Monday Mailbag – Top Free Agent Targets for the Edmonton Oilers

As per tradition around these parts, I’ve taken the questions that have come in over the past week, relayed them to our writers, and copied and pasted their words of wisdom right here on the ol’ Internet machine in a brand new edition of the Mailbag. Today, we’re looking at realistic offseason targets, trades vs. free agency, first round exits, and a whole lot more. If you’ve got got a question you’d like to ask, email it to me at baggedmilk@oilersnation.com or hit me up on Twitter at @jsbmbaggedmilk and I’ll get to you as soon as we can.

I think Blake Coleman is the most realistic free agent for me, though I expect he’ll have his choice of suitors. Obviously, it would be great if it was Landeskog or something like that but there’s no way Colorado lets him walk — that’s not what good teams do.

I would prefer the Oilers add a couple of forwards rather than splurging on one and this year’s market is ideal for such a play. Some combination of Phillip Danault, Tomas Tatar, Blake Coleman, or Brandon Saad would be good.

Holland will have to make a combination of free agent signings and trades. Even with more cap space, he doesn’t have enough money to overpay too many players from the UFA market even if they want to come here.

I hope we get a combo package with both free agent signings and trades. Relying on free agency won’t work because then we’ll get stuck with more Milan Lucics and Benoit Pouliots on the books long after they’re gone.

It isn’t easy to build a team through free agency because the reality is you have to overpay for players. You can tweak and add depth to your roster on the open market but each contract you sign carries a risk of blowing up. Think about the year in which Milan Lucic, Kyle Okposo, Loui Eriksson, and so on were signed and every single one of those deals ended up being a problem.

I need to know what happens with Tyson Barrie and Oscar Klefbom before I can even guess about pairings.

I wish we knew more about what is going on with Klefbom because that would be a major addition in itself. If our first two LHD would be Nurse and Klefbom then I think we’re in a pretty good spot. Until we find that out, I really don’t know what to expect on the back end.

Darnell Nurse is going to command a huge salary and even Adam Larsson won’t be all too cheap to keep around. Spending more money on the blueline might not be realistic, especially given the holes up front.

Toronto. A sweep stings the pride, but the series with Winnipeg was close despite the result, Blowing a 3-1 lead in a series you’re favored to win is tougher to take. It just doesn’t happen very often.

Toronto’s collapse is way worse. Don’t get me wrong, getting swept was horrible but there was no point in the series when the Oilers were only one win away from moving on and blew it.

Edmonton’s loss was quick and ugly but blowing a 3-1 lead to the lowest-seeded team in all of the playoffs is a huge embarrassment. I’ll take being swept by the Jets over that. Both are awful, though.

If you count McLeod as an Oiler and not a Condor, then it’s linemates Tyler Benson and Cooper Marody for me. Oilers need the offensive contribution they’ve shown capable of producing at the AHL level.

I’d guess Benson, but even then I don’t know that it’s necessarily a sure thing either.

You’d think Tyler Benson and Cooper Marody have earned an extended look by this point. I don’t think Rafael Lavoie is all that far off either.

During this time of pandemic, Oodle Noodle will be donating a portion of all takeout and curbside delivery sales will be donated to local charities on a weekly basis. To order pick up, call into the store directly or order at the till. If you’re staying in and practicing your social distancing, no-contact delivery is available at www.oodlenoodle.ca.