1LINE C?

I’ve been operating under the assumption that the Edmonton Oilers plan to bring in a 2 line center. A “Gagner replacement” and someone who will play between RNH at the top and Boyd Gordon/Mark Arcobello down below. What if the Oilers plan this summer is to hire a 1line C, and have the Nuge kill the soft parade?

Parkatti wrote an excellent piece on the subject here, it’s a terrific read.

The main point for our purposes today is the idea that bringing in a 1line center, a more veteran center, is a better idea than bringing in a secondary guy. Put another way, instead of talking about Nazem Kadri or Sean Couturier, we might be talking about Ryan O’Reilly or Paul Stastny.

In the case of O’Reilly and Stastny, money. Lots and lots of money. They are both free agents, and have a high degree of value. Over at Fansided’s Mile High Sticking, Avs fans were asked to vote on which one to play, and the results are significant.

This is the Vollman, and I’m using Corsi Rel (players relative to their teammates). Both players are getting tough competition and similar zone starts, and both have good to very good numbers. Offensively, they’re sold, and both are quality in the faceoff circle, although O’Reilly took many fewer this season.

Assuming the Avs can sign only one, which player would you like to see in an Oiler uniform? Does it make sense to pay the max (this will be a grand contract, well past Hall’s $6 million) and to hire a center who is more experienced? Thus allowing the Nuge to kill the softs?

Make no mistake, we’re talking about spending the defensive money on a center. However, with Parkatti’s information, and understanding the Nuge needs some help, is this a better plan?

It might be.