Welcome to Oilersnation’s Top Prospect Countdown for Summer 2025. This list profiles players and goaltenders under 25 years old who have played fewer than 25 NHL games. In 2024, during his brief stint as acting general manager between Ken Holland and Stan Bowman, Jeff Jackson focused his draft on Ontario Hockey League talent. The Oilers traded into the first round to grab Sam O’Reilly of the London Knights, then used three more selections in the fifth to seventh rounds on OHL forwards. Edmonton had acquired an extra seventh-round pick from the Anaheim Ducks in the Adam Henrique and Sam Carrick deal ahead of the trade deadline in 2023-24. They used it to select William Nicholl, who’s looking like one of the draft’s best late-round steals a year later. Position: C/LW Shoots: Left Nationality: Canada Date of Birth: May 24, 2006 Drafted: 196th overall in 2024 Height: 6-foot-1 Weight: 185 pounds As a rookie in 2023-24, Nicholl chipped in six goals and 20 points over 65 games for the London Knights. He saved his b
