This is your TL/DR (too long, didn’t read) summary post where excerpts are taken from the best of the best when it comes to Edmonton Oilers blogs. BLH gives you his two cents on the latest posts being published in the Oilogosphere! Including those from Lowetide.ca, The Athletic, Oilersnation, The Cult of Hockey, Copper N Blue, Oil on Whyte, and more!
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The Athletic
A 10-step plan for ensuring success next season
- “Getting Evan Bouchard re-signed should be the top priority without question.”
- “The Oilers were looking into acquiring 2023 Norris Trophy finalist Erik Karlsson from the Sharks earlier this year. It’s time to do that again over the next few weeks.”
- “There are options to jettison Yamamoto.”
- “In addition to Yamamoto, Cody Ceci, Warren Foegele and Brett Kulak are trade candidates to create cap space.”
- “It isn’t essential to re-sign either player but bringing back one or both of Nick Bjugstad and/or Mattias Janmark for bottom-six depth couldn’t hurt.”
- “Provided everything makes sense, (Jonathan) Toews could be a fit.”
- “(Derek) Ryan had an excellent season… He wants to keep playing. The Oilers are interested in having him back. It shouldn’t be contentious. Just get it done before free agency opens.”
- “Klim Kostin was one of the positive stories for the Oilers… That’s why it’s important for the Oilers to get him signed by June 30 — the date qualifying offers are due — or they might have to just let him walk.”
- “The Oilers won’t be in the market for a top-four defenceman on July 1 unless Ceci is dealt and they don’t acquire another one in a trade before then. Attempting to sign a forward is the more likely play… Perhaps (Connor) Brown could be a buy-low option on a short-term deal after he missed all but four games this season due to injury.”
- “McLeod is one of three RFAs on the Oilers… The Oilers are projecting a cap hit of between $1.75 million and $2.25 million for McLeod’s next deal — a bridge contract… All they need to do is make sure they have the high end of that range ready at their disposal.”
BLH’s Thoughts: If I had to guess, unless an Erik Karlsson deal is so far in Edmonton’s favor, I don’t see him in Oilers silks next year. The feeling I get is that they see this past season as a write-off year for Ceci considering the injuries he played through for most of it and they will go into next season with him on the roster until the deadline.
If Kulak is traded that means Holland is paving the way for Philip Broberg to take on a full-time role in spite of what Jay Woodcroft thinks. Similar to how he moved Tyson Barrie in order to force Woodcroft’s hand on Evan Bouchard.
Foegele was getting shopped last summer, so if he’s dealt, it’ll be no shock.
On a side note, is there a potential deal with the Blackhawks that might see a Yamamoto or Foegele package sent to Chicago for RWer Taylor Raddysh (20g 17a last season). I’ve heard his name come up from time to time in connection to the Oilers.
Toews would be a dream signing, very Bryan Trottier signing with the ’91 Penguins vibes there.
What did I say? Watch Connor Brown’s name start to come up over and over in the Edmonton media… Stauffer was all over it on his show yesterday and I would imagine that conditioning will continue until he’s either signed or has signed elsewhere. Bob’s doing a lot of legwork for Jeff Jackson (Brown’s agent that he shares with McDavid and the aforementioned Taylor Raddysh)…
The longer they can get Ryan McLeod signed at $2.25M, the better. His numbers are trending up consistently and he’s still only 23.
Oilersnation
Should the Oilers consider buying anyone out?
- Jack Campbell – “A buyout would save the Oilers $3.4 million this season, $3.8 the following year, and $2.6 for two more seasons after that. Then, they would have four more seasons of dead cap space on the books. A buyout would stretch Campbell’s contract out for eight more years. That’s insane.”
- Cody Ceci – “The cap hit for next season would drop to $83,000. That’s remarkably low and would give them more than $3 million to upgrade him. The year after the cap hit would be $1.0m, so a $2.2 million saving. The team would then have two years of dead cap space at $1.3m per season.”
- Kailer Yamamoto – “Yamamoto’s cap hit would drop to $433k for this upcoming season, saving the Oilers around $2.7m in cap space, and then there would be a $533k penalty the year after…”
BLH’s Thoughts: You’re not buying out Campbell a year into his deal and especially when he’s going to be on the books for another eight years after… The cap is going to go up significantly next summer so one could potentially stomach a Ceci buyout, but it’s Yamamoto’s that might make the most sense and would be the easiest for the club to make. However, I’m not sure Holland and co. are that cutthroat considering the player we’re talking about is a “preferred linemate”…
Trade Rumors
Spector’s Hockey
- The Hurricanes must address their goaltending as Frederik Andersen and Antti Raanta are eligible to become unrestricted free agents on July 1. Rookie Pyotr Kochetkov likely isn’t ready yet to become a full-time starter.
- Shayna Goldman looked at seven clubs that could (and should) be interested in Connor Hellebucyk… The Buffalo Sabres and New Jersey Devils are the top two clubs on Goldman’s list. They’re followed by the Pittsburgh Penguins, Ottawa Senators, Vegas Golden Knights, Toronto Maple Leafs and Los Angeles Kings.
- Jimmy Murphy wondered if the Bruins and Edmonton Oilers could become offseason trade partners. He noted that the Bruins need centers given the uncertainty over the futures of Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci while the Oilers need defensemen… Murphy cited an NHL source claiming the Oilers “might move” center Ryan Nugent-Hopkins this summer and they’re seeking a defenseman as part of the return.
BLH’s Thoughts: Ha! Jimmy Murphy is sure to get some attention from Oilers fans for this take. Unless Charlie McAvoy is getting dealt to Edmonton, there’s a better chance Wayne Gretzky comes out of retirement to suit up for the Oilers. Even with that in mind though, it would be irresponsible for Ken Holland not to listen to all offers… So maybe there is a GM out there that fancies RNH and is willing to pay the price.
I could 100% see Vegas finding a way to acquire Connor Hellebuyck. Don’t ask me how though, they don’t have a ton in terms of tradeable futures to move. Winnipeg would be able to get much better picks/prospects from Ottawa or possibly LA. Hellebuyck on Toronto would be kind of scary.
It’s funny with Carolina, before the playoffs started they were having a helluva time scoring goals. It seemed like Seb Aho was the only one scoring and then in the first two rounds they couldn’t stop scoring. Was Florida that good or did the legend of Sergei Bobrovsky get into their heads before that series started?
