There are some rumors coming out of Finland today that the Detroit Red Wings have tabled an offer for Edmonton Oilers winger Jesse Puljujarvi. According to that link above, Steve Yzerman, who was just in Finland to watch Pulju play at the Karjala Cup, offered a 2022 1st round pick and minor league defenseman Oliwer Kaski.
First off, I can’t speak to the legitimacy of that rumor. It’s coming out of Finland and I have enough trouble speaking Mandarin (poorly) and English (worser) let alone Finnish. However, I do know there were some rumblings before the Karjala Cup started connecting the Oilers and Red Wings.
Anyway, I think it’s worth digging into just to get some dialogue going at the very least. I don’t know about you but I’m tired of all the BS going on online stemming from Don Cherry’s dismissal.
Kaski was Pelican’s top scorer last season with 19 goals and 32 assists. His team finished 3rd in the SM-Liiga standings behind Puljujarvi’s current team, Karpat, and Patrik Laine’s old team, Tampere. He was a hot commodity over the summer due to that scoring prowess he displayed, but he’s also a man of size (6’3″) and he’s a right-shot. I would imagine those also played a factor in Detroit going after him.
Offensive defenseman with great size. Despite his size, he doesn’t play a physical style and instead relies on his positioning and stick-checking on defense. Loves to join the rush and create offense. Has a heavy and accurate slap shot, and he is capable of shooting from imperfect passes. His release on the wrist shot is extremely quick. He loves to shoot the puck as much as possible. Very dangerous on the power play. Needs to work on his defensive game and avoid unnecessary risks. A late-bloomer. (source)
The 2022 NHL draft is already shaping up to be heavily front-loaded with the likes of Matthew Savoie, Brad Lambert, and Shane Wright all looking like they could end up being the 1st overall pick in that draft.
But let’s be honest, the odds are horrible that the pick Detroit sends to Edmonton ends up being a lottery selection. Unless Yzerman completely shits the bed in the next two seasons in a manner that Oilers fans know all too much about when it comes to rebuilds, Detroit should be in pretty good shape by the end of 2021.
Therefore, any draft pick that the Oilers receive in a trade for Puljujarvi is unlikely to develop into a player that could help the team any sooner than three to five years from the draft it originates from. By then, who knows where the Oilers are or if Ken Holland is even the GM at that point?
As for Kaski, it’s taking him some time to acclimate to the North Amerian game. In ten appearances so far he has two goals and two assists. I do find it interesting that if this report is true, and there are no indications that is the case, Steve Yzerman would be so keen to move on from the player so quickly after signing him. To add to that, with the likes of Evan Bouchard, Caleb Jones, Ethan Bear, Dmitri Samorukov, and eventually Philip Broberg, how does this Finnish rearguard fit into the Oilers plan?
Lately, Stevie Y has been on the hunt for misfit or miscast players with the acquisitions of Brendan Perlini and Robbi Fabbri. Perlini, on his 3rd team after requesting a trade out of Chicago, has yet to put up a single point whereas Fabbri and his surgically repaired knees are off to a fine start in Detroit. He has four points in three games.
Now, for Fabbri and Perlini to get into the lineup, somebody had to come out and that somebody was college free-agent signing Taro Hirose.
From what I’ve gathered, it sounds like Detroit is unhappy with his lack of production (five assists in 17 games) and inability to win board battles. They’d like Hirose to be more clever and use his quickness to be more effective in the dirty areas is what I’m understanding. “Work harder”, right? “Earn” your spot…
The Calgary-native last played on November 6th versus the New York Rangers and his last point came against the Oilers on October 29th.
Personally, I’d rather the Oilers go after the likes of Filip Zadina or Andreas Athanasiou. I don’t see the Red Wings giving up on Zadina so easily but Athanasiou could probably be had. The problem with acquiring him is that his contract is expiring and he’s going to get paid this summer. I’m not sure his production would warrant much more than the $3M per year that he’s on right now. He’s -22 this season so far and has only managed to find the net three times in 18 games. His agent is Darren Ferris also represents Philip Broberg but potentially more importantly, Taylor Hall is a client…
On the other end of the scale is a player like Taro Hirose though. I do believe the Oilers were in the mix to sign him last year but ultimately lost out to Detroit whose GM at that time was none other than their current GM, Ken Holland.
A trade built around Jesse Puljujarvi and Taro Hirose does make a modicum of sense, does it not? Edmonton could use a highly-skilled player who has quick feet and soft hands that is still on his ELC and the Red Wings would like a player with size, strength, defensive acumen, and a drive to prove everybody wrong. Lots of potential to go around with both players although I’d say Puljujarvi’s ceiling is much much higher.
Maybe the Red Wings envision Puljujarvi lining up on the 2nd line alongside fellow countryman Valterri Filppula and Fabbri. I know I could see Hirose on the Oilers’ second line with Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and James Neal. Then again, I’m more of an optimist than anything else, so perhaps I’m blue-skying it a bit here.
That December 1st deadline is coming fast, so expect to hear more on the Puljujarvi front!
What do you think? Let us know in the comments below!
