Recently, TSN’s Frank Seravalli was on Oilers talk radio (TSN1260) and speculated whether or not Ryan Nugent-Hopkins could be part of the Edmonton Oilers’ future considering what he’s heard with regards to the forward’s contract negotiations.
This is what was said during his spot on the Jan.14th edition of Lowetide’s show,
LT=Lowetide
FS=Frank Seravalli
LT: I think he’s just more valuable to other teams who’ll use him as a center and don’t have Draisaitl and McDavid.
FS: I would say that just from making calls and trying to understand the situation, the way that I framed it about “fits and starts”, at the time it seemed like there was progress being made. I don’t think anyone is questioning for one second about RNH and his interest in being in Edmonton and his teammates interest in keeping him and making sure that he stays around. Even the organization itself, this guy in the market is a fan-favorite. Everyone likes him.
In a perfect world, I think he would like him to be back and everyone would like to have him, the question is, how much has the market changed with the pandemic and are there teams that don’t have the same luxury that the Oilers do? Do they make a play that’s bigger just simply than what the Oilers can afford to pay?
I think the Oilers, personally, and I don’t have this as fact, but it may help frame the conversation, I said that I think the Oilers don’t want to go north of $7M. I think they’re stuck at a very maximum ceiling of $6.75M and I think that the first week of conversations it was significantly lower than that.
The question you have to ask yourself if you’re in the Nuge camp is, Can we do better on the open market? How much better can we do? And will there be a fit and a comfortablility factor that exists out there that we can feel good all the way around with money and fit?
The longer it drags on, you (the Oilers) start to think, is there a better fit for us than Nuge that we can dole those dollars out to and spend that money in a different manner?
It makes perfect sense for both sides to explore all available options and I’m near 100% certain that #93 could better his personal situation by leaving Edmonton. There are plenty of teams looking for no.1 centers who’ll have enough cap room to sign him or the assets to acquire him.
I wonder if the New York Rangers, Columbus Blue Jackets, Winnipeg Jets, Minnesota Wild, LA Kings, Anaheim Ducks, Ottawa Senators, and Detroit Red Wings could use a player like RNH?
LT: I just feel like if you’re Ken Holland you’re looking to sign a winger, so Nuge’s center ability is part and parcel because if somebody gets hurt that’s a great utility, but if you’re going to spend that much money you might go after a Taylor Hall, a winger who is dynamic, or you might sign Kahun and another guy and put less force on the top-end of your salary cap.
FS: And spend it on your defence if you wanted to.
LT: You have to respect where Ken Holland wants to spend his money and an expensive left-winger might not be in the cards.
Why is it that teams like Toronto and Edmonton feel like they can try and ride their star forwards to a Cup without addressing the overall defense of the club?
I love The Nuge, but I’ll say this until they either win the Stanley Cup or they make the change philosophically, this team MUST address team defense before anything or else they risk being a good team who was fun to watch during the McDavid years.
The ironic part of this whole conversation is that Nugent-Hopkins is one of the team’s better defensive forwards if not THE best one, but it sounds like he wants to be paid like a top-scorer.
I’m just looking at Dougie Hamilton possibly hitting the market or someone from Carolina becoming available if he re-ups with the club and seeing an instant upgrade on the Oilers defense. I mean, what are we talking about if Edmonton’s defense looks like this in the event Oscar Klefbom returns after this season,
Klefbom/Hamilton
Nurse/Bear
Jones/Bouchard
Koekkoek
Could a left-winger like Tomas Tatar or Nikita Gusev be convinced to take less pay to play alongside Connor McDavid or Leon Draisaitl instead of Nugent-Hopkins?
What are your thoughts? Would you sacrifice one for the good of the whole or should the onus be “get good players, keep good players no matter the cost”? Let us know in the comments below!
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