The Edmonton Oilers officially decided to bring back Coach Paul Coffey today, and the players are excited about it, although it has created some stress among the current coaching staff.
The Oilers let everyone know about Coffey’s return earlier today, and he shared his happiness about coming back to the team. He was really successful as a coach over the past two seasons, and he’s back to wrap up some projects he started.
Oilers defensemen talk about Coffey joining the coaching staff again
“It’s a figure behind the bench that a lot of people respect & look up to.”
Jake Walman chats about Paul Coffey returning to the #Oilers coaching staff. @Enterprise | #LetsGoOilers pic.twitter.com/ajfTNPXUTd
— Edmonton Oilers (@EdmontonOilers) February 18, 2026
Three Oilers defensemen talked to reporters today, and they all praised Coffey for his coaching skills and for how he interacts with players. Each defender respects his background and likes his views on the game and how well he gets along with the team.
WALMAN: Coffey brings a lot of value. We have worked with him before. He’s Paul Coffey. He’s someone people admire and respect. You can feel his presence when he comes into the room.
EKHOLM: He brings a boost of energy. He is obviously great at communicating, and his experience is impressive. We’re happy he’s back. He sees the game differently than many others.
BOUCHARD: His presence is helpful for everyone. He knows the team well and has been around long enough. It’s better to have him than someone unfamiliar with the team dynamics. I keep in touch with Coffey.
However, some people within the Oilers have said that not everyone is happy about Coffey’s return, especially some of the current coaching staff. For some reason, they don’t want him to have a strong influence on the team.
Tom Gazzola on the Oilers bringing back Paul Coffee:
“I was told today the coaching staff are not happy about this, and they’re not the only ones. I’ll leave it at that”
Sounds like this was an unpopular, executive decision made by Darryl Katz
🤔
— Oil District 💧 (@OilDistrict) February 18, 2026
It might be that Coffey, as a former star player, has a lot of sway with the team and has different ideas than the current coaches, which might make them feel like he could disrupt the message they want to share with the players.
But the results tell a different story. The Oilers have dropped to the bottom 10 in the NHL in important defensive stats since January 1st. These problems didn’t exist when Coffey was on the team, and the defense players are mostly the same except for Brett Kulak. Kulak did a good job, but he wasn’t the only reason the Oilers’ defense worked well in the last two years.
Coach Knoblauch has said that Coffey will replace Mark Stuart as the defense coach. Stuart will focus on the penalty kill and help out in other areas when needed.
“Mark will not be running the defense now, but like last year he was involved with the defense and showing them video and other things. He will still be involved on the penalty kill, but Paul will be running the bench (defense side),” Knoblauch on how Coffey’s return impacts…
— Jason Gregor (@JasonGregor) February 18, 2026
Bringing in Coffey shows that the Oilers understand their season hasn’t been great. It’s hoped that having their legendary player back on the coaching staff will improve their game and help them reach the level needed to compete for the Stanley Cup.
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