Edmonton Oilers Give Player of the Game Award to New 23 Year Old Coach
The Edmonton Oilers notched a solid 4-2 win over the St. Louis Blues last night, and after the game, the team gave a player of the game award to their new 23 year old video coach, Erik Elenz.
Elenz was quietly hired by the Oilers in July of 2024, replacing former coach Mike Fanelli.
The Oilers have a player of the game award of the hardhat and championship belt, lightly representing the team's best defensive and offensive performers respectively. Erik Elenz was given the defensive award.
The Oilers pass on these awards to each other continuously throughout the year, which means that the previous winner Jeff Skinner gave the award to Elenz.
Oilers Forward Jeff Skinner Gives Video Coach Player of the Game Award
It's a really cool sight to see that the Oilers are recognizing their new video coach's efforts, and that Jeff Skinner believed they made enough of a difference for Elenz to be brought into the room.
The Oilers hired Elenz out of the Seattle Kraken's AHL system this offseason. Identified as an up and coming contributor to analytics, Edmonton is clearly trying to attract new voices. It definitely seems to be working.
On social media, the Oilers said that there'll be a more in-depth explanation of Elenz receiving the award coming soon on Oilers+.
Jeff Skinner has been in coach Knoblauch's doghouse for most of the season, playing mostly depth minutes. Now Skinner's got 4 points in his last 4 games, potentially due to some help from Elenz.
For now, we'll just have to assume that Elenz identified some weakness on the Blues for the Oilers to exploit, or something else that contributed directly to the win.
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