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Oilers part ways with Howson, Dellow as front office shakeup continues

2015 NHL Draft - Round One

SUNRISE, FL - JUNE 26: Peter Chiarelli of the Edmonton Oilers attends the 2015 NHL Draft at BB&T Center on June 26, 2015 in Sunrise, Florida. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)

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Edmonton’s hockey operations overhaul continued on Tuesday, as the club made a flurry of changes under the Peter Chiarelli regime.

The most noteworthy, and one we passed along yesterday, was the hiring of Keith Gretzky as Chiarelli’s assistant GM. Gretzky, 49, had spent the past five years with the Boston Bruins -- which was his connection to Chiarelli -- and most recently served as the club’s director of amateur scouting.

And the Oilers weren’t done there.

-- The guy that held Gretzky’s new post, Bill Scott, has been re-assigned from AGM to “Director of Salary Cap Management and Assistant to the President of Hockey Operations.” His business card must be the size of a billboard.

-- Kelly Buchberger, who was working in player development, will now serve as the group’s VP. Duane Sutter has been promoted to VP of player personnel, while Frank Jay and P.J. Fenton were hired as amateur scouts.

-- In a pair of exits that will undoubtedly get some coverage, the Oilers have parted ways with Scott Howson (replaced by Sutter) and analytics consultant Tyler Dellow.

Howson, oft-maligned during his six season as GM in Columbus, returned to the Oilers in 2013 -- the same organization that employed him as an assistant GM From 2002-07.

He started as a scout, worked his way up to senior VP of hockey ops but was demoted following Chiarelli’s hire last summer.

Dellow was hired two years ago. Though it wasn’t the first addition in the NHL’s “analytics movement,” it was arguably the most high-profile.

A Toronto-based lawyer turned amateur statistician, Dellow was one of the Oilers’ fiercest critics prior to joining the club. He reportedly had overtures from other teams before Edmonton offered him a contract.