Oilers sign Markus Granlund to a one-year contract
By baggedmilk
4 years agoAccording to our own Jason Gregor, the Edmonton Oilers have signed forward, Markus Granlund, to a one-year contract.
The Oilers are kicking off their free agency period with a new goalie and a new bottom six forward in the form of Markus Granlund. Last season, the 26-year-old centre/winger played in 77 games with the Vancouver Canucks in a defensive role (41.4 oZS%) and I imagine it will be much the same with our beloved Oilers. Despite having some decent offensive skills and playmaking abilities, Granlund has never really been able to have them translate consistently at the NHL level, though, he did register 19 goals with the Canucks back in 2016-17.
Last week, Gregor wrote about Granlund as a potential option for the bottom six:
Markus Granlund scored 19-13-32 in 69 games in 2017, then got banged up in 2018 and produced 8-4-12 in 53 games and last season potted 12-10-22 in 77 games. All three season were with the Canucks. He, along with Brandon Sutter, were their top two PK forwards in PK TOI the past three seasons. The Canucks PK was 29th in 2017, 21st in 2018 and 11th last season. He is listed as a C, but he has played more wing than centre the past three years. He was sixth, seventh and sixth on the Canucks in total faceoffs in each of the past three seasons. His GF% at 5×5 is an ugly 40%, and the rest of his underlying numbers are less than ideal. I’d pass if anything more than a one year deal.
In Granlund, the Oilers pick up a player that will be able to help chip in with a little bit of offence from their bottom six, something they sorely lacked in 2018-19, but I wouldn’t expect too much more than that. What will be interesting, though, is seeing how this affects the rest of the bottom six. Obviously, someone will need to come out to clear a spot for our new toy and it will be interesting to see what else Old Dutch has up his sleeve.
In 77 games played with the Canucks last year, Granlund scored 12 goals and 10 assists for 22 points while averaging 15:03 in time on ice. If you’re into the fancies, Granlund posted a CF% of 48.5, a PDO of 99.7, and an xGF of 32.3 last year in Vancouver. At the time of posting, Granlund’s contract details have not yet been released but I’ll be sure to jump in and update things as news comes out.
***UPDATE***
GRANLUND’S NHL CAREER SO FAR
| Season | Team | Lge | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | +/- | PGP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013-14 | Calgary Flames | NHL | 7 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2014-15 | Calgary Flames | NHL | 48 | 8 | 10 | 18 | 16 | -4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 2014-15 | Adirondack Flames | AHL | 21 | 9 | 8 | 17 | 14 | -2 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2015-16 | Stockton Heat | AHL | 12 | 5 | 4 | 9 | 10 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2015-16 | Calgary Flames | NHL | 31 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 8 | -1 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2015-16 | Vancouver Canucks | NHL | 16 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 6 | -3 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2016-17 | Vancouver Canucks | NHL | 69 | 19 | 13 | 32 | 14 | -19 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2017-18 | Vancouver Canucks | NHL | 53 | 8 | 4 | 12 | 8 | -10 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2018-19 | Vancouver Canucks | NHL | 77 | 12 | 10 | 22 | 20 | -4 | — | — | — | — | — |
| NHL Totals | 301 | 55 | 42 | 97 | 72 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
Recent articles from baggedmilk
