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!
Edmonton Sun (Jim Matheson)
OILERS NOTES: Mike Smith is a big fan of Zach Hyman’s competitive fire
- Goalies watch the puck, but also guys on other teams… And Mike Smith has seen more than enough of Zach Hyman in the Edmonton Oilers’ latest games against Toronto to know the winger is exactly what they need in their top-six…
- “I’ve hated playing against Zach. He was kind of an Oiler killer this season. Every time he’s on the ice, you know he’s out there. He’s kind of the driving force on whatever line he’s on. He’s one of those players you hate to play against but you want them on your team. Hopefully we land him. Not too many players bring that kind of energy to a hockey team,” said Smith.
- Smith was tickled to have Duncan Keith added to the mix in a Chicago trade.
- “He’s an elite defenceman who will bring a calmness to our D core. I really believe adding veteran players is important to the growth of young guys. He can solidify the defence on the left side and I’m sure he’ll help the young guys develop,”
- The Oilers passed on goalie Jesper Wallstedt at No. 20, but TSN’s scouting savant Craig Button is an Xavier Bourgault fan.
- “Really strong two-way player, intense and competitive like (Jean-Gabriel) Pageau. Invested in the areas where the game is hard, he doesn’t play on the outside. Smart in his game like (Patrice) Bergeron, a lower-case Bergeron. He’s not exactly those guys but his approach is similar.”
BLH’s Thoughts: I love that Smith is 100% on board with what Ken Holland is doing this summer. He’s a major influencer in the Oilers locker room and he’s also somebody who doesn’t give two shits about what the fans have to say. The players get it because they’re the ones on the battlefield and that’s something the fans and chart makers will never understand.
Man, if Bourgault’s floor is JG Pageau and his ceiling is Patrice Bergeron, the Oilers are in good shape and it will help me forget about the team passing on a future no.1 goalie.
Edmonton Sun (Craig Ellingson)
Oil Spills: Oilers free-agency primer
- Who the Oilers can target to replace Adam Larsson, who surprisingly signed with the Seattle Kraken earlier this week just prior to the NHL Expansion Draft.
- The prospect of bringing back Tyson Barrie, last season’s regular-season points leader among NHL defencemen.
- Options among the bottom-six forwards.
- Goaltending, specifically the Mikko Koskinen situation.
BLH’s Thoughts: So, basically the answers to those questions from Matheson are:
- David Savard, Erik Johnson Travis Hamonic, or internal solutions like Philip Broberg or Dmitri Samorukov.
- Matheson speculated that the Oilers could find a way to get the Avs to retain $2M on Johnson in a trade because they’re looking to transition their defense to a younger group.
- The Oilers CAN bring Barrie back but they have Evan Bouchard already in the lineup and he’s an offensive dman as well. The team would still need a right-shot shutdown defenseman.
- The Oilers would take Khaira back at 900k but are prepared to lose him via free agency. They need a third line center but that might cost upwards of $3.5M/yr.
- The Oilers are going to really pursue Linus Ullmark hard. Tristan Jarry (PIT) and Korpisalo (CBJ) are also in Edmonton’s range of the kind of netminder they’re looking for.
Is this the summer that Ken Holland hits all his targets after missing on some big ones last year? He’s already brought in Duncan Keith, Zach Hyman looks to be a certainty, and all that’s left is Linus Ullmark and that right-shot defender whoever that may be.
Now, every year there’s a move that doesn’t turn out, the problem is, those holes that Ken Holland is trying to fill are incredibly important areas and the team really cannot afford to shit the bed in any of them this upcoming season.
NHLRumors.com
- Chris Johnston: Toronto Maple Leafs GM Kyle Dubas on a potential Zach Hyman sign-and-trade with the Edmonton Oilers:
- “I know that there’s a narrative that we should just get something, but when you’re saving a team significant dollars on the salary cap that comes with a cost, and we’re not going to bend on that.”
- John Gambadoro: The Arizona Coyotes and Vancouver Canucks did talk about goaltender Braden Holtby being a part of their trade.
- Darcy Kuemper has been getting interest. The Colorado Avalanche have been one of the main teams interested. It would make sense for the Coyotes to explore Holtby.
- Dan Kingerski: The Boston Bruins are among the teams interested in Kuemper.
BLH’s Thoughts: Good on Dubas for standing pat. He feels like getting nothing instead of something for Hyman is the right thing to do and I’m all for it. I don’t think Holland should be paying to get the LWers rights anyhow.
I wonder if Holtby could be a target for Edmonton should they fail to acquire a younger goalie? Maybe a Koskinen/Holtby swap would make sense?
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