Edmonton Oilers Offseason Talk: Will Montreal Take a Run at Puljujarvi and Kulak?

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Cult of Hockey

How can Edmonton Oilers do the clobbering next time when they face the Colorado Avs?

Edmonton gave up 11.0 Grade A shots per game against L.A., 13.0 against Calgary, but 18.3 against the Avs.
To beat the Avs, Edmonton’s players must make a far greater and ongoing commitment to defensive hockey.
Edmonton has to cut the number of Grade A shots that this brilliant attacking Colorado team gets by five or six Grade A shots per game.
If Darnell Nurse and Leon Draisaitl had been healthy, Edmonton just might have had a puncher’s chance against the Avs this year.
Mike Smith was the better goalie in the first two series, outplaying both Jacob Markstrom of Calgary and Jonathan Quick of Los Angeles… But the Avs goalies outplayed Smith…
Edmonton needs better goaltending than the Avs, either from Smith or some other goalie.
The Avs beat Edmonton due to sharp attacking, fierce backchecking, and the most mobile, skilled and effective group of d-men in the NHL…
…these Avs d-men gave Edmonton’s fits, as they all had the speed and technique needed to thwart McDavid on the attack, as well as the guile, mobility and passing skill to evade Edmonton’s aggressive forecheck and to break out fast on odd man rushes.
… in Game Four, the only game where Edmonton sawed it off on Grade A shots, that the Oilers trapped more in the neutral zone, which is a sound strategy against such puck-moving prowess.
If you can’t forecheck these d-men and regularly hit them and/or strip them of the puck, it might well be a great idea to clog up that neutral zone, funnel the Avs to the boards and try to steal pucks there…

BLH’s Thoughts: So, I’m going to go out on a limb and say if the Oilers upgrade their goalie, their defense, their bottom six, and then focus on playing defense-first hockey THEN they have a chance against the Colorado Avalanche…

I don’t know. I feel like building your club around the idea of beating just one other team in the league sounds foolish. I think you’ve just got to build the best team you can regardless of opponent.

Maybe a better idea is to get some luck health-wise, build a deeper more defensive-conscious roster, and add some blueliners who can skate like the wind to keep up with the faster skating forwards in the league. Do that and I reckon you can get away without having an elite goalie.

What kind of impact do you expect the likes of Dylan Holloway, Philip Broberg, and Stu Skinner to have next season? What should our expectations of these three be? For me, I see a 3rd line winger, a bottom-pairing defenseman, and a backup goalie, but I also see team speed and physicality increasing and I don’t think that could hurt the Oilers at all. Then again, if Holland moves on from Foegele and Kassian, maybe things in the old-school hockey department saw off too.

As you know, I’m very staunch in my beliefs that for this team to be successful it will need functional muscle on it. The likes of Nic Deslauriers and Erik Gudbranson would be the type of additions a Cup contender makes because not only can they provide some toughness/intimidation to the team but they contribute to the penalty kill as well (if they’re not the ones in the box).

Now, maybe Holland won’t be able to add many upgrades from the free agent market. That might be okay because Jay Woodcroft could always have Hyman with McDavid, and maybe a fella like Andrei Kuzmenko, re-unite Nuge with Leon and Killer, and a shutdown third line of Foegele, McLeod, and Puljujarvi has seemed to have emerged from this year’s post-season.

https://twitter.com/AdamsOnHockey/status/1535781355618902016

So all you’re worried about is the 4th line that already has Derek Ryan lined up to center it with Devin Shore and maybe Dylan Holloway to flank him from the start of the year.

Is that the price to pay if Ken Holland brings in a no.1 goaltender like Jack Campbell?

Personally, I feel that some more depth signings would need to take place (obviously), but there’s enough flexibility on this team as it stands to complete a competitive roster IF the hole in net is filled should Mike Smith retire and a replacement brought in.

All that being said, Bob Stauffer has mentioned that FOUR moves (minimum) is what should be expected from the team this summer.

Oilersnation

Goaltending Options

(Ville) Husso gets a lot of attention due to his breakout regular season, but he struggled in the playoffs. It would be risky to start with a Husso/Skinner tandem as they’ve combined to play 60 NHL games.
Jack Campbell will be looking for the first big payday of his career. He’s made a total of around $5 million since turning pro in 2011/2012. That is great money for the average person, but he could command a three year deal worth $12-$14million this summer.
Marc-Andre Fleury can still play… He didn’t want to come to Edmonton at the trade deadline due to the challenges of his family getting across the border to visit him… After watching the Oilers win two playoff rounds, Fleury, and many others around the league, likely see Edmonton a lot different than they have in the past.
Braden Holtby was injured late in the season and wasn’t even skating. I’d pass.
Scott Wedgewood quietly had a very solid season. He isn’t a big name, won’t cost very much… It could be a risk to start the season with him as your starter, but he looks like a late bloomer. I won’t be surprised if he has a solid campaign.
Eric Comrie is in a similar situation as Wedgewood.
(MacKenzie) Blackwood, Georgiev and Varlamov would all need to be traded to Edmonton.
- Do the Islanders really want to pay Varlamov $5 million to be the backup again?
- Georgiev wants to be traded… His Sv% has dropped every year starting at .918 (only 10 games), .914, .910, .905 and .898.
- Blackwood has 130 appearances in four years with a .907Sv%. His Sv% has also dipped each year going from .918, .915, .902 to .892.
…while Georgiev and Blackwood haven’t trended in the right direction recently, we’ve seen many goalies find consistency and success in their mid to late 20s.

BLH’s Thoughts: Varlamov has already said he wouldn’t waive his clause to go to Edmonton, so he’s out. Maybe NJ picks him up if they can find a taker for Blackwood.

The inexperience factor of Husso is fair, but I still think he’s probably Edmonton’s best option.

Campbell I don’t mind too much either but he’s going to cost a fair bit to sign. Although I do like the ongoing “leave Toronto for Edmonton and do better theme that is currently going on.

Marc-Andre Fleury to Edmonton had a bit of smoke all year long and now that the border restrictions have eased up substantially, it would be such a Ken Holland move to sign him, but if Colorado loses Kuemper, are the Avs a better option for Fleury?

I think a big question is who will the Oilers bring in to be no.3 because it can’t be a guy who is easily picked up off of waivers but it still has to be a netminder good enough to be an NHL backup. I like Wedgewood and Comrie but I’m scared that they’d get plucked off waivers.

The Oilers nearly traded for Georgiev before Christmas. It won’t shock me if that’s something that comes to fruition.

Trade Rumors

Spector’s Hockey

Elliotte Friedman reports the Edmonton Oilers have asked Mike Smith and Duncan Keith to inform them by July 1 if they intend to return next season or retire.
Based on what he’s been told, (Kurt) Leavins would be very surprised if Keith hangs up his skates, adding the veteran blueliner might try to extend his playing career beyond 2022-23.
Rory Boylen included Husso among his list of six potential value goalies for the Oilers and Toronto Maple Leafs to consider. He also listed Pittsburgh’s Casey DeSmith, San Jose’s Kaapo Kahkonen, Detroit’s Alex Nedeljkovic, Winnipeg’s Eric Comrie and New Jersey’s Mackenzie Blackwood.

The Daily Goal Horn

On Johnny Gaudreau: Hailey Salvian of The Athletic also sees the Devils as a possibility if Gaudreau hits the open market on July 13. The Pittsburgh Penguins, New York Islanders, and Nashville Predators were also potential destinations.
On JT Miller: So will the Canucks go that $8.5M number being discussed by insiders? If they do it may come at the cost of trading Bo Horvat or Brock Boeser. Regardless, the bigger question is if Vancouver will also be willing to go the max 7 or 8 years on a player that will turn 30 next March.

NHLRumors.com

It appears Jesse Puljujarvi might have played his last game with the Edmonton Oilers… Edmonton wants value contract players in return. Would Ryan Poehling or some draft picks do?
Brett Kulak enjoyed a nice playoff run with the Edmonton Oilers. However, he would welcome a return to Montreal once he becomes a UFA come July 13th.
Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff: A look at the top trade targets heading into the offseason.
- 1. Alex DeBrincat
- 2. Kevin Fiala
- 3. Jakub Chychrun
- 4. J.T. Miller
- 5. New Jersey Devils first-round pick, 2nd overall.

BLH’s Thoughts: Ryan Poehling and some picks for Puljujarvi? Pass. Poehling wasn’t even half the player Jesse was last year with his 17pts in 57 games.