EDMONTON \u2014 Given the circumstances, it makes perfect sense that Sam Gagner is with the Oilers right now. Also fittingly, it will almost certainly take him leaving the NHL team again before he plays for the club one more time.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a place that feels like home to me. I\u2019ve had a lot of fun being an Oiler,\u201d Gagner said. \u201cI\u2019m excited to be back and hoping for the best.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Oilers have already had three preseason games and Gagner, at main camp on a professional tryout offer, hasn\u2019t played in any of them. Don\u2019t hold your breath waiting for an appearance.<\/p>\n
Gagner won\u2019t take to the ice in any exhibition contests because he\u2019s still recovering from surgery on each hip \u2014 separated by five weeks \u2014 the first of which was six months ago.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere are still certain hurdles that I need to cross before I can really push it and play in games,\u201d Gagner said. \u201cIt\u2019s been a really long summer of rehab and a lot of tedious work. I\u2019m proud of the work it\u2019s taken to get to this point, but there\u2019s still a lot of work to be done.\u201d<\/p>\n
So, he\u2019s a player in camp on a tryout and can\u2019t truly try out. On the surface, it seems like a waste of time \u2014 something few organizations would have time for. Gagner will likely need a stint in AHL Bakersfield just to earn an NHL contract and be a call-up at some point in the season.<\/p>\n
But when you look at the extensive relationship between Gagner and the Oilers, it\u2019s not hard to see how another match has been made and Gagner is in the nascent stages of a possible third tenure with the club.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe felt that this was the best spot for him,\u201d Oilers CEO of hockey operations Jeff Jackson said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s a lot of familiarity here with Sam as a person. Everyone\u2019s willing to take the time he needs until he\u2019s fully recovered.\u201d<\/p>\n
The connection goes beyond that the team is now led by Jackson, the former NHL agent whose first client was Gagner.<\/p>\n
Gagner also goes way back with Connor McDavid \u2014 Jackson was the agent for both \u2014 and has kept in regular contact with several Oilers players.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s so respected by this leadership group,\u201d Jackson said. \u201cHe gives us leadership. He gives us depth. He\u2019s low maintenance. Everybody says he\u2019s a pro\u2019s pro, and he is. You can\u2019t have enough of those guys in your organization.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI was just trying to find the right fit,\u201d Gagner said. \u201cObviously, I have a soft spot for Edmonton.\u201d<\/p>\n
Drafted sixth in 2007, Gagner was the first of many high draft picks after the Oilers\u2019 magical run to the Stanley Cup Final a year earlier. His addition to the team, followed by other top prospects and three straight No. 1 picks in Taylor Hall, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Nail Yakupov, was supposed to usher in a new winning era for the Oilers. That never came close to fruition.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou learn a lot during those years \u2014 how to handle adversity,\u201d Gagner said. \u201cYou learn a lot about yourself and what you\u2019re built of.\u201d<\/p>\n
Yet Gagner still became one of the biggest fan favourites the organization has had this century. There was his offensive skill as evidenced by his eight-point night in 2012. There was the way he treated people, with the late longtime dressing-room attendant Joey Moss front of mind. And there\u2019s how he became an Edmontonian and married a local, Dr. Rachel Linke.<\/p>\n
\u201cNobody ever says a bad word about Sam,\u201d Jackson said. \u201cEverybody loves him.\u201d<\/p>\n
In 2014, Gagner was shipped out to shake things up as the Oilers got Teddy Purcell in return. Gagner ended up in Arizona and began bouncing around from there \u2014 Philadelphia, the minors, Columbus, Vancouver, the minors again.<\/p>\n
He returned to Edmonton when interim GM Keith Gretzky acquired him from the Canucks in February 2019. The underwhelming Ryan Spooner went the other way, mercifully ending the downward spiral of a series of trades where Ryan Strome begat Spooner and Jordan Eberle begat Strome.<\/p>\n
Gagner lasted a year in Edmonton in Act 2, including a four-game stint in Bakersfield under coach Jay Woodcroft. The current Oilers bench boss still sees the value Gagner can bring to a lineup.<\/p>\n
Gagner wound up being a cap dump so the Oilers could acquire Andreas Athanasiou from Detroit. Time with the Red Wings and Jets, where he played his 1,000th NHL game last season, followed.<\/p>\n
As the years moved ahead, the high draft pick known for his offence found different ways to be effective like killing penalties.<\/p>\n \u201cSam has played in the league a long time,\u201d Woodcroft said. \u201cHe\u2019s gone through different phases in his career. Over the last couple years, he\u2019s found ways to make impacts by being a solid, veteran player \u2014 somebody you can rely on in 200 feet of the rink.<\/p>\n \u201cHis experiences lend him to have a real good perspective.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s adapted over the 16 years he\u2019s been in the league,\u201d Jackson said. \u201cHe still has really good offensive instincts and vision, but he\u2019s worked hard on all the other aspects.\u201d<\/p>\n All roads have a way of leading back to Edmonton for Gagner, though. He\u2019s excited about the possibility of contributing to what would be the best Oilers team for which he\u2019s played. Gagner has suited up in just 11 playoff games in his career \u2014 none with Edmonton.<\/p>\n But a lot must happen for Gagner to play games with the Oilers this season.<\/p>\n Being fully healthy is the most important thing, he said. He then must convince management to offer him an NHL contract, whether that\u2019s through his AHL play or practice work in Edmonton.<\/p>\n Even if those things work in Gagner\u2019s favour, he\u2019s caught in a number\u2019s crunch. The Oilers are planning on carrying no more than 12 forwards for the foreseeable future because of cap constraints, so will have to wait for an injury or two and be at the front of the queue if or when a spot opens.<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t want to rush this,\u201d Gagner said. \u201cI want to make sure I\u2019m healthy throughout the whole year and able to help this group. If that means starting in Bakersfield, I\u2019m certainly open to it.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re not rushing him,\u201d Woodcroft said. \u201cWe have patience.\u201d<\/p>\n At 34, Gagner is older than everyone skating at camp save for Derek Ryan and fellow tryout veteran Brandon Sutter. The odds of him making an impact for the Oilers seem long, but Gagner will be damned if he\u2019s not going to try.<\/p>\n \u201cI still feel pretty young, to be honest,\u201d he said. \u201cI feel like I have years ahead of me. I\u2019m going to see how I feel coming out of this and continue to push forward and hopefully keep going.\u201d<\/p>\n It only makes sense that push is with the Oilers.<\/p>\n (Photo: Curtis Comeau \/ Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)<\/p>\n
\n Gagner skated in his 1,000th NHL game in Winnipeg on Dec. 29, 2022. (Jonathan Kozub \/ NHLI via Getty Images)<\/span><\/p>\n