Edmonton Oilers Rumors: Puljujarvi, Kakko, Kessell, and More!

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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Oilersnation

Monday Mailbag – What’s next for the Battle of Alberta?

What is everyone’s view on the Pacific Division? Who got better, who got worse?

“LA got better with Fiala coming in. Vegas is a mystery. Vancouver should be about the same. I’m curious about Calgary after this Huberdeau trade. Seattle will be better. Oilers’ division to lose.” – Baggedmilk

…how is everyone feeling about the roster right now? What are the strengths? What are the weaknesses you see?

“Strengths are top-end skill, and their core is the same. Weaknesses are size and physicality in the 2^nd and 3^rd D pairs, as well as tenacity in bottom six.” – Jason Gregor

…what is the likelihood that Jesse will be back in Edmonton come October?

“It should be about as likely as us being able to go one day without talking about an overpriced player who doesn’t want to be here — in other words, highly doubtful… I can’t see Puljujarvi signing for less ahead of time and passing on an arb award like that. Way too much ink spent on this guy.” – Robin Brownlee

Should Canadian teams steer clear of drafting Americans?

“I don’t think the Flames would go back and draft differently knowing what they know now. Is Calgary better off selecting Tyson Jost sixth overall because he’s Canadian?” – Cam Lewis

BLH’s Thoughts: The Pacific Division eh?… Considering they might not have an NHL goalie to start the year, they’re really going to have to pull a rabbit out of their asses to be a playoff team. If they get one though, they’re a team to watch.

Calgary’s defense is a nice group and they’ve still got a good goalie in Markstrom. The question marks are up front and despite what Huberdeau said about being open to signing a long-term deal with the Flames, he’s not gone through one on-ice session with Darryl Sutter yet. So all of that could change in a heartbeat one way or the other. I think they’ve got the tools to be a wildcard team though with Pelletier and Zary breaking in possibly.

Vancouver might surprise. They’ve got some big players on the last year of their contracts, Thatcher Demko is on the rise, the Kuzmenko kid is intriguing, adding Mikheyev and Dermott was nice. We’ll see, but I think there’s a competitive team there.

The SoCal teams will be fun to watch but ultimately not playoff threats and Seattle will be better for sure and I don’t see them finishing in the Pacific’s basement. Matty Beniers is going to be a blast to watch for a full season.

As for Edmonton’s weaknesses listed by Gregor, all of them can be acquired by Ken Holland around the deadline. The regular season is won with skill and the Oilers have a shit ton of that.

Looks like Brownlee is drinking the kool-aid too. To my knowledge, Jesse Puljujarvi nor his agent have said anything about wanting out. If they wanted out of Edmonton, they’d sign a team-friendly deal that would allow Ken Holland to move him easier, no? What player would be so narcissistic that he’d force his club to move other players because they were forced to accept what the arbitrator awarded him?

Now, I wonder if the arbitration awards might come in a bit lower than usual after seeing what Isac Lundestrom accepted ($1.8M/yr for 2yrs). This is a center who scored nearly 29pts and if we go off of what we’ve been hearing from the local media, a player could get about 100k/pt. That’s only seven points off from what Pulju scored… Then again, Lundestrom’s and Pulju’s cases might be very different too.

Americans are the new Russians now I guess… Draft the best players and if there’s a hint that they want to go home down the line, help them out and get the best return in the process. Don’t get all xenophobic and expect every US-born player to behave as Tkachuk and Gaudreau have.

The Athletic

10 unsigned free agents who could help the Oilers in 2022-23

Ben Harpur is the big (6-foot-6, 231 pounds) rugged defender the organization didn’t have for long stretches last season… If the Oilers are unsure about the readiness of Samorukov or Markus Niemelainen, Harpur might be the most attractive option among free agents.
[Michal] Kempny’s style (two-way type, defensive coverage more prominent) might be a strong complement to the styles of Bouchard or Barrie.
Kris Russell has been an Oilers player for the past six seasons and ranks No. 16 all-time in games played by a defenceman in franchise history.
Michael Stone has been helping the Calgary Flames for about as long as [Kris] Russell has been in Edmonton… His performance in the playoffs was noteworthy, he was a pain for Edmonton (4-2 goal differential at five-on-five) and would be an inexpensive depth option…
Phil Kessel is unlikely. The massive cut in salary he would have to take seems a bridge too far… It wouldn’t be surprising if there’s interest from both sides, with money being the issue.
Johan Larsson is a fine two-way centre who is solid in possession.
Evan Rodrigues is still unsigned… in a normal summer he could have cashed in on a $4 million, multiyear deal.
Sam Steel’s career path hit a crossroads and led him to free agency this summer.
Sam Gagner would be joining the Oilers for a third time. He is an effective power-play option and posted solid five-on-five possession numbers relative to teammates in 2021-22.
Evgeny Svechnikov is a power forward who appears to be finding traction in the NHL… At five-on-five he posted 1.49 points per 60 and his expected goals in the discipline was over 50 percent… He was chosen No. 19 in the 2015 draft by Holland as Detroit’s general manager.

BLH’s Thoughts: These are the forward options for the Oilers IF they move on from Jesse Puljujarvi this week…

Personally, I think it’s time to see what these young defensemen are made of. It’s been a few years coming now for Samorukov and Niemelainen and it makes zero sense to me to spend the money on a really inferior blue liner right now when the players are already here (that includes the oft-forgotten Slater Koekkoek). Besides, the team isn’t going to collapse because Ben Harpur isn’t playing for them. Be patient, keep the powder dry, and bolster that blueline at the trade deadline when you can trade for some massive talents poised to become UFAs this summer like Scott Mayfield (NYI), Carson Soucy (SEA), Vladislav Gavrikov (CBJ), or Ryan Graves (NJ) for example.

Trade Rumors

Spector’s Hockey

Larry Brooks reports there is no indication Kaapo Kakko and his agent have solicited interest from other clubs to tender the New York Rangers winger an offer sheet.
[Pierre-Luc] Dubois’ desire to join the Canadiens apparently goes back to his days with the Blue Jackets. It was rumored in January 2021 that former Habs GM Marc Bergevin attempted to acquire Dubois before the Jackets shipped him to the Winnipeg Jets.

The Daily Goal Horn

Kevin Kurz covers the Isles for The Athlethic and reported that a league source noted “rumblings” about the team and Kadri.
- One team that continues to be considered in the mix are the New York Islanders. The Fourth Period also add the Seattle Kraken, Ottawa Senators, and Anaheim Ducks to the mix.
- Kadri’s next deal will be between 5-7 years with an AAV around $7.5 to $8.5M.
In a recent article by Saad Yousuf in The Athletic, he suggests that there’s a possibility for Klingberg to sign a one-year deal to remain with the Dallas Stars. A place that the defenseman does not want to leave.

BLH’s Thoughts: If Kakko has an appetite to leave NY, why doesn’t Edmonton investigate that option using Puljujarvi as the return? The Finn shares an agent with star center Leon Draisaitl and that never hurts when it comes to trading for a player.