BLOG: Bouchard, Hyman named assistant captains

EDMONTON, AB – Now with the 'A' of approval.

Zach Hyman & Evan Bouchard were both named assistant captains for the Edmonton Oilers to round out the club's leadership group ahead of the 2026-27 NHL season, joining captain Connor McDavid and assistants Leon Draisaitl & Ryan Nugent-Hopkins as players work their way through the opening days of Main Camp this week. 

The newest leadership changes fills the void vacated by the departure of Darnell Nurse, who spent 11 years with the Oilers and was an assistant captain for seven seasons, with two players who embody everything it means to play in Oil Country.

For Hyman, entering his sixth season with the Oilers, the 34-year-old quickly ascended into a leadership role upon his arrival in Oil Country.

From the first time he pulled on the Blue & Orange, Hyman has played with a willingness & determination to give everything on the ice, playing a hard-nosed style with an incredible work rate while helping guide the club off the ice as an unsung leader in the locker room despite not having a letter on his jersey until today.

Hyman signed a five-year, $38.5 million ($5.5 million AAV) contract with the Oilers on July 1, 2021, and has been one of the best free-agent signings in the club's history, given how much he's impacted this team through his play and leadership.

Hyman scored 54 goals during the 2022-23 season and has topped 70 points twice in five years, overcoming an injury-affected campaign in 2025-26 to finish with 53 points (31 goals) in 58 games and position himself for a big rebound this season at full health.

Bouchard, meanwhile, represents one of the League's true elite talents on the blueline, and his climbing of the ranks both among NHL defencemen and Oilers' leadership is a testament to the Oakville, ON product's growth both as a player and a leader.

A first-round pick (10th overall) by the Oilers in 2018, Bouchard began his professional career by standing out with the Bakersfield Condors during the 2018 AHL Playoffs with eight points (three goals) in eight games, completing another full season in California in 2019-20 before announcing himself on the scene in the NHL in 2021.

Known for the 'Bouch Bomb', Bouchard's big shot and elite offensive vision grew him quickly into being one of the League's top elite defencemen – a status that was entrenched with the help of a 95-point season (21 goals) over all 82 games in 2025-26.

During the postseason, Bouchard's 1.09 points per game ranks second all-time among NHL defencemen behind only Bobby Orr (1.24), and the 26-year-old is poised to grow through his prime years with the Oilers – only now with an 'A' to be a leader on the club's blueline for years to come.