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!
The latest NHL news, rumors, and speculation comes from all of the internet’s top sites like Spector’s Hockey, The Fourth Period, NHL Trade Talk, The Hockey Writers, Sportsnet, and TSN just to name a few!
If you’re short on time but want to keep up with the day’s Oilers news, you’ve come to the right place!
Give us a follow on the socials!
- Youtube: Beer League Heroes Channel
- Twitter: @beerleagueheroe
- Instagram: @beerleagueheroes
- Facebook: Beer League Heroes
Lowetide.ca
PLAYOFF OILERS
- Evander Kane—Connor McDavid—Jesse Puljujarvi
- Warren Foegele—Leon Draisaitl—Reilly Smith
- Zach Hyman—Ryan Nugent-Hopkins—Kailer Yamamoto
- Tyler Motte—Ryan McLeod—Zack Kassian
- Darnell Nurse—Evan Bouchard
- Alex Edler—Tyson Barrie
- Duncan Keith—Cody Ceci
- Semyon Varlamov—Mike Smith (Stuart Skinner)
BLH’s Thoughts: This is LT’s proposed playoff roster and he said not to get hung up on names and that he didn’t think Holland would do this much. Lowetide reckoned that goaltending is a must and defense should be a priority.
I’m hesitant to switch up the goaltenders and Bob Stauffer even spoke to that yesterday morning. I’ve been saying it for a while now, don’t be surprised if Holland doesn’t do anything with the netminding until the summer IF Smith, Koskinen, and Skinner can carry them through to the playoffs. It’s a dangerous gamble, but this Oilers GM doesn’t panic or make panic trades.
Did you hear Stauffer asking Elliotte Friedman about Carter Hart on Friday? We were just talking about Hart last month, weren’t we? Interesting…
Anyway, Bob asked Friedman if there was any way the Flyers would part with Hart for a young forward and a draft pick and the insider said he couldn’t see that happening.
Tellin’ ya, now’s the time to overpay for a guy like Hart and as much as I’d hate to see him play for another team, I think it’d cost Pulju, Skinner, and some high picks .
Now, my personal feeling is that instead of attending to the left side of the defense where the team has a plethora of options, they should alter the right side and possible send Tyson Barrie somewhere to get their shutdown dman.
Two big names come to mind, Dallas defender John Klingberg and Colin Miller in Buffalo. Obviously one being cheaper to acquire than the other but both very serviceable with regards to what the Oilers need heading into the post-season.
You know, if the club didn’t screw Jeff Petry around before, they could probably trade for him…
To a lesser degree, I wonder about Travis Hamonic and Luke Schenn out of Vancouver, and a massive wildcard playing for the Islander named Scott Mayfield.
I like LT’s suggestion of Tyler Motte though. He’s an energy guy with speed and tenacity but I do wonder what separates him from Colton Sceviour. Reilly Smith is a pipe dream, mind you. Phil Kessel might be a more realistic option there and even then, I think Edmonton’s chances of adding “The Thrill” are limited at best.
I’m just thinking out loud here. Covering the bases, if you will, and as it stands, any deal is going to be hard to complete with Edmonton being so tight to the cap.
Lowetide.ca
- Evander Kane-Connor McDavid-Jesse Puljujarvi
- Warren Foegele-Leon Draisaitl-Kailer Yamamoto
- Zach Hyman-Nuge-Derek Ryan
- Brendan Perlini-Ryan McLeod-Zack Kassian
- Darnell Nurse-Evan Bouchard
- Duncan Keith-Cody Ceci
- Kris Russell-Tyson Barrie
- Mike Smith (Mikko Koskinen)
- Extras: Tyler Benson, William Lagesson, Stuart Skinner
BLH’s Thoughts: Here’s what LT said he’d run with after the all-star break and it’s not too bad. Here are my concerns though,
- The third pair is too small. Call up Niemelainen and leave Lagesson in Bakersfield to solve that. If Barrie can be moved (straight across for Connor Murphy?), that’s worth exploring. I wonder about Josh Brown (OTT) too.
- Move McLeod to RNH’s LW, Hyman to Nuge’s RW, and Derek Ryan down to the 4th line because he fades out hard if he’s played too much and/or above his ability.
- Perlini has scored a couple of goals this year, but he’s largely invisible for long stretches of games. I would prefer Devin Shore as he asserts himself in a much stronger manner, plus he’s a key part of Edmonton’s PK.
I do think that Jesse should go back to the first line because even though he’s staying afloat on Leon’s wing with Foegele, I don’t feel like that line has a lot of chemistry.
What is this team going to do with Tyler Benson? I really respect that he’s pivoted his playing style to stay with the Oilers, but he isn’t pissing a drop when he gets ice time. You have to agree that it appears his time is limited in Edmonton, no?
Spector’s Hockey
- TSN:Pierre LeBrun reports a league source suggested a scenario that the Dallas Stars could become a team with interest in Montreal Canadiens defenseman Jeff Petry if they move John Klingberg, a pending free agent who has requested a trade. The idea would see them replace Klingberg with the 34-year Petry.
- SPORTSNET: Elliotte Friedman believes the Vancouver Canucks could be considering re-signing J.T. Miller instead of trading him. That’s one reason why other names like Conor Garland have surfaced in the rumor mill.
- Friedman cited colleague Jeff Marek recently mentioning Florida Panthers forward Owen Tippett as a possible trade candidate. He also suggested Frank Vatrano as another.
- TSN: Chris Johnston reports teams in need of salary-cap relief could be in touch with the Arizona Coyotes before the trade deadline.
BLH’s Thoughts: Consider the Edmonton Oilers as one of those teams who might use Arizona as a 3rd party to facilitate a trade.
