Edmonton Oilers may have acquired the next Zach Hyman in trade, says analyst

The Oilers traded for former 10th overall draft pick Vasily Podkolzin last offseason, and the 24 year old fit in perfectly on the team's second line in his first year with the team. His offence was still underwhelming, but there's potentially more to come.

While the Oilers have added a pair of other talented young players, analyst Bruce Curlock is most excited for Vasily Podkolzin having a breakout season in 2025-26, and following the career path of Zach Hyman.

Stylistically, Podkolzin and Hyman are very similar players - they play a crash and bang style on the forecheck, excelling in winning puck battles to retrieve possession for their elite linemates.

When Hyman made the NHL full time at age 25, he was known for his work ethic and effective style of play, but he only registered 10 goals and 28 points in 82 games.

He then jumped to near 81 points over the next two seasons, and then in 2019-20, saw his points per game rise to .725 over the full year. Hyman then reached new offensive heights with the McDavid line, but truly broke out offensively at the later age of 28.

Podkolzin is much younger than where Hyman was at that point in his career, and already has 219 games of NHL experience. However, so far he's struggled to put the puck in the net.

If he can add any more offence to his game that could be a bonus, but there is still real potential for him to be a breakout player at his relatively young age.

Hopefully the Oilers can get a little more out of Podkolzin next season, and he can take a step toward realizing his full potential.