Roughly one week ago, I wrote a blog detailing a number of players that remained available in free agency and if there were any options that Edmonton could pursue. Two options I listed that I expected could be had in the 1 million dollar range were Alex Galchenyuk and Domink Kahun.
Last week, Galchenyuk was grabbed by the Senators for just over one million and last night the news broke that the Oilers and Dominik Kahun had come to terms on a one year deal at 975k.
One additional piece of information regarding this deal is that at the end of this season, Kahun still remains an RFA. Not only is Holland getting a player on a value contract but the chance to keep Kahun longer term should he gel with the roster.
Unless a trade happens, this likely is the end of forward additions for the Edmonton Oilers. Here is the depth chart I currently would lay-out for the Oilers.
RNH-McDavid-Kassian
Kahun-Draisaitl-Yamamoto
Ennis-Turris-Puljujarvi
Neal-Khaira-Archibald
Nygard-Haas-Chiasson
So who is Dominik Kahun?
The 25 year old left shooting winger was never drafted by an NHL team. Kahun spent his early years in the DEL, a German professional league prior to being signed by the Chicago Blackhawks. Rumour has it that Draisaitl actually pitched Kahun to the Oilers brass before the forward signed with the Hawks.
Kahun is a speedy and smart playmaker who plays the game well at both ends of the ice. Kahun throughout his NHL career has played with elite level players. In Chicago he spent a fair portion of his time with DeBrincat and Toews and in Pittsburgh it was Malkin. His 6 games in Buffalo isn’t enough to really draw much from.
Through all this time, Kahun has shown he can produce when placed higher up in the lineup.
18/19 CHI - 82GP - 13-24-37
19/20 PIT - 50GP - 10-17-27
19/20 BUF - 6GP - 2-2-4
We’re going to dive specifically into the Chicago and Pittsburgh numbers.
Kahun’s numbers show that he can produce in a top six role but upon a closer investigation it becomes even more apparent how successful the young player has been at 5 on 5.
In Chicago of his 37 points, 35 of them came at even strength, notching a single PP goal and assist. Kahun’s impressive EV run doesn’t end there either. Kahun ranked 9th in ice time among all forwards but finished 5th in EV P/60 at 1.997. For those not as familiar with what those numbers mean, it essentially shows how much a player produces per 60 minutes of ice time. His 1.997 places him in the high tier third line to average top six forward.
Jumping to the 19/20 season, Kahun continued to rack up 5 on 5 points with the Pittsburgh Penguins. Again, Kahun ranked low on the list for average time on ice, sitting 13th among all forwards, yet he sat 6th in EV P/60, this time with a 2.520. That places him in a fairly high end category, and above some pretty notable names.
Using the handy tools over at NaturalStatTrick, I took a look at every player who played at least 600 minutes at 5 on 5 this past season. Kahun ranked 33rd in 5 on 5 P/60 with a 2.43. Kahun also averaged less time on ice than every player above him on that list. Put another way, Kahun was able to produce a high level of point production in the minutes that he played.
Kahun produced at a higher rate than players like Sebastian Aho, Auston Matthews, Patrik Laine, Mat Barzal, and Mikko Rantanen. This is not me stating that Kahun is a better player than these names. Just because Kahun produces well averaging 12 minutes a night doesn’t mean he will score at the same rate if he averages 16 minutes a night. Anything from fatigue to quality of competition can play a factor.
The positive outlook for Edmonton though is that they have acquired a forward who has proven over a couple of seasons that he can produce at 5 on 5 at a strong pace and has shown good chemistry with elite end players. Last season the Oilers ranked 18th in even strength goals for and 26th in even strength goals against and a big reason for both was a lack of depth outside of the McDavid and Draisaitl lines.
Kahun, like Ennis, is a skilled complimentary forward who can produce almost anywhere in the lineup and the two players combined make less than 2 million dollars.
Holland has done a very impressive job at bolstering the forward group this off-season on value contracts and the result is at least on paper, the most impressive looking forward group this team has had in over a decade.
Edmonton Oilers Blogger • 
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