Experience and Adapt.
Those are two words that sophomore Dylan Holloway understands after his first 51 games in the NHL. Last season, after a great training camp and preseason, Holloway started the season full of swagger and confidence. On his very first shift in his first NHL game, unfortunately, he decided to do a saucer pass instead of a simple forward pass to one of his teammates. It got picked off and the Oilers got scored on. That is one play that is most likely seared into Dylan’s head by now. Simple is always better when you are coming into your first season of professional hockey and, in my opinion, he knows it.
It wasn’t a great season for Holloway as his ice time was very limited and the coaching staff did not trust him enough to give him the chance for more than 7-8 minutes per game. However, last season also was a valuable season for him in terms of experience. He experienced, for the first time in his life, not being the go to guy on the team and getting less than 20 minutes of ice time. Dylan experienced how different the NHL game is from College and Junior hockey. He learned valuable lessons and figured out that, in order to be successful in the NHL, a player has to adapt to their role on the team. He probably would’ve progressed more last season if he did not get injured in the AHL because he had started off his season down there strong with 7 goals and 3 assists in his first 12 games.
Now, coming into the 2023-2024 NHL year, Dylan Holloway has understood his role and how to play his game in my opinion. He knows he cannot be a top 6 forward on the Edmonton Oilers (yet) and he has to adapt to being a bottom six forwards. This means more hitting, more grittiness, better defensive play and playing the game simple. It is very obvious that Dylan has a lot of potential and his ceiling is very high. I believe he will succeed in the role that I know he will earn through training camp (which is the 3rd line winger spot) and I also believe he will run with it the entire season. He is ready to be an NHLer and he will only get better throughout the year. He will breakout this season. He has all the tools to succeed: Hockey sense, skill, speed, size, work ethic.
I may be completely wrong. I could seem very smart or I could seem very dumbfounded. We will see.
Simple is Always Better. A phrase I believe every rookie should have etched in their minds before they start their NHL careers
