OilersNation has reported:

Isaac Howard has two points through his first seven games of the 2026-27 season with the Edmonton Oilers, while averaging 9:40 of ice time per game. Matt Savoie had no points until his seventh game in 2025-26, but averaged 13:10 per game and played a larger role on the penalty kill.

The two 22-year-olds share several connections. Both were selected in the first round of the 2022 NHL Draft, roomed together at Oilers rookie camp last season and played on the same line at times during 2025-26. They also appear to be friends away from the rink.

Their routes to Edmonton and the NHL were different. Savoie starred in the Western Hockey League and had a brief NHL stint with the Buffalo Sabres before being traded to the Oilers. He spent most of the 2024-25 season with the Bakersfield Condors, Edmonton’s American Hockey League affiliate, then made the jump to the NHL full-time with the Oilers last season.

Howard starred at Michigan State University and won the Hobey Baker Award. After Tampa Bay traded him to Edmonton, he played 29 games with the Oilers before finishing last season with the Condors.

Savoie, who is currently out of Edmonton’s lineup because of injury, opened the 2025-26 campaign on the second line alongside Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Andrew Mangiapane. He played his first two games there before moving into a mix of third-line minutes. Adam Henrique and Noah Philp took turns centring that line, while Howard, Trent Frederic and Jack Roslovic rotated on the other wing.

Savoie recorded his first point in his seventh game, assisting on the overtime winner against the Ottawa Senators. His five-on-five underlying statistics over those first seven games were a 43.48 per cent Corsi For percentage, 50.82 per cent shots For percentage, 43.18 per cent expected goals For percentage, 39.71 per cent scoring chances For percentage and 35.71 per cent high-danger chances For percentage, according to Natural Stat Trick.

Howard has mostly been deployed on Edmonton’s fourth line, with Frederic and Josh Samanski among his main linemates. He has two points, but his five-on-five figures include a 36.89 per cent Corsi For percentage, 36.59 per cent shots For percentage, 27.88 per cent expected goals For percentage and 30 per cent high-danger chances For percentage. That has come alongside a 2-1 goal share.

The author of the OilersNation article said Howard has looked capable in a bottom-six role despite being viewed primarily as an offensive player. The assessment was that he has stopped for pucks instead of skating past them, competed along the boards and kept his feet moving. Howard and his linemates have generally kept their approach straightforward by getting pucks on net and driving toward the goal.

The article also pointed to signs of improvement in Howard’s game compared with last season. NHL Edge recorded his top speed this season at 23.38 miles per hour, placing him in the 98th percentile among NHL players. His hardest shot has reached 88.54 miles per hour, up from the 82.90 miles per hour recorded last season.

One recent example came in Edmonton’s Oct. 10 game against the San Jose Sharks. The article’s author considered Howard, Samanski and Frederic effective together. On the opening goal, they won a puck battle and cycled the puck before Howard passed it to Mattias Ekholm, who scored his first goal of the season. The author said Howard had been quieter over the couple of games that followed.

The Oilers’ social media account described Ekholm’s goal as: “Ekky blasts the #Oilers onto the board” and added “#LetsGoOilers.” The post was attributed to the Edmonton Oilers and dated Oct. 10, 2026.

The author said there were benefits to Howard learning the demanding work required in a bottom-six role and facing lower-pairing defencemen, as Savoie did last season. The concern was that development in a sheltered assignment requires enough ice time for a young player to find his game. The author said Howard’s strengths involve making plays with the puck and that he needs regular touches without feeling one mistake could determine his future minutes.

Howard’s ice time over his most recent three games was 8:59, 7:46 and 10:22. The article argued that those short shifts could limit his development, particularly with an average of 9:40 per game through seven outings. Savoie, by comparison, averaged 14:04 per game before receiving chances to play with Connor McDavid in March, and was still regularly getting double-digit minutes before his late-season promotion to the top six. He was playing under a different coach and had a significant penalty-killing role.

The article’s author said Savoie had been contributing defensively and had earned the coaching staff’s trust as a regular penalty-killing option even while he was not producing much offence. Howard, in the author’s view, has not received comparable opportunities or playing time so far.

The Oilers have several key players out, and the author questioned whether Howard would receive a top-six chance while those absences continue. The article noted that few players beyond Edmonton’s top line have contributed offensively, but said it was difficult to see Howard getting a larger role once the injured players return.

The possible returns of Zach Hyman, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Savoie would restore players who essentially make up Edmonton’s second line, while also creating roster decisions because there would not be enough places for everyone. The author expressed hope that Howard would develop into a bona fide scorer, but said the offensive-minded forward needs more puck touches and ice time than his current average.

Savoie’s early-season experience showed that patience can pay off, according to the article, but he still received more minutes from the outset and had other ways to contribute while waiting for greater responsibility. The author said Howard is getting far fewer minutes than Savoie did and that a larger role does not appear imminent. The article raised the possibility that top-line minutes in Bakersfield could better support Howard’s development.

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