The analytics community will be outraged but not surprised at this post. They’re rarely surprised by anything that an Oilers GM does as they’ve come to expect, what they call politely, unwise moves when any player transaction takes place.
**As I always say, believe me or not, but when I get news from my source I will always let you know. I’m not McKenzie, Rishaug, Dreger, or LeBrun but I hear things and I like to share the things I hear. That being said, I’ve found that rarely do these things pan out and in Pouliot’s case, he seems to be on the block every year.**
According to my sources, a memo to every GM in the league has been passed along that Benoit Pouliot is available. The Oilers are quite unhappy with the inconsistent play of Pouliot this season and are ready to move on from the Craig MacTavish signing.
The word on what the Oilers are looking for in return is unclear, perhaps draft picks at this point, but I’ve been told that other GMs want Edmonton to eat 50% of Pouliot’s contract.
My Thoughts
Two things:
- The big Frenchman has been healthy scratched 2 games in a row now and it doesn’t look like there’s much chance of him getting back in the lineup while the Oilers are winning with rookie Drake Caggiula and gritty veteran Matt Hendricks are getting ice time. He should get comfortable on Isle Ference.
- Peter Chiarelli has traded him before when they were both part of the Boston Bruins organization. At the 2012 draft, Pouliot’s rights were dealt to Tampa Bay for Michel Oullet and a 5th rounder. That player turned out to be Seth Griffin, a forward that was recently waived by the Bruins and picked up by the Florida Panthers.
I have no problems moving on from Pouliot but I don’t like the idea of them eating 50% of the remainder of his contract. I’m not against eating some cash but not 50%.
According to Capfriendly.com, the maligned left winger has 2 more seasons after this current one left on his deal and he’s being paid $4M per year. So it would cost the Oilers at least that much to move him, if what I’m being told is true.
If I were Edmonton, I’d look to move some of the defensemen from the Oilers’ system in Bakersfield to sweeten the pot a bit.
The best piece to sweeten said pot? What about Brandon Davidson? He’s injured at the moment, but he’s shown that he can play the game and he’s NHL ready. Also, Matt Benning’s play of late has sort of made the Oilogosphere forget about Davidson a bit. Not completely, but enough.
If a deal could be made where the Oilers don’t lose Davidson and say they move LaLeggia, Oesterle, Musil, or Reinhart instead; that would be a win for Chiarelli and Co.
I’d target teams that lean towards the analytics and that are struggling like Arizona or Florida.
We’ve been touting Michael Stone lately, and his ticket is the same cost as Pouliot’s ($4M). He’ll also he a UFA at season’s end and that means he wouldn’t need to be protected in the expansion draft. Double plus!
What do you think about Benoit Pouliot this season? Would you keep him or move him? Let us know in the comments below!
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Pouls has been the most consistent inefficient forward all season. I’m interested to see what his game is like when/if put back in. From watching so far I don’t expect much. He never elevated his game even knowing guys were comming back from injuries. That inner competition got ebs goin a bit but no response from pouls. I’m almost 100% convinced that pouls isn’t playing is way into a trade but rather a trade is the reason why he’s been bad all yr. Wether it be a trade or knowing that you might likely NOT be protected for expansion draft, it seems something’s off with him cause his head isn’t in the game most nights.
As for trade, I personally wouldn’t look to move any dmen right now. I do believe pouls is getn traded but don’t like the idea of retaining salary either but if he’s not playing then they are kinda retaining 4mil anyway. One likely option, if looking to move him now, would be to swap with another underachieving close to 4mil cap hit player and take a chance on the change of scenery theory. If holding out til trade deadline time then maybe there’s room to be more creative with deals than right now possibly.
Yeah, there’s a reason why the Oilers were among the first to hire a Corsi guy, and the first to fire him. Not gonna lie, this Corsi garbage confuses the snot out of me. Look at Russell, Corsi guys say he sucks, yet here it seems they can’t win without him. Yet they love Pouliot, and where’s he now?