Oct 26, 2023; Dallas, Texas, USA; Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman John Klingberg (3) in action during the game between the Dallas Stars and the Toronto Maple Leafs at the American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

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Edmonton Oilers Sign Defenseman John Klingberg

Edmonton Oilers set sights on John Klingberg to strengthen their blue line, adding veteran skill and depth to the roster.

According to earlier reports from Dreger, the Edmonton Oilers were among a select few Canadian teams and a smaller number from the U.S. to show interest in John Klingberg in recent weeks, and the Oilers promptly confirmed the signing. Klingberg’s contract includes a prorated base salary and a $1MM cap hit, with the potential to earn an additional $350K through performance incentives. The 32-year-old, who placed as high as sixth in Norris Trophy voting on two occasions early in his career, hasn’t played for more than a year following season-ending hip resurfacing surgery with the Maple Leafs in December 2023.

Klingberg turned into an unrestricted free agent last summer after his one-year, $4.15MM contract with Toronto in 2023 expired following only 14 games. As a player who has participated in at least 400 NHL games and was on injured reserve for a minimum of 100 days during the last season, he qualifies to sign a one-year contract with performance incentives that may reduce the initial cap hit of the agreement.

John Klingberg is signing a deal to join the Edmonton Oilers, per @FriedgeHNIC pic.twitter.com/jEjtRHIude
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) January 17, 2025

Similar to any contract that includes performance bonuses, According to Dreger, Klingberg’s contract has a prorated base salary and cap hit of $1MM. He can receive an extra $350K in performance incentives. The Oilers quickly confirmed the signing.

Due to Evander Kane’s ongoing recovery from several surgeries. His availability for the remaining regular season is uncertain after undergoing more knee surgery earlier this month, which requires an eight-week recovery time and interrupts his rehab from offseason abdominal surgery.

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The left side of Edmonton, consisting of Mattias Ekholm, Darnell Nurse, and Brett Kulak, have each averaged over 20 minutes per game this season with solid possession metrics; however, depth righties Ty Emberson and Troy Stecher do not share the same success.

The Oilers required an additional player to add to their lineup on either their second pairing with Nurse or their third pairing with Kulak, and acquiring Klingberg provides them a much more offensively focused choice—though one that has considerable defensive flaws. Though he remains an effective power-play quarterback, having registered five assists in last season’s injury-reduced campaign and averaging over 20 minutes per game throughout his 10 NHL seasons, his -60 rating from the 2021-22 to 2023-24 seasons ranks sixth-worst among defensemen. During the 2022-23 season, divided between the Ducks and Wild, he faced more expected goals per game at even strength (1.13) than any other qualified defenseman in the league.

Edmonton must have created a roster vacancy to officially sign Klingberg. This will probably result in center Noah Philp or defenseman Josh Brown being sent to AHL Bakersfield.

Klingberg is set to become a UFA again in a few months if this deal turns out to be a one-year agreement, as anticipated. This will be his third straight one-year agreement following a seven-year, $29.75MM contract with the Stars that ended in 2022.

Image Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

Edmonton Oilers

John Klingberg

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Anamika Shrivastava

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