We are 40 days away from the start of training camp for the 2026-27 season. The Edmonton Oilers have made some changes to their roster, but the most significant change will be on the bench, with head coach Mike Babcock and associate coach D.J. Smith taking over from Kris Knoblauch and Mark Stuart.

The only new forward signed in the offseason was Mathieu Joseph, but the Oilers currently have 15 forwards who played 20-plus NHL games last season, and with the team expected to carry three goalies, only 13 of them will be on the opening-night roster. One question/comment I keep hearing/reading about is if Matt Savoie and Isaac Howard can succeed under Babcock.

We hear these same concerns with every coach. Many claimed Knoblauch didn’t like young players, even though Savoie played the most penalty-kill minutes of any forward last season. The truth is, not all young players are ready to play right away, but if they are good, coaches will play them.

How has Mike Babcock historically utilized young forwards?

Babcock played loads of young players in Toronto. In his first season, the Maple Leafs finished dead last and 21-year-old Morgan Rielly played the most minutes of any Maple Leaf. In Babcock’s second season, he gave rookies significant minutes: Auston Matthews (17:48), Mitch Marner (16:49), Zach Hyman (16:42), Connor Brown (16:12) and William Nylander (16:01). They all reached double digits in goals and scored between 28 to 69 points.

They were top eight in ice time per game among Toronto forwards. They surprised many by making the playoffs and exceeded expectations, but unlike this edition of the Edmonton Oilers, Toronto was not expected to compete for the Stanley Cup.

But Babcock’s previous team, the Detroit Red Wings, was a Cup contender in 2008 and 2009. They won the Cup in........

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