The Jesse Puljujarvi Trade that Fell Through
The Athletic’s Rick Dhaliwal reported recently that a trade between the New York Rangers and the Edmonton Oilers broke down about a month ago. The only details given where that Puljujarvi and struggling Swedish center Lias Andersson were included. Dhaliwal also pointed out that the Canucks were not interested in the player despite the encouragement from a portion of the Vancouver fanbase to acquire the Finn.
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BLH’s Thoughts: Andersson for Puljujarvi straight across is an instant loss for the Oilers and this is really a trade that Ken Holland can’t afford to lose. Would a second-round pick have evened things out? Maybe. Edmonton is sure to lose their 3rd rounder to Calgary in the Lucic/Neal trade. I assume that the Oilers were looking at possibly Andersson plus Brendan Lemieux though. Holland witnessed first hand the destruction a Lemieux can do in the playoffs as Brendan’s dad Claude was quite the post-season performer in Montreal, Colorado, and New Jersey.
More on Taylor Hall
With Taylor Hall in mind, a look at recent “rentals”:
-P. Stastny to Wpg for 1st, 4th, Kevin Foley
-E. Kane to SJ for Danny O’Regan, 1st, 4th
-K. Hayes to Wpg for Brendan Lemieux, 1st, 4th
-M. Stone to VGK for Erik Brannstrom, Oscar Lindberg, 2nd. (Stone had agreed to extension)— Gord Miller 🌻🇺🇦 (@GMillerTSN) December 6, 2019
It does seem like every major beat writer covering an NHL team has written about their team getting into the Hall sweepstakes, right?
Darren Dreger is reporting that the Coyotes are in on the former MVP, Pierre LeBrun and Elliotte Friedman say Colorado is on him too. Bob McKenzie says the Devils “haven’t set any parameters” and will just ask for the best offer from any interested teams, regardless of what exactly that includes. (source)
BLH’s Thoughts: I’m really torn on this. On one hand, I’d like the Oilers to have two very strong lines to compete with night in and night out. On the other hand, I don’t want the salary cap getting all mucked up with another heavy deal. I don’t think that Edmonton can compete with the offers NJ will be receiving from other clubs though.
Don't know if anyone has seen the report, but Renaud Lavoie of TVA Sports is reporting that Ray Shero is looking to trade Taylor Hall for Bowen Byram.
— MJ (@jabe_m93) December 6, 2019
If the Avs can get Hall tied down long-term, this is a fair trade I feel. Colorado has the cap space to make the deal and they’ve got the depth on defense. With Makar, Timmins, Zadorov, Girard, and Johnson being part of the foreseeable future on their blueline, they could afford to make a trade like this. The risk being what happens if Hall runs into injury problems, but is it really a risk with the defense they’ve got? When do we expect Byram to be an impact defender? In four years? Three at best?
Friedman hinting at Nurse for Hall?
— Kai (@AdnacOil) December 5, 2019
I do not mind this trade from an Oilers perspective and I wouldn’t throw it out immediately because if it was such an asinine idea, Oilers media would’ve laughed it off by now and they haven’t… Nurse is trending fairly well this year, but I don’t think he’ll hit the 40pt mark that some thought he might. I really feel like Holland knows that he’s in for a tumultuous summer of negotiating with the Nurse camp and if he could get out ahead of it, he might. Is it a one-for-one? If it was, how do you think the Oilers fanbase would react? I think another thing you have to ask is who’d have more impact on the Oilers record, Darnell Nurse or Taylor Hall? I think it would be Hall and Caleb Jones, William Lagesson, Philip Broberg, and Dmitri Samorukov are coming. Some sooner than later. How would a Jones/Bear pairing look on the Oilers defense?
Habs in the Market for a Ghost Bear?
Oft-scratched Flyers defender Shane Gostisbehere has been connected to the Montreal Canadiens in trade rumors lately. The Habs are in dire need of a left-handed defender to pair up with Shea Weber and/or Jeff Petry.
BLH’s Thoughts: If I were Marc Bergevin, I’d be exploring the acquisition price ASAP. Gostisbehere isn’t the best defensive defender out there but if his partner was Weber or Petry, why would you need to worry about that? The salary cap isn’t a concern, the Canadiens have lots of space there.
Quick Hits
- This week’s 31 Thoughts had lots of trade talk in it including notes on Hall, Sam Bennett, the LA Kings, Buffalo Sabres, St. Louis Blues, Edmonton Oilers, and more. (source)
- Could Minnesota Wild captain Mikko Koivu be on the move if his team falls out of the playoff race? (source)
- Did the Predators try to trade Kyle Turris last summer? (source)
- Toronto is in desperate need of a backup goalie. (source)
