Who is Ben Gleason?

Who is Ben Gleason and why is he causing issues at Training camp?

Now, we aren’t talking about off-ice issues or fighting people in camp causing a ruckus. That’s not the kind of trouble we’re talking about here.

This training camp was supposed to be just about the 6/7 Defenseman for the Oilers. Who is going to make it onto the opening night roster? The choice was down to two players, Broberg and Desharnais. And when everything goes according to plan, it still isn’t much of a conversation. Broberg is expected to secure the job beside Ekholm. Desharnais comes in and looks better than last year, but opens the year as a healthy scratch, serving as the 7th defensemen. The world is right and good, and Desharnais steps in once the inevitable injury bug hits.

Enter Ben Gleason.

Gleason signed with the Oilers this offseason to very little fanfare. He signed on the second day of free agency, signing a 2-year deal for the league minimum salary ($775K). He has spent the last 3 seasons playing in the AHL for the Stars organization. Last season with the Texas Stars, Gleason put up good numbers as an offensive defensemen, posting 9-24-33 in 68 GP. The year before that, he managed to put up 44 points for the Texas Stars.

Gleason comes to camp at 6’1, 185 lbs. He is only 25 years old, younger than Desharnais he made his NHL debut last year. Gleason also has 4 games of NHL experience under his belt, but that was a cup of coffee with the Dallas Stars in 2018/19. He’s been sniffing around, waiting for his chance that never came with the Stars, which led to part of his decision to get a fresh start with the Oilers organization. His play so far this preseason has shown he should absolutely be one of the first two call-ups for the Oilers if/when they need it on the back end.

What has Gleason done so far?

In his 4 games played in the preseason so far, he has averaged 19 minutes and 52 seconds of ice time per game, and has posted 2 assists. He has shown impressive flashes of skating that are getting him noticed. He is able to skate the puck out of trouble and set up plays with good passing. So far in the preseason, he also has a 70% goal-for percentage, which is extraordinary in a very small sample size.

Diving a little deeper, however, we can see that the GF% probably isn’t totally indicative of his play in the preseason so far. His CF% is sitting at 43%, showing that he is getting outshot by a decent margin so far. That’s not a great number at first glance, and when looking at the numbers, you don’t get too excited. Then you dive one step deeper, and the only defensemen with a CF% above 50 are Nurse and Bouchard. Gleason ranks 3rd on the team currently in the preseason.

Ranking below him in CF% are others such as Ceci, Kulak, Broberg, Desharnais, so we probably can’t put a lot of stock into that stat by itself.

So far, based on visual observation, Gleason has been impressive in training camp, maybe even more impressive at times than Desharnais and Broberg. However, does his style of play align with what the Oilers require?

Does He Fit?

Unfortunately for Gleason, it doesn’t look like his skillset is what the Oilers are looking for to start the season. Gleason’s game is about offence from the back end. Ahead of him are Bouchard, Nurse, and Ekholm.

Gleason isn’t a penalty killer, which is something the Oilers need, but he can’t provide it. They need someone who can play on the penalty kill and have a strong 5-on-5 game, ideally on the second pair.

Broberg seems to be the guy if the Oilers are looking for someone with good even-strength play. Desharnais is ahead of Gleason if the Oilers are looking to add another player to help with the penalty kill.

That leaves Gleason as the odd man out, as was expected going into camp. Gleason’s preseason has left little doubt in the coaches, though if/when the Oilers need a call-up, his name should be right near the top of the list. That’s exactly the training camp he needed to have. He’s still building a resume and waiting for his chance.