Former Oiler Kailer Yamamoto signs professional tryout contract

Now 25 years old, Yamamoto was a first round draft pick of the Edmonton Oilers in 2017. The 5'8 right winger was a prolific scorer in the WHL, which earned a quick call up straight to the Oilers to begin his NHL career. After spending some time developing with the AHL's Bakersfield Condors, Yamamoto played regularly for the Oilers between beginning in 2020-21 season.

Yamamoto had some brief offensive success with the Oilers, once scoring 20 goals and earning ice time with Connor McDavid, but it was relatively short lived. The Oilers signed Yamamoto to a two year contract for $3.1M a year, but his offence quickly dried up and his defence was irredeemable. The Oilers traded Yamamoto and he was then bought out by the Detroit Red Wings. He played last season with the Seattle Kraken, but was a healthy scratch at times and only scored 16 points in 59 games.

Utah Hockey Club has an incredibly deep lineup of young, high end talent and a few veterans who may be trade candidates if the team is out by the playoffs. It may be hard for Yamamoto to break in the lineup, but their play style could be a better fit for him if he does. He'll definitely need to impress in training camp to make the team.

Yamamoto will have a great opportunity to bounce back with a fresh start on brand new NHL franchise. He'll need to find a way to earn a coach's trust with offensive opportunities if he wants to continue playing in the NHL. Many Oilers fans who were big fans of Yamo will still be cheering him on to revitalize his career in Utah this season.

Source for Yamamoto Stats: PuckPedia - Kailer Yamamoto