A Long Time Coming

Noah Philp, pictured to the left, hasn't had a lot of NHL time compared to some players, but Philp was a solid addition to the Oilers' roster this season after a decent preseason where he showed skill, hustle, and a willingness to go to the dirty areas of the ice to win pucks. Those were the same traits that made Philp successful with the University of Alberta Golden Bears where he looked like he often was a step ahead of his opponents. He wasn't drafted after a good junior career with the Seattle Thunderbirds, but that lack of being beholden to a team was the freedom that allowed him to sign with Oilers once Philp felt his Canadian university hockey days had taken him as far as he could go at that level.

Obviously, the Oilers got to see him enough with Philp playing in their backyard, but Philp was making Canada West hockey look easy as he recorded 20 goals and 38 points in 36 university games. Yes, the Golden Bears were loaded with talent, but Philp was one of the leaders on that team that was upset by the fifth-placed UBC Thunderbirds in the Canada West playoffs. Obviously, that's not how anyone would want the season to end, but COVID had other plans as the following season would be cancelled across Canada.

After helping Alberta win the Canada West conference, Philp and the Golden Bears would head to Nova Scotia where they would fall in double-overtime to the UQTR Patriotes in the U Cup Final as they fell just short again. Things wouldn't stop there for Philp, though, as he was signed by Edmonton on April 22, 2022 where he joined the AHL's Bakersfield Condors for their final three regular season games. He'd skate in three playoff games as well, notching one helper.

Following a full season with the Condors where Philp scored 19 goals and 37 points in 70 AHL games, Philp left the game on June 14, 2023. At the time, no one knew what his future was going to hold, but it seemed like the dream of being a professional hockey player was one that he no longer wanted to pursue. Everyone is entitled to seek the dream they want, but seeing Philp walk away when he looked like he was trending upward was a difficult move to understand at his age.

Perhaps it was the grind of hockey that took its toll on him. Maybe it was all the different ways that life can come at someone that had Philp questioning his hockey future. Whatever the case was, it seems the fifteen months away from the game allowed that ember of passion for the game to burn brightly once more as Philp returned to the Oilers. He looked like his old Golden Bears self as he jumped into the game and made an impression, earning a promotion from Bakersfield to Edmonton in October 2024 where he got his first taste of NHL action, becoming the 14th Golden Bear to skate in the NHL!

Despite playing 15 games with just two helpers, it seems like Philp had discovered what he needed to do to be a bottom-six NHL player at the very least. He'd use those lessons he learned to earn an NHL roster spot this season with the Oilers out of training camp as the 27 year-old looked to take his game to another level. Tonight, he added another honour to his list of accomplishments against Vancouver.
Philp notched his first NHL goal at 12:21 of the second period against Vancouver's Thatcher Demko to give the Oilers a 1-0 lead in what would become a 3-1 victory by the time the final horn sounded! Philp's goal came in his 17th NHL game, and I suspect that won't be the last one if he continues to play as well as he did tonight!

For a guy who nearly walked away from a hockey career, it seemed like it was only a matter of time before he'd have an NHL tally to his name after he re-ignited the passion that made him so good at the WHL and U SPORTS levels. As a U SPORTS fan, I want to congratulate Noah Philp on his first NHL goal because it didn't look like it was going to happen when he stepped away. However, no one ever said that one had to be a first-round draft selection to score at the NHL level.

Noah Philp is proof of that, and his journey to his first NHL goal is a good lesson that there are many ways to reach one's dream if one is willing to work hard to make one's talents shine. Congrats, Noah!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!