Edmonton Oilers Talk: Could Marcus Pettersson be on Ken Holland’s Radar?

Coming from an Edmonton Oilers point of view, BLH provides you with excerpts from the latest NHL news, rumors, and speculation from all of the internet’s best sites including Spector’s Hockey, The Fourth Period, NHL Trade Talk, The Hockey Writers, Sportsnet, The Athletic, TSN and more!

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Lowetide.ca

HOUSES IN MOTION

Of the 19 players aged 19-24 on the Grand Rapids Griffins in 2010-11, 9 of them (47%) played in the NHL by 2014. More important, players like Tomas Tatar, Gustav Nyquist, Brendan Smith and Jakub Kindl provided the club with inside solutions to roster problems. That’s a massive advantage, a GM can look two or three years down the road and let veterans go on a team timeline. Internal solutions solving problems and staying for multiple seasons. Isn’t it better to solve a roster problem for five seasons via the farm system? Music!
Of the 23 players aged 19-24 on the Oklahoma City Barons (2010-11), 13 of them (56.5%) had played in the NHL four years later. That’s a slightly higher percentage than Detroit’s but that could be explained by losing teams turning over rosters more quickly in search of success and consistency. More important, and this is incredible, 11 of the 13 (84.6%) had either been cut loose from the club or chewed through the rope to secure their freedom. That’s an insane, insane number.
The Oilers drafting is fine. The development coaching in Bakersfield is top drawer. This team needs to stop trading picks, in order to have inexpensive talent to feed the beast that is the NHL roster. I don’t see it happening until one of two things occur: Edmonton wins Stanley, or the McDavid era ends. I’m not saying it’s wrongheaded, but Edmonton needs to get more value from these trades or the entire thing will fold like a house of cards.

BLH’s Thoughts: My own personal feeling is that I would prefer my team to always keep their 1st and 2nd round picks as well as their 3rd rounder, if possible. That way if the scouts are doing their jobs and finding NHL players, there’s always somebody coming down the pipeline and the house of cards has a lesser chance of folding…

More specifically to the Oilers, it’s go time and Captain Connor has laid his foot down. If you don’t like the team trading young players and draft picks to improve in a jiffy, you should be prepared to direct some of the blame McDavid’s way because the leadership core that he’s part of is telling the GM to bring in more vets and if that means a young player must be sacrificed, so be it.

All that said, the pipeline looks strong in Edmonton and Holland has built a roster this year that will force the young studs to beat out a veteran for his spot in the lineup.

The Hockey Writers (Jim Parsons)

Oilers Two Big Questions Revolve Around Ceci and the Goaltenders

The Koskinen and Smith Tandem

If something isn’t done, it will be because the organization decided that Koskinen is a better option for one more year than what’s available and there’s confidence Smith can have another strong season. If that’s true, the Oilers should be fine. At worst, they’ll have a chance to add a netminder at the NHL Trade Deadline.

The Cody Ceci Signing

Can Ceci give the Oilers what Larsson did? He’s not as physical, but he’s being asked to, in part, fill that role. He may not see as many minutes and he might be more of a 5/6 blueliner than a regular top-four, but he’s been inked to a four-year deal at $3.25 million per season. It’s a signing that signals the Oilers have confidence in his ability to bring them something Tyson Barrie and Evan Bouchard can’t.

The Rest of the Roster Is Strong

This may be the deepest Oilers forward group in ages. With three lines and an assortment of speed, skill, strength, and grit, there are a number of players in the Oilers top nine who can play in a variety of situations. The team may not be done yet either as there’s room to sign a depth piece or two.

BLH’s Thoughts: So as long as Mike Smith doesn’t start the year on the IR again, we’re going to get a chance to see this goaltending duo begin the year fresh and I’m curious as to how they’ll do behind the re-made defense and the gritified forwards.

With Ceci, he’s not going to give you Adam Larsson minutes. He’s not that player. He’s a solid two-way defender that can move the puck and offer up a sliver of offense from time to time. Maybe a better Slater Koekkoek, if you will. My advice would be to lower your expectations on CC.

There are some pundits still wondering if Edmonton has another move in their back pocket, but I haven’t heard much to that regard. I suppose we could wait to see how some of these arbitration cases go and something could flush out there. Otherwise, we should wait until the end of training camp.

Spector’s Hockey

NHL Rumor Mill – August 5, 2021

PITTSBURGH HOCKEY NOW: Dan Kingerski cited Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman recently reporting there are some clubs with an interest in Penguins defenseman Marcus Pettersson. However, they’re not enamored with his contract. The 25-year-old Pettersson is earning $4.025 million annually through 2024-25.

BLH’s Thoughts: I wonder if the Oilers would consider Pettersson if the Pens retained 50%? They are looking for another LHD and maybe to make the salary more financially palpable for Edmonton, they’d send Kris Russell or Kyle Turris.

THE ATHLETIC: Michael Russo weighed in on Kevin Fiala’s impending salary arbitration. He believes the winger has popped up in trade talks. If he’s not signed for longer than three years it could hurt his trade value. As an example, Russo believes the Sabres wouldn’t be interested in Fiala as part of a trade for Eichel if he’s on a short-term contract.

TWINCITIES.COM: The Wild GM is expected to keep an eye on the market to fill some holes at forward. If nothing’s available via trade, he could dip in the shrinking free-agent pool. Some available veterans include James Neal, Tomas Tatar, Tyler Bozak and Kyle Palmieri.