Do the Oilers regret buying out Pouliot?

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Ryan Hall
July 11, 2023 (11:22 PM)

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There comes a time when an NHL organization needs to decide on a player. Sometimes the call is to buy out the player and terminate the contract, freeing up some cash to acquire new talent or find them a new home due to limited playing time or a full roster.

During this year's playoffs, Benoit Pouliot, a former player of the Edmonton Oilers, tweeted multiple times expressing his love for the Oilers and his fondness for the city, showing support for them during their playoff run.

Throughout his NHL career, which concluded in 2018 with the Buffalo Sabres, Pouliot played 625 games, scoring 130 goals with 133 assists for a total of 263 points. He maintained a +25 rating and accumulated 371 penalty minutes, along with 42 power-play points. Pouliot was drafted in the first round, 4th overall, by the Minnesota Wild in the 2005 draft.

He had stints in Montreal, Boston, Tampa Bay, New York Rangers, the Oilers, and Buffalo. During his time with the Oilers, he had two seasons with 30 or more points and was a regular fixture in the bottom-six forward group.

Sometimes teams need to make such decisions, and whether the decision to buy him out was the right one remains to be seen over time. However, one thing is certain: Pouliot remains a fan of the Edmonton Oilers.