Oilers dump a contract on the Panthers

According to their official Twitter, the Oilers have dealt forward Greg Chase to the Florida Panthers in exchange for future considerations. Chase, a local player from Sherwood park, was a seventh-round pick back in 2013 and has 17 points in 17 games with the Wichita Thunder of the ECHL.

The purpose of this trade for the Oilers was dumping one of their professional contracts. With Chase in the Panthers organization, the Oilers have 48 players under contract. If Nathan Walker is selected on waivers, they’ll be down to 47, giving them plenty of room to make trades.

The Oilers, as we know, have quite a bit of cap space to work with. Peter Chiarelli’s plan this summer was to roll into the season and give opportunities to players already in the organization — Drake Caggiula, JJ Khaira, Anton Slepyshev, and Matt Benning — to take on a bigger role. But with the team sitting 15th in the Western Conference, we could see Chiarelli pull the trigger on a rental acquisition sooner rather than later.

Also, according to the Bakersfield Condors Twitter, the organization has loaned defenceman Mark Fayne to the Springfield Falcons. The Oilers are still on the hook for his contract and buried cap hit (which expires at the end of this season), but he won’t be filling up a roster spot on their AHL team. Fayne has only played six games for the Condors this season as the organization has clearly prioritized giving ice time to players like Ethan Bear, Caleb Jones, and Dillon Simpson who could have a future with the team.