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!
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Oilersnation
Trading For A Veteran Defender
- On Friday’s episode of The Jeff Marek Show, Elliotte Friedman talked about how he figured that Ken Holland will be willing to go all-in ahead of this year’s trade deadline. He specifically mentioned the left side of the blueline as a place that Holland would likely be looking to add…
“I look at their roster and I can see them adding someone like Ben Chiarot on the blueline. The other question for them is in goal. Mike Smith is competitive, he’s a better player at this stage of his career than any of us thought he would be, but the issue is can he stay healthy. Only Ken Holland and the Oilers know the answer to that.” – Friedman
- Chiarot is one of three Montreal defenders, Brett Kulak and Chris Wideman being the others, who are set to become unrestricted free agents at the end of the season.
- Through 19 games this season, Chiarot is second to only Jeff Petry on the Habs in ice-time, logging 23:02 per game. He logged 21:47 per game for the team last year during the regular season and was leaned on heavily in the playoffs, logging 25:15 per game, the most of any Habs defender.
- If the Kraken wind up being sellers, there’s one soon-to-be free agent name really stands out as a potential addition to boost Edmonton’s blueline — Mark Giordano.
BLH’s Thoughts: Friedman and Stauffer talked about this on Oilers Now yesterday and to be honest, not a whole lot of new information was released. Stauffer said that he heard Montreal wants a first rounder for him and Friedman doubled-down on his stance from his spot on The Jeff Marek Show the day prior by saying he’s certain the Habs will get that for him.
There’s no doubt that Holland is going to upgrade the team and that the Oilers’ futures are all on the table. We’re about to get a glimpse of what throwing a 20yr rookie into a big-minutes role with this squad looks like and if that plan falters, our Stanley Cup-winning GM may be forced to make a trade earlier than he expected.
I don’t have any problems with Ben Chiarot. He was a monster for Montreal in the playoffs last year but he was also paired with Shea Weber and I’d be willing to bet that played a huge factor in his performance. Could he reproduce that effort alongside Cody Ceci in a shutdown role?
Acquiring Mark Giordano would be such a McDavid-era Oilers thing to do, but trading for big name vets at the deadline also falls under Ken Holland’s modus operandi. I don’t have a problem with it though because he’s such a warrior and in the playoffs those kinds of players can catch fire and can be a real inspiration to teammates. Ron Francis knows this though and he’s just biding his time before he gets a king’s ransom for the former Flames captain.
Edmonton Sun
OILERS NOTES: Keith set for reunion with Blackhawks
- It only took 17 games for Duncan Keith’s NHL career to come full circle… After 16 seasons with the Chicago Blackhawks, the not-so-long awaited reunion is Saturday night… Maybe not as weird and nostalgic as it will be when the Oilers visit Chicago on March 3, but it will still be an emotional night.
- Keith hasn’t been here long, but he’s already made a big impact on the Oilers. He’s a popular guy who fits seamlessly into the culture here and he’s given them most of what they’ve asked for in a second pairing role.
- Head coach Dave Tippett played Keith 26:49 in the overtime win over Winnipeg and sees him getting better as he becomes more comfortable in his surroundings. He also plans on having him take up some of the hard minutes left behind by an injured Darnell Nurse.
BLH’s Thoughts: Keith spent the last three or so seasons playing on a poor Chicago Blackhawk’s team’s top pairing. So getting shifted up a slot in Edmonton won’t be an unfamiliar feeling for him and I think to some extent, that’s part of the reason Holland acquired him, as insurance in case Nurse got hurt.
The question now is, on a better hockey team, will Keith be able to handle the responsibility?
I’m figuring that Keith should do okay against his former team, seeing as he practiced day in and day out against Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews for nearly his entire career before this season; he should have some inside tips on how to handle them most effectively.
Another reunion is set for tonight as well as Caleb Jones and Jujhar Khaira are set to return to Edmonton for the first time since becoming Chicago Blackhawks this summer.
NHLRumors.com
- Josh Yohe of The Athletic: (mailbag) It’s too early to say if the Pittsburgh Penguins will be out of the playoff race and be sellers at the deadline. It’s also too early to say how big a rebuild could happen.
- If they do look to sell, could see Jake Guentzel, Bryan Rust and Brian Dumoulin being available for the right price.
- Would the Penguins look at moving Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang if teams came calling? Would you take a first-round pick and a top-level prospect for Malkin or Letang?
- Iain MacIntyre of Sportsnet: Vancouver Canucks GM Jim Benning spoke to the media yesterday about their awful start to the season… Benning met with ownership on Tuesday and has their support for now. Benning wouldn’t promise security for head coach Travis Green.
- As for looking to make a trade, the Canucks are dealing from a position of weakness and teams are circling. For now, they may ride it out but they are talking to teams.
- Chris Johnston of the Toronto Star: (mailbag) The Edmonton Oilers are trying to win this year and expect them to look for some veteran players in the last year of their contracts. Injuries will play a part in what they look to add but can see adding a goaltender and a defenseman.
- Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet: A KHL free agent forward to keep an eye on is Andrei Kuzmenko. There is a lot of interest in the 26-year old.
- Previous trade talks involving Chicago Blackhawks forward Dylan Strome had them looking for a prospect or draft pick.
