Savoie excited to join hometown Oilers after transfer from Sabres

Savoie joins a deep forward group in Edmonton led by Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl. The Oilers reached Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final last season, losing 2-1 to the Florida Panthers. Edmonton re-signed forwards Connor Brown, Corey Perry, Mattias Janmark and Adam Henrique and added free agents Viktor Arvidsson and Jeff Skinner to the group.

“It’s exciting,” Savoie said. “When you look at the playoff run they’ve made and when you’re in town and the buzz, it’s exciting to come into this team now. You look at the roster and the additions they’ve made over the summer and they’re going to go for it every step of the way this year, so it’s exciting to come into this type of group and hopefully get a good opportunity.”

As a top-10 draft pick, Savoie was expected to be a big part of Buffalo’s future, but he said he wasn’t all that surprised to be traded more than two years later. The Sabres haven’t qualified for the Stanley Cup Playoffs since the 2010-11 season.

“I think it was a good situation in Buffalo and I think they have a lot of young talent right now that’s on the cusp of making the league,” Savoie said. “So I think they needed to get rid of some guys and try to make their team better now and get some older players, experienced players now. I understood that and I’m really excited to be with the Oilers right now.”

A prolific scorer at the junior level, Savoie is looking to transfer that offensive prowess to the NHL. He will enter training camp healthy and will compete for a spot on the Oilers’ roster.

“I think I like to play really fast, I think the game is also at a high level,” Savoie said. “I look for the best opportunity to get the puck in the net and at the same time be reliable on the defensive side.”

Despite Edmonton’s forward depth, Savoie feels he’s in the right place. The Oilers are considered Stanley Cup contenders again this season with their core returning.

“I feel like in my junior career, every team I’ve been on, we’ve had the opportunity to go all the way and make really deep runs and that’s a lot of fun,” he said. “That’s when you want to play, late in the year and compete for championships. There’s no better place I could have gone, to compete for a championship.”