHL-ready shooting and skating already, there is little chance that Järventie becomes a noticeable asset in the Oilers offence. He could even complement more skilled forwards like Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, or be a finisher alongside Zach Hyman.

Järventie has the versatility and soft skills to survive and thrive in the Oilers line blender, which pre-existing options like Curtis Lazar, Kapanen, or Mattias Janmark haven’t particularly shown this season.

The question for Järventie entering this season was if his lack of game reps would stall his development, and that has now been answered with a resounding no. Now the question for the Finn is, when will his NHL chance be?

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(Eventually) Isaac Howard

Howard is the most obvious name on this list. However, the former Lightning pick has already proven that his one-dimensional scoring game is largely ineffective at the NHL level, so he needs to figure out his pro-game a bit more.

The Oilers should caution themselves from the Stuart Skinnerish mentality of “Oh it’ll work THIS time” when it comes to offence. A short-term developmental stint with Bakersfield will take pressure off Howard and allow him time to elevate his game beyond his NCAA skill set.

This short-term assignment is off to a hot start in the AHL, with seven points across four games, which should build the forward’s confidence. A gain in confidence could lend itself to Howard developing a more complete, smarter game that could work at the NHL level.

Howard is not the answer for the Oilers tomorrow when it comes to secondary scoring, but come the holiday season, or new year, the American could be a gift for the Alberta franchise.

The Oilers have many options within their system

The Oilers have a depth of scoring solutions in their system. These scoring solutions are unproven at the NHL level. The uncertainty around new players makes an organization hesitant, and why familiar veteran players like Janmark and Lazar are given the opportunities instead.

Are there any other players in the Oilers system that could solve their secondary scoring issues? Let us know in the comments below.

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