What does Jeff Jackson's hiring mean for Ken Holland? Key decision looms as Oilers GM enters final year of contract

By Cole Shelton

Modified Aug 09, 2023 16:31 GMT

Ken Holland has been the Edmonton Oilers general manager since May of 2019 but his future is now in question.

Holland was the longtime GM of the Detroit Red Wings and led them to multiple Stanley Cups. Yet, in Edmonton, the team is still looking for its first since Holland took over.

Although the Oilers have a solid team with the likes of Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, the window to win a Cup is slowly closing. With that, Edmonton made a major move, hiring McDavid's agent Jeff Jackson to be the team's CEO of hockey operations.

Jackson will now work closely with Holland, which owner Daryl Katz believes will benefit them. Katz said in a statement:

"He brings tremendous industry insight, knowledge and leadership built through a unique career experience that is ideal for this leadership role.

"He understands what it takes to build an elite organization for the modern NHL and will work closely with Ken and our whole team to put the Oilers in the best possible position to win."

However, the timing of the hire is interesting as it comes when Ken Holland has just one year left on his deal. The 67-year-old has been noncommittal on his future, so perhaps Jackson will get to pick his replacement if Holland doesn't want to stay or Jackson decides not to bring him back.

Holland, meanwhile, at the press conference seemed to like the idea of working under Jackson. He said:

"I've talked a lot to Jeff and he's got an incredible resume. What I've found through my time in the NHL is when you're an agent, you talk to 32 GMs and have a real understanding of how 32 teams operate.

"I think Jeff's going to bring a lot of information to the Edmonton Oilers and to our Hockey Ops department that's going to help make us better."

But, with Jackson now hired, the pressure is on Holland to finally lead the Oilers to the promised land and win a Stanley Cup.

Holland has built a Cup contender in Edmonton

The Edmonton Oilers entered this off-season with not much cap space. But, they were able to clear some cap and add Connor Brown, who played with McDavid in juniors.

The hope is McDavid and Brown can rekindle the chemistry they had with the Erie Otters. If they can, Edmonton will be an even more dangerous team to play against next season and could very well hoist the Stanley Cup.