Friedman: Rumours swirled at draft Oilers asked Evander Kane to waive no-movement clause

The Edmonton Oilers were busy at the NHL draft Friday and Saturday trading up into the first round to select Sam O’Reilly, and use their other six to select a variety of prospects.

And while other teams were wheeling and dealing with some big trades shaking out, there were rumours that the Oilers had asked winger Evander Kane to waive their no-movement clause, according to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman.

But as of now, Friedman says, they are just rumours.

“There were rumours they had asked Evander Kane to waive his no-move clause, but as of Saturday, that had not occurred,” he said on the 32 Thoughts podcast. “That’s another one to keep in mind.

“We’ll see if that becomes a thing at all, but as of Saturday, it had not happened.”

Kane, 32, joined the Oilers partway through the 2021-22 season as a free agent, signing a deal through the remainder of that season. He was electric for the team that year, scoring 22 goals and 39 points in 43 regular season games, adding another 13 goals and 17 points in the playoffs that season — a goal total that led all playoff performers.

That offseason, Kane signed a four-year contract paying him a $5.125-million per year, carrying a full no-movement clause that is in place through Feb. 28, 2025, just ahead of next years trade deadline.

The last two season have seen Kane struggle with injury. In the 2022-23 season, he played in 41 games scoring 16 goals and 28 points, but suffered a gruesome wrist injury. Not long after his return from that, he suffered a rib injury that hampered him throughout the remainder of the season.

Kane saw his ice-time dip this season from averaging 19:05 through the first two seasons, down to 16:47 this year. He remained relatively healthy, playing in 77 games scoring 24 goals and 44 points, but said ahead of the playoffs he had been dealing with a sports hernia injury.

He appeared in 20 playoff games this year scoring four goals and eight points, but missed the final four games of the Stanley Cup Finals as the injury flared back up.

The Oilers, meanwhile, find themselves in a bit of a cap crunch this offseason. They have 10 unrestricted free agents and two restricted ones to try and re-sign, while only having $9-million in cap space to do so. They re-signed Calvin Pickard to serve as their backup goaltender, filling one spot on the roster, but still have lots of work to do.

The team could still buy out goaltender Jack Campbell in a move that would free up $3.9-million, but other relief could come from trading a player off the roster. Kane, along with the likes of Cody Ceci ($3.25-million AAV) and Brett Kulak ($2.75-million AAV), are the most likely players who could be dealt to do so.

On Friday, Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli said he felt it was “more likely than not” that Kane would be back with the Oilers next season.

Zach Laing is the Nation Network’s news director and senior columnist. He can be followed on Twitter at @zjlaing, or reached by email at zach@thenationnetwork.com.