D.J. Smith to join Edmonton Oilers staff as associate coach under Mike Babcock

The Edmonton Oilers are reshaping their coaching staff in the offseason by adding D.J. Smith as an associate coach under Mike Babcock, according to Yahoo Sports. Smith most recently held the interim head coaching role for the Los Angeles Kings, and the move gives him a new post in the NHL with a different organization while continuing a career built across multiple levels of the sport.

Smith’s professional path has already included a blend of NHL work and junior hockey, and the Oilers’ decision places him back in a full-time role on an NHL bench. With Babcock as the staff leader, the associate-coach position typically carries day-to-day responsibility for preparation and in-game support, though the specific division of duties was not detailed in the report.

For the Oilers, the hiring is part of a broader coaching alignment around the Babcock-led structure. Edmonton’s staff configuration matters because coaching is closely tied to how a team practices, develops in-season adjustments, and prepares for opponents across the regular season and postseason. A new associate coach can also influence how the team approaches systems, player usage, and special teams preparation, even when head coaching authority remains centralized.

The Kings connection is the key throughline in the announcement. Smith is described as a former interim Kings head coach, a role that put him at the center of a top-level NHL coaching environment. Turning that experience into an associate-coach job in Edmonton suggests the Oilers view him as a capable supporting leader within a veteran coaching framework that includes Babcock.

The timing of the move places it in the offseason window, when teams typically finalize staff and begin aligning their seasonal plan before training camp begins. That timeline can matter for continuity, since a new coach often needs time to integrate with existing assistants, scout responsibilities, and player communication routines.

It is not yet clear from the available report what specific on-ice areas Smith will oversee in Edmonton. Associate-coach titles can range from broader day-to-day coaching support to more specialized responsibility for particular groups or phases of play. Fans will look for how the staff reshapes roles inside training camp and early-season preparations.