The Edmonton Oilers have signed forward Alex Formenton following his 2025 acquittal on sexual assault charges. The move brings the 26-year-old back to the NHL after a multi-year stint playing in Switzerland.
The 18-goal season that justifies the risk
The decision by the Edmonton Oilers to bring Alex Formenton back into the fold is likely rooted in his previous North American ceiling. According to the report,Formenton demonstrated significant NHL potential during the 2021-22 season, where he managed to score 18 goals. This specific benchmark provides the Edmonton Oilers with a low-risk, high-reward scenario; if Formenton can recapture that specific form, he provides immediate depth to the roster.
However, the gap between that peak and his current state is vast. Formenton has not played in the NHL for approximately five years, meaning the player the Edmonton Oilers are signing is not the same athlete who flourished in 2022. The gamble rests on whether a change in environment and a return to the North American style of play can trigger a resurgence.
Why Formenton's Swiss league scoring pales beside Jesse Puljujarvi
While his past NHL numbers are promising, Alex Formenton's recent performance in Europe has been starkly underwhelming. As reported, Formenton spent three seasons in the top Swiss league, where he finished fifth in scoring on his own team and ranked roughly 80th in overall league scoring. These figures suggest a player who has struggled to dominate even outside the NHL environment.
The disparity is even more evident when compared to other players in the same league. The report notes that Formenton recorded only half as many goals as Jesse Puljujarvi did during Puljujarvi's last season in the Swiss league. For a player attempting to "bang down the door" for an NHL return,these metrics fail to provide a compelling sporting argument for his recruitment by the Edmonton Oilers.
The 2018 World Junior charges and the July 2025 acquittal
The signing of Alex Formenton is inextricably linked to a long-running legal saga. Formenton was one of five members of Canada's 2018 World Junior team charged with sexual assault following an incident in London, Ontario. This legal cloud effectively froze his NHL career for years , turning him into a persona non grata across the league.
The legal resolution arrived in July 2025, when the players involved, including Formenton, were found not guilty. This acquittal removed the legal barrier to his employment, but it did not erase the social and professional stigma attached to the 2018 incident. The Edmonton Oilers are now one of the first major organizations to move past the controversy by offering a contract.
Whether the Edmonton Oilers are prioritizing empathy over merit
The move has sparked a debate among analysts, including Tyler Yaremchuk and Carter Hutton, regarding the motivation behind the signing . There is a prevailing concern that the Edmonton Oilers may be granting Formenton an opportunity based on "second-chance empathy"—the idea that he deserves a spot because of the hardships he faced during his legal battle—rather than his actual on-ice value.
This raises several critical questions that remain unanswered. it is unclear which specific scouts or staff members championed Formenton's return, or if the Edmonton Oilers believe the translation from the Swiss game to the NHL is fundamentally different for wingers than it is for goalies. furthermore, the report only presents the perspective of analysts questioning the move; the Edmonton Oilers have yet to provide a detailed sporting justification for why Formenton was chosen over other available free agents.
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