The Edmonton Oil Kings are entering the 2026-27 season with a significantly reshuffled roster after losing their three European import players from last year. Miroslav Holinka, Adam Jecho, and Max Curran—all talented enough to represent their countries at the U20 World Juniors—have moved on to professional hockey or the NCAA, leaving the WHL club to rebuild through the CHL import draft.
Departures Leave Big Holes
Holinka, a centre, will play for the Toronto Marlies of the AHL, while winger Jecho is set to begin his pro career with the St. Louis Blues' affiliate in Springfield. Curran, who suffered a shoulder injury after the U20 world juniors and missed the rest of the season, is headed to UMass Amherst for his first NCAA campaign. Curran was traded from Colorado to Calgary at the NHL trade deadline as part of the Nazem Kadri deal.
All three imports were top-six forwards in the WHL, and their departures leave a significant void in the Oil Kings' lineup, which was among the top five in the league last season.
Import Draft Picks
The Oil Kings held two first-round picks (51st and 56th overall) and one second-round pick (117th) in the CHL import draft. They selected two players from Czechia—defenceman Lukas Kachlir, 16, and centre Jonas Vanicek, 17—and a Finnish left winger, Olli Wahlroos, 18.
Former Oilers defenceman Ladislav Smid, now an assistant coach with Sparta Praha and previously an Oil Kings development coach, provided additional insight on the Czech prospects.
Player Profiles
Lukas Kachlir: The five-foot-eight, 149-pound defenceman from Havlickuv Brod will start the season in Czechia with a pro contract in Liberec before joining the Oil Kings. He dressed for 13 games in the Czech Elite League at age 16 and was the Czech Republic's top defenceman at the 2025 U18 Hlinka-Gretzky tournament as an underage player. Oil Kings GM Michael Chan described him as a dynamic talent who can start an attack and be a future power-play piece.
Jonas Vanicek: A six-foot, 168-pound left-shot forward from Decin, Vanicek split time between HC Karlovy Vary's U17 and U20 teams, recording 25 points in 28 U20 games. Chan called him a cerebral centreman and a top centre on Czech national teams for his age group, highly spoken of by coaches across the country.
Olli Wahlroos: The six-foot-one, 190-pound winger from Kaarina, Finland, was on NHL scouts' radar for the 2026 draft but went undrafted after an injury-riddled season with TPS's U20 team, where he had 15 points in 24 games.
