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Breaking news from this morning, per the Edmonton Oilers official Twitter account:
The #Oilers have agreed to terms with defenceman Philip Kemp on a three-year entry-level contract through the 2022-23 season.
— Edmonton Oilers (@EdmontonOilers) November 25, 2020
The 21-year-old was drafted by Edmonton in the seventh round in 2017 & played for @YaleMHockey the last three seasons. pic.twitter.com/f0LXp3Uqfd
Kemp, a 6’3’’, 200-pound right-hander, was drafted in the 7th round (208th overall) in the 2017 Entry Draft. He’s spent the entirety of his post-draft career at Yale, amassing 9-18-27 in 88 GP in the NCAA. Yale was in the middle of its post-season when everything was shutdown in the spring, and they haven’t played since.
In May of 2020, Kemp was named captain for the 2020-21 season, which would have marked his senior year. As such the Oilers were at risk of losing control of his rights come summer 2021.
The next step for Kemp will be finding a place to play. The Ivy League’s winter sports were cancelled earlier in November, and he is right now without a hockey home for his extremely important age 21 (22 in February) season. I am not sure exactly what his options are, and I know the NCAA are notoriously draconic when it comes to helping their athletes out, but we’ll bring you any news about Kemp’s immediate future as we get it.