Former Edmonton Oilers forward Kailer Yamamoto will be heading into training camp with a new team this season.
After spending the first six years of his NHL career with the Oilers and last season with the Seattle Kraken, the undersized forward will now join the Utah Hockey Club on a PTO with the hopes he can earn himself an NHL contract.
Utah announced the move earlier this morning, saying that the former first-round pick will report to training camp on September 18.
We’ve signed Kailer Yamamoto to a PTO.
He will report to training camp on September 18. pic.twitter.com/9uOmLESkQt
— Utah Hockey Club (@utahhockeyclub) September 11, 2024
It has not gone according to plan for Yamamoto, who once played in the top six of the Oilers. It took him a few years to establish himself as a full-time NHL player after Edmonton drafted him 22nd overall in 2017.
Yamamoto bounced between the NHL and AHL for a few seasons post-draft but managed to finally break out midway through the 2019-20 season, scoring 11 goals and 26 points in 27 games. That convinced the Oilers to graduate him as a full-time NHLer.
Things took a dip in his first full NHL season as his production dropped to just eight goals and 21 points in 2020-21 before having a career season in 2021-22, where he hit the 20-goal plateau for the first time in his career.
The up-and-down seasons continued, however, as he managed only 10 goals the following season. A cap-strapped Oilers team decided to move on from Yamamoto in the summer of 2023, shipping him off to the Detroit Red Wings where he was officially bought out.
Yamamoto managed to ink a one-year deal with his hometown team in Seattle, but another disappointing season where he put up just eight goals and a career-low 16 points meant that he was not offered an extension.
He will now look to help a Utah team embarking on their inaugural season in the NHL. It will certainly be a unique opportunity for the 25-year-old and one Oilers fans hope he can take advantage of.
Edmonton has been busy on the PTO front as well, with reports that they will be offering UFA defenceman Travis Dermott a spot in training camp.