FESTIVUS EVE QUESTION: WHO WON THAT CRAZY TRADE, AND WHY NOT?
By Lowetide
7 years ago
Anton Slepyshev was a key player in a wild and crazy pair of deals made by Craig MacTavish on draft weekend, 2013. The trade (one second round pick for what would turn into five selections) has produced three young men who are trying to make their way as NHL players, with (possibly) more to come. We last looked in during June’s lead up to the draft, let’s see what has changed.
THE TRADES
- June 30, 2013—Oilers trade No. 37 overall to
Los Angeles Kings. LAK use selection to draft Valentin Zykov. Oilers
acquire selections 57, 88 and 96. - June 30, 2013—Oilers trade No. 57 overall to St.Louis Blues. STL use
selection to draft William Carrier. Oilers acquire selections 83, 94
and 113.
So, bottom line is this:
- Edmonton traded Valentin Zykov to Los Angeles for Bogdan Yakimov, Anton Slepyshev, Jackson Houck, Kyle Platzer and Aidan Muir.
- William Carrier is also a player of interest, although only as a curio.
Let’s start with an overview of NHL games played so far:
- Anton Slepyshev 26gp, 2-3-5
- William Carrier 21gp, 1-1-2
- Bogdan Yakimov 1gp, 0-0-0
Of course there is much of the story to be written for all of these men, so let’s fill in the blanks.
- LW WILLIAM CARRIER. Now with the Buffalo Sabres (he was part of the Ryan Miller trade in Feb 2014), Carrier made his NHL debut earlier this year and has now played in 21 games.
- Coach Dan Bylsma:
“He’s just going, head down, bruising the way for those guys to get pucks and play with that puck.” - He is 0.62 5×5 per 60 at the NHL level in 194 minutes.
- Source
- RW Valentin Zykov. Now a part of the Carolina Hurricanes organization, he was the key to the original deal, as Los Angeles valued him highly. The Kings dealt Zykov to Carolina for Kris Versteeg at the deadline in February 2016.
- So far with the Charlotte Checkers of the AHL, Zykov has scored 27gp, 8-5-13. The prospect site Prospect-Stats estimated Zykov is playing about 14:30 a night at even strength and scoring 1.25 5×5 points-per-60. That is shy of a true NHL talent.
All photos by Mark Williams
- Anton Slepyshev played 165 minutes at 5×5 with the Oilers earlier this year, going 2-2-4 in 15 games.
- He posted a 1.45 5×5/60 total, not bad for the role he played and his spot in the batting order.
- Source
- He shot at a 8.00 shots-per-60 pace while with the Oilers this year.
- He is 4gp, 2-3-5 so far in Bakersfield, a far stronger performance than we saw one year ago.
- Bogdan Yakimov continues to ply his trade in the KHL.
- He is 33gp, 3-5-8 while playing 8:47 a night for Neftekhimik.
- That works out to about 1.67/60, including all game states (EV, PP, PK).
- He owes the Oilers another year, but the organization may well move on from him. They have done so in the past with men like Teemu Hartikainen (trade) and Toni Rajala (buyout).
THE REST
- Kyle Platzer is averaging 11:30 a night at 5×5 but posting only 0.95 points per 60 in the discipline for the Bakersfield Condors. That suggests he is shy of NHL checking line level offense, but he still has time on an entry-level deal.
- Aidan Muir was enjoying a quality season with Western Michigan, but an injury sidelined him. Coach Andy Murray: Aidan had a real good freshman
year for us, second year for whatever reason, focus was not there the
same way. He struggled last season. This summer, he took a huge step
forward, refocused, prepared really well and was playing as well as
anyone on our team when he got hurt. He’s going to come back, he’s got a
chance. He is a big forward and he has some belief in his game. Source - Jackson Houck went unsigned by Edmonton after his junior career, and now plays in the ECHL for the Colorado Eagles.
AND ANOTHER PIECE OF THE PUZZLE FALLS INTO PLACE
At this point, you might be tempted to call this trade Anton Slepyshev for William Carrier and call it a draw. Except, the trade, made originally by Los Angeles, was for Valentin Zykov. For me, this is a net positive for former GM Craig MacTavish, even if no other draft pick plays in the NHL for Edmonton. MacT dealt down, grabbed some extra picks in a draft that his scouts felt had value, and the Slepyshev selection appears to have covered the bet all by its lonesome.
Agree?
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