<p>It was a quiet Friday and a busy Saturday at the 2025 NHL Entry Draft for the Edmonton Oilers.</p>
<p></p>
<p>With no picks in the first round, they were saved from having to do any awkward video calls, unlike the other 20 teams who did pick on Friday.</p>
<p>Saturday was where the magic happened for the Oilers, using five picks to select three forwards, a defenceman and a goaltender, hoping that they could find a diamond in the rough.</p>
<h3 class="mb-5 text-2xl font-bold">EDMONTON’S SELECTIONS</h3>
<ul class="mb-5 list-disc pl-8">
<li class=""><a class="text-accent" href="https://oilersnation.com/news/edmonton-oilers-select-tommy-lafreniere-83rd-overall-pick-2025-nhl-draft" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Edmonton Oilers select Tommy Lafrenière with 83rd overall pick in 2025 NHL Draft</a></li>
<li class=""><a class="text-accent" href="https://oilersnation.com/news/edmonton-oilers-select-david-lewandowski-117th-overall-pick-2025-nhl-draft" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Edmonton Oilers select David Lewandowski with 117th overall pick in 2025 NHL Draft</a></li>
<li class="">
<div><a class="text-accent" href="https://oilersnation.com/news/edmonton-oilers-trade-2026-pick-nashville-predators-select-asher-barnett-131st-choice-2025-nhl-draft" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Edmonton Oilers trade 2026 pick to Predators to select Asher Barnett with 131st choice in 2025 NHL Draft</a></div>
</li>
<li class=""><a class="text-accent" href="https://oilersnation.com/news/edmonton-oilers-select-daniel-salonen-191st-overall-pick-2025-nhl-draft" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Edmonton Oilers select Daniel Salonen with 191st overall pick in 2025 NHL Draft</a></li>
<li><a href="https://oilersnation.com/news/edmonton-oilers-select-aidan-park-223rd-overall-pick-2025-nhl-draft">Edmonton Oilers select centre Aidan Park with 223rd overall pick in 2025 NHL Draft</a></li>
</ul>
<p>The Oilers on paper, appear to have had a solid, yet unspectacular draft. Without first and second round picks, they had to wait well into the third round, choosing to not trade up like they did last year to <a href="https://oilersnation.com/2024/06/28/edmonton-oilers-trade-up-into-first-round-draft-forward-sam-oreilly-32nd-overall/">draft Sam O&#8217;Reilly 32nd overall</a>.</p>
<p>This year, though, they still did trade up, moving up into the early fifth round to select defenceman Asher Barnett 131st overall.</p>
<p>Here&#8217;s a look at how the experts graded the Oilers selections.</p>
<h2>Daily Faceoff — C+</h2>
<blockquote>
<p class="mb-4 text-lg">I’m not convinced any of their top three picks will become NHLers. <a class="text-secondary underline underline-offset-2" href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/news/why-tommy-lafreniere-could-be-a-diamond-in-the-rough-prospect-at-the-2025-nhl-draft" hreflang="en">Lafreniere</a> is an intriguing player that felt like he flew under the radar. Lewandowski is good away from the puck, making him useful when he isn’t scoring. Barnett had a great end to the season with the USNTDP and I’m excited to see how college treats him. — <em><a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/news/2025-nhl-draft-grading-how-all-32-teams-did">Steven Ellis</a></em></p>
</blockquote>
<h2>The Athletic — C</h2>
<blockquote><p>Edmonton didn’t have a selection until the 83rd spot, so it’s understandable this isn’t an overly impressive draft class. The Oilers’ picks of Tommy Lafreniere, David Lewandowski and Asher Barnett are all fine prospects. I don’t think any of them are realistic NHL players, though, even if I do have some time for where they got Lewandowski. — <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6458881/2025/06/28/nhl-draft-2025-team-grades/"><em>Corey Pronman</em></a></p></blockquote>
<h2>FloHockey — C</h2>
<blockquote><p>Despite not having a pick until No. 83, I thought the Oilers did well. Tommy Lafreniere, David Lewandowski and Aidan Park were all players on my top 100 and Edmonton got them at 83, 117 and 223, respectively. I also think Asher Barnett, who they picked at No. 131, is a solid mid-round guy. The Oilers aren’t going to be able to really pump up their prospect pool in the position their in, but I thought they at least added some depth to their group with some guys that at least have a chance down the road. — <em><a href="https://www.flohockey.tv/articles/14357552-nhl-draft-grades-2025-heres-how-all-32-teams-did">Chris Peters</a></em></p></blockquote>
<h2>The Score — D</h2>
<blockquote><p>Lafreniere is a competitor who scored a fair amount with Kamloops, and Lewandowski has some intriguing potential as he fills out his frame. It was great to see Park selected with the penultimate pick after he went to L.A. for the draft. He had a productive year in the USHL. But overall, it&#8217;s a small draft class with minimal upside. — <em><a href="https://www.thescore.com/news/3305009">Kyle Cushman</a></em></p></blockquote>
<hr />
<p><i><span style="font-weight: 400;">Zach Laing is Oilersnation’s associate editor, senior columnist, and The Nation Network’s news director. He also makes up one-half of the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLRSWOpthKmdtmFOKQDd7TQdTU2KSKXYvX">DFO DFS Report</a>. He can be followed on Twitter, currently known as X, at</span></i> <em><a href="http://www.x.com/zjlaing"><span style="font-weight: 400;">@zjlaing</span></a></em><i><span style="font-weight: 400;"><em>,</em> or reached by email at zach.laing@bettercollective.com.</span></i></p>
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<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Get ready for wall-to-wall coverage of one of the biggest days in the calendar — the Daily Faceoff Live Free Agency Special goes live on July 1st at 11 AM EST. Host Tyler Yaremchuk is joined by Carter Hutton, Matthew Barnaby, Jeff Marek, Hart Levine, Colby Cohen, Jonny Lazarus, and insiders from across the Network for three hours of in-depth analysis, live reactions, and real-time updates on every major signing and trade. From blockbuster deals to under-the-radar moves, we’re breaking it all down as it happens. Don’t miss a minute — catch the full special live on </span><a href="http://dailyfaceoff.com"><span style="font-weight: 400;">DailyFaceoff.com</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> and Daily Faceoff’s YouTube.</span></p>

It was a quiet Friday and a busy Saturday at the 2025 NHL Entry Draft for the Edmonton Oilers.



With no picks in the first round, they were saved from having to do any awkward video calls, unlike the other 20 teams who did pick on Friday.

Saturday was where the magic happened for the Oilers, using five picks to select three forwards, a defenceman and a goaltender, hoping that they could find a diamond in the rough.
<h3 class="mb-5 text-2xl font-bold">EDMONTON’S SELECTIONS</h3>
<ul class="mb-5 list-disc pl-8">
 	<li class=""><a class="text-accent" href="https://oilersnation.com/news/edmonton-oilers-select-tommy-lafreniere-83rd-overall-pick-2025-nhl-draft" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Edmonton Oilers select Tommy Lafrenière with 83rd overall pick in 2025 NHL Draft</a></li>
 	<li class=""><a class="text-accent" href="https://oilersnation.com/news/edmonton-oilers-select-david-lewandowski-117th-overall-pick-2025-nhl-draft" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Edmonton Oilers select David Lewandowski with 117th overall pick in 2025 NHL Draft</a></li>
 	<li class="">
<div><a class="text-accent" href="https://oilersnation.com/news/edmonton-oilers-trade-2026-pick-nashville-predators-select-asher-barnett-131st-choice-2025-nhl-draft" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Edmonton Oilers trade 2026 pick to Predators to select Asher Barnett with 131st choice in 2025 NHL Draft</a></div></li>
 	<li class=""><a class="text-accent" href="https://oilersnation.com/news/edmonton-oilers-select-daniel-salonen-191st-overall-pick-2025-nhl-draft" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Edmonton Oilers select Daniel Salonen with 191st overall pick in 2025 NHL Draft</a></li>
 	<li><a href="https://oilersnation.com/news/edmonton-oilers-select-aidan-park-223rd-overall-pick-2025-nhl-draft">Edmonton Oilers select centre Aidan Park with 223rd overall pick in 2025 NHL Draft</a></li>
</ul>
The Oilers on paper, appear to have had a solid, yet unspectacular draft. Without first and second round picks, they had to wait well into the third round, choosing to not trade up like they did last year to <a href="https://oilersnation.com/2024/06/28/edmonton-oilers-trade-up-into-first-round-draft-forward-sam-oreilly-32nd-overall/">draft Sam O'Reilly 32nd overall</a>.

This year, though, they still did trade up, moving up into the early fifth round to select defenceman Asher Barnett 131st overall.

Here's a look at how the experts graded the Oilers selections.
<h2>Daily Faceoff — C+</h2>
<blockquote>
<p class="mb-4 text-lg">I’m not convinced any of their top three picks will become NHLers. <a class="text-secondary underline underline-offset-2" href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/news/why-tommy-lafreniere-could-be-a-diamond-in-the-rough-prospect-at-the-2025-nhl-draft" hreflang="en">Lafreniere</a> is an intriguing player that felt like he flew under the radar. Lewandowski is good away from the puck, making him useful when he isn’t scoring. Barnett had a great end to the season with the USNTDP and I’m excited to see how college treats him. — <em><a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/news/2025-nhl-draft-grading-how-all-32-teams-did">Steven Ellis</a></em></p>
</blockquote>
<h2>The Athletic — C</h2>
<blockquote>Edmonton didn’t have a selection until the 83rd spot, so it’s understandable this isn’t an overly impressive draft class. The Oilers’ picks of Tommy Lafreniere, David Lewandowski and Asher Barnett are all fine prospects. I don’t think any of them are realistic NHL players, though, even if I do have some time for where they got Lewandowski. — <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6458881/2025/06/28/nhl-draft-2025-team-grades/"><em>Corey Pronman</em></a></blockquote>
<h2>FloHockey — C</h2>
<blockquote>Despite not having a pick until No. 83, I thought the Oilers did well. Tommy Lafreniere, David Lewandowski and Aidan Park were all players on my top 100 and Edmonton got them at 83, 117 and 223, respectively. I also think Asher Barnett, who they picked at No. 131, is a solid mid-round guy. The Oilers aren’t going to be able to really pump up their prospect pool in the position their in, but I thought they at least added some depth to their group with some guys that at least have a chance down the road. — <em><a href="https://www.flohockey.tv/articles/14357552-nhl-draft-grades-2025-heres-how-all-32-teams-did">Chris Peters</a></em></blockquote>
<h2>The Score — D</h2>
<blockquote>Lafreniere is a competitor who scored a fair amount with Kamloops, and Lewandowski has some intriguing potential as he fills out his frame. It was great to see Park selected with the penultimate pick after he went to L.A. for the draft. He had a productive year in the USHL. But overall, it's a small draft class with minimal upside. — <em><a href="https://www.thescore.com/news/3305009">Kyle Cushman</a></em></blockquote>

<hr />

<i><span style="font-weight: 400;">Zach Laing is Oilersnation’s associate editor, senior columnist, and The Nation Network’s news director. He also makes up one-half of the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLRSWOpthKmdtmFOKQDd7TQdTU2KSKXYvX">DFO DFS Report</a>. He can be followed on Twitter, currently known as X, at</span></i> <em><a href="http://www.x.com/zjlaing"><span style="font-weight: 400;">@zjlaing</span></a></em><i><span style="font-weight: 400;"><em>,</em> or reached by email at zach.laing@bettercollective.com.</span></i>

<hr />

<a href="https://www.youtube.com/@daily_faceoff"><img class="size-full wp-image-144968 aligncenter" src="https://publish.canucksarmy.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2099/08/FA2025-Promos-Article_727x404_b.png" alt="" width="728" height="404" /></a>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Get ready for wall-to-wall coverage of one of the biggest days in the calendar — the Daily Faceoff Live Free Agency Special goes live on July 1st at 11 AM EST. Host Tyler Yaremchuk is joined by Carter Hutton, Matthew Barnaby, Jeff Marek, Hart Levine, Colby Cohen, Jonny Lazarus, and insiders from across the Network for three hours of in-depth analysis, live reactions, and real-time updates on every major signing and trade. From blockbuster deals to under-the-radar moves, we’re breaking it all down as it happens. Don’t miss a minute — catch the full special live on </span><a href="http://dailyfaceoff.com"><span style="font-weight: 400;">DailyFaceoff.com</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> and Daily Faceoff’s YouTube.</span>

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