Ben Betker

January 2018 – With Ziyat Paigin and the Oilers parting ways, Mark Fayne being loaned to the Springfield Thunderbirds and three AHL rookies on the Condors blue line (Bear, Jones, Mantha), Betker had a great opportunity to cement himself as a reliable AHL defenseman and earn more minutes. Unfortunately for the young rearguard and the Oilers organization, Betker hasn’t been able to step up on the less crowded blue line and hasn’t displayed enough improvement in his overall game. His puck moving ability and overall mobility still limits his effectiveness at the AHL level. With the Oilers waiving Eric Gryba and assigning him to the Condors, Betker will have to compete for minutes against a much more experienced defender that plays a similar physical style. He is in the last year of his contract and with younger prospects passing him not only on the Oilers’ prospects rankings but also on the Condors depth chart, it’s tough to say whether or not Gryba will still be an Oilers’ prospect after this season. Jameson Ewasiuk

October 2016 – Betker finally saw his time come this season, as he was called up on October 19^th to the Edmonton Oilers. While he did not suit up for the Oilers, he managed to get in some practice time and see what it will take for him to develop into an NHL defender. Brayden Sully

March 2015 – Ben Betker has signed a three year entry-level contract with the Oilers. In what will be his final season in the WHL, the behemoth defenseman enjoyed his best season offensively with the Everett Silvertips. In 64 games, Betker compiled six goals and 31 points to go along with a healthy 63 penalty minutes. He was also a plus 21 on a second place Silvertips squad. The Oilers undoubtedly signed Betker to prevent him from re-entering the 2015 NHL draft as he will take some time to mold. While it is extremely difficult to gauge the professional readiness of stay-at-home defensemen, Betker could eventually fill the big-bodied, net front presence role the Oilers like to employ. Betker is easily at least 2-3 years away from pushing for a roster spot and won’t be on the fantasy radar anytime soon. Tyler Thomson