Khaira enjoyed a breakout year for the Edmonton Oilers in 2017-18, his first full NHL season, with 21 points (11 goals, 10 assists) in 69 games. He was a healthy scratch in 10 of the first 16 games before settling in and becoming a fixture among the Oilers' bottom six forwards.
Selected by the Oilers in the third round (No. 63) of the 2012 NHL Draft, Khaira played one season at Michigan Tech in 2012-13 before joining Everett of the Western Hockey League for one season. He signed a three-year, entry-level contract with the Oilers on Aug. 7, 2013 and made his professional debut with Oklahoma City of the American Hockey League in 2014, playing in six regular-season games and three in the Calder Cup Playoffs.
Khaira enjoyed a breakout year for the Edmonton Oilers in 2017-18, his first full NHL season, with 21 points (11 goals, 10 assists) in 69 games. He was a healthy scratch in 10 of the first 16 games before settling in and becoming a fixture among the Oilers' bottom six forwards.
Selected by the Oilers in the third round (No. 63) of the 2012 NHL Draft, Khaira played one season at Michigan Tech in 2012-13 before joining Everett of the Western Hockey League for one season. He signed a three-year, entry-level contract with the Oilers on Aug. 7, 2013 and made his professional debut with Oklahoma City of the American Hockey League in 2014, playing in six regular-season games and three in the Calder Cup Playoffs.
Khaira was called up to the Oilers from Bakersfield of the AHL on Nov. 26, 2015 and made his NHL debut against the Pittsburgh Penguins two days later. This made Khaira the third player of Punjabi Indian descent to play in the NHL after Robin Bawa and half-French, half-Indian Manny Malhotra. He finished the season with two assists in 15 games.
Khaira played most of the 2016-17 season with Bakersfield, where he had 20 points (eight goals, 12 assists) in 27 games. He was recalled by the Oilers on Jan. 11, 2017 and scored his first NHL goal against the Arizona Coyotes on Jan. 16, 2017. He finished the season with one goal in 10 games.
NOTES & TRANSACTIONS
- Signed as a free agent by Chicago, July 28, 2021.