The Edmonton Oilers made a splash on Monday (Mar. 2) when they acquired defender Connor Murphy from the Chicago Blackhawks in exchange for a 2028 second-round pick. After weeks of fans complaining that the Oilers needed to upgrade their defensive depth, they finally pulled the trigger on a move for a right-handed defender.
TRADE 🔄 The #Oilers have acquired defenceman Connor Murphy from the Blackhawks in exchange for a second-round selection in the 2028 NHL Draft. Chicago will retain 50% of Murphy’s $4.4 million salary. pic.twitter.com/7fK3nkqFwx
— Edmonton Oilers (@EdmontonOilers) March 2, 2026
The Oilers had called up Ike Howard and Josh Samanski in a move that helped them clear some cap space to make this move work. Now that it’s been finalized, Howard will be sent back down to the American Hockey League (AHL), while Samanski is expected to remain with the Oilers.
After putting Janmark on LTIR today, #LetsGoOilers then send Howard to minors tomorrow (for cap purposes). That gave them $2.4M space available, & after acquiring Murphy @ $2.2M, they now have $200K of cap space remaining in LTIR with 21 active players (12F/7D/2G) + Janmark LTIR… pic.twitter.com/QEDUZ3etgQ
— PuckPedia (@PuckPedia) March 2, 2026
Now that all of that is complete, the Oilers can start to figure out how to deploy Murphy in their lineup moving forward, and now that they’ve made their first move ahead of the 2026 Trade Deadline, here is everything to know about the newest Oiler.
Murphy Is an Elite Defensive-Minded Defender
The main thing to know about Murphy, who stands 6-foot-4, 212 pounds, is that he is one of the strongest defensive-minded defenders in the entire league, and he is a strong penalty killer. He has a physical side to his game and is great at breaking the puck out of the defensive zone.
Connor Murphy, reportedly acquired by EDM, is a stay-at home defenceman. Brings size, physicality, and an aggressive approach to defending, especially along the walls and in front of the net. Can make a break-out pass but spends very little time with the puck. #LetsGoOilers pic.twitter.com/FRXipBPAnc
— JFresh (@JFreshHockey) March 2, 2026
While he isn’t a flashy defender and won’t provide much offensive production, he should help stabilize the second pairing moving forward.
Related: Oilers News & Rumours: Mangiapane, Regula, Janmark, Ekman-Larsson
In the defensive zone, he is a defender who won’t allow teams to score very often, and he is one of the smartest minds in the NHL when it comes to stopping opposing teams from creating scoring opporunities, so attaching him to Darnell Nurse’s side, who has struggled this season, could be the answer to a lot of problems the Oilers have had this season.
Connor’s Father Played in the NHL
Connor’s father, Gord Murphy, played from 1988 to 2002 in the NHL, spending time with the Philadelphia Flyers, Boston Bruins, Florida Panthers, and Atlanta Thrashers. In 862 games, he scored 85 goals and added 238 assists for 323 points.
He has also served as an assistant coach in the NHL, spending time with the Columbus Blue Jackets, Panthers, Flyers, and New York Rangers, last with the Rangers in the 2022-23 season.
Murphy Has Over 800 Games of NHL Experience
This season with the Blackhawks, Murphy has scored four goals and added nine assists for 13 points through 60 games, and on a struggling team, only has a -3.
Murphy has played 805 games of NHL experience, split between the Blackhawks and the Arizona Coyotes, where he has scored 47 goals and added 126 assists for 173 points.
Murphy Is a Pending UFA
One important thing to note in this trade is that Murphy is a pending unrestricted free agent, meaning he could walk to free agency and sign with any other team, should he not agree to an extension with the Oilers before July 1st, 2026.
Time will tell if Murphy only ends up being a rental, but with some extension money left over, it wouldn’t be surprising if the Oilers tried to extend him past the end of the 2025-26 season. For now, he is in the final season of his current contract and only has a $2.2 million cap hit after the Blackhawks retained half of his deal for the remainder of this season.
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