Stan Bowman hired as GM and executive VP of hockey operations of Edmonton Oilers

The Edmonton Oilers have announced that Stan Bowman has been hired as the team’s general manager and executive vice president of hockey operations.

Days after the Florida Panthers lost the Stanley Cup Final, on July 1, Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli stated that Bowman was the front-runner for the position following Ken Holland’s departure.

Since leaving his position as general manager of the Chicago Blackhawks and the USA men’s Olympic hockey team in October 2021, this is Bowman’s first NHL position. The actions were a reaction to the inquiry into claims that player Kyle Beach was sexually assaulted by former video coach member Brad Aldrich during the 2010 Stanley Cup season.

Since 2021, Bowman, executive Al MacIsaac, and coach Joel Quenneville have all left the league. Though Quenneville, like Bowman and MacIsaac, resigned from his position as head coach of the Florida Panthers early in the season, he is still qualified to play in the NHL.
According to a July 1 league release, “Messrs. Bowman, MacIsaac, and Quenneville have acknowledged that their responses were unacceptable at the time. They have also used their time away from the game to engage in activities which, not only demonstrates sincere remorse for what happened, but also evidence greater awareness of the responsibilities that all NHL personnel have, particularly personnel who are in positions of leadership.”

Stan Bowman, the renowned NHL coach’s son, joined the Blackhawks as general manager in 2009 after serving as Dale Tallon’s special assistant for three years. The Blackhawks won their first Stanley Cup since 1961 in 2010 thanks to Bowman’s leadership.

Bowman was forced by a cap crunch to make some significant decisions in the next years, but he was able to rebuild the squad and win another Stanley Cup against Boston in 2013. After defeating the Tampa Bay Lightning two years later, the team won its third and most recent trophy, capping the greatest run by any team under the salary cap period at the time.

Interim general manager Jeff Jackson has been in charge of the team since Holland left. Notably, the team inked new contracts with Jeff Skinner, Troy Stecher, Adam Henrique, Mattias Janmark, Collin Delia, Corey Perry, Josh Brown, and Viktor Arvidsson. They also acquired Matthew Savoie from the Buffalo Sabres.