Seravalli’s Trade Board — Players who might interest the Oilers
By Cam Lewis
2 years agoThe calm before the storm.
That’s where we’re at right now, five days after the Tampa Bay Lightning lifted the Stanley Cup for the second summer in a row and the NHL’s off-season officially began.
Over at Daily Faceoff, Frank Seravalli updated his off-season Trade Board, listing 25 names who are in play this summer. He also mentioned that things are going to heat up soon, though the action might not heat up until after the Seattle Kraken Expansion Draft on July 21.
Here are some of the names from Seravalli’s Trade Board who could be of interest to the Oilers…
No. 5: @Conor Garland
“Scoop: The Coyotes have not treated Garland like the player who was the heartbeat of their team. Garland’s camp, led by agent Peter Cooney, submitted two contract proposals (as requested by the club) on May 20 and there has been zero communication or dialogue since. “We’re just looking for Conor to be paid respectfully like the core player he was for the Coyotes,” Cooney told Daily Faceoff on Tuesday. It appears that will be elsewhere, which is no real shock given that Arizona nearly moved Garland in the days prior to April’s trade deadline.“
It appears there’s going to be a firesale in the desert this summer. The Coyotes are rumoured to be looking to move captain Oliver Ekman-Larsson along with other quality players such as Phil Kessel and Conor Garland.
Garland, a restricted free agent with a couple more years of team control left, has been a sparkplug for the Coyotes in his three seasons in the NHL. 2019-20 was a breakout for Garland, as he scored 22 goals in 68 games, and he followed that up with 12 goals in just 49 games in 2021. Through three seasons, Garland is a plus-21 in terms of even-strength, on-ice goal differential, impressive given how bad the Coyotes have been.
With Kailer Yamamoto and Jesse Puljujarvi, right wing isn’t Edmonton’s more glaring need, but they should be interested in just about any forward who can put the puck in the back of the net.
No. 9: @Duncan Keith
“Scoop: Keith hired a new agent in Edmonton-based Gerry Johansson in an attempt to help facilitate a trade from Chicago, where he’s won three Stanley Cups, two Norris Trophies and a Conn Smythe Trophy. Keith is interested in playing for four teams – all in the same general NHL geographic region: Calgary, Edmonton, Seattle or Vancouver. To this point, the Blackhawks have been unwilling to retain salary. The Oilers have unquestionably shown interest, putting defenseman Caleb Jones on the table. Two questions remain: 1) Can a deal with Edmonton be revived? 2) Do the Seattle Kraken have interest?”
We already know all about the Duncan Keith rumours.
The three-time Stanley Cup champion and two-time Norris Trophy winner wants to move closer to his family in Penticton, British Columbia, making Edmonton one of four possible destinations.
As Seravalli reports, the Blackhawks don’t want to retain salary on his contract, which has an annual value of $5,538,462 for two more seasons. It’s difficult to see the Oilers pulling the trigger on a deal unless Chicago is willing to retain some of that money.
No. 15: @Tyler Bertuzzi
“Scoop: If not for a fluke back injury that ended his season and resulted in surgery on April 30, there would be a long list of takers for Bertuzzi. But the back injury, given his ferocious forechecking style of play, and the need for a new contract may have teams thinking twice. Bertuzzi was off to the best start of his career with seven points in nine games before an innocent spill left his back to sudden seizures. The 2020 All-Star representative was nothing if not consistent before that, with back-to-back 21-goal seasons.”
As I mentioned earlier, right wing isn’t Edmonton’s glaring need up front. The team needs to add to the left side of their forward group this off-season.
Tyler Bertuzzi, a big, strong, physical winger who can put the puck in the net, makes all kinds of sense from Edmonton’s perspective. He missed all but nine games last season due to a back injury but scored 21 goals in back-to-back seasons in 2018-19 and 2019-20 on a miserable Red Wings club. He could be a perfect fit alongside Connor McDavid.
Feb 21, 2021; Stateline, Nevada, USA; Boston Bruins left wing Jake DeBrusk (74) during the first period in the NHL Outdoors hockey game against the Philadelphia Flyers at Lake Tahoe.
No. 16: @Jake DeBrusk
“Scoop: One of the NHL’s more consistent, young goal-scoring wingers found himself on the outside of the Bruins’ lineup in Game 5 of the second round. It was the fourth time DeBrusk was healthy scratched by Bruce Cassidy last season, leaving Cassidy to say after the season that the two needed to sit down and find ‘common ground.’ If Taylor Hall re-signs, that gives Boston more flexibility to explore a fresh start for DeBrusk.”
Sticking with big, physical left wingers who can score, we have a familiar name in Jake DeBrusk.
As we know, Jake’s dad, Louie DeBrusk, played for the Oilers back in the 1990s and has been a part of the team’s television broadcasts for years. Now, that isn’t a reason to acquire a player, but DeBrusk boasts a skillset that the Oilers could certainly use and this would be a buy-low situation given his poor showing in 2021.
DeBrusk scored only five goals and 14 points over 41 games, a massive dip from the 16-, 27-, and 19-goal seasons he had in his first three years in the league. As with Bertuzzi, DeBrusk seems like an ideal power winger to play with McDavid.
No. 22: @Vince Dunn
“Scoop: Dunn is also no stranger to the trade talk. For the second straight offseason, he needs a new contract. He was healthy scratched at times by Craig Berube last season. But the question is what are the Blues looking for in return? He’s played like a third-pair defenseman with flashes of potential, but teams say the Blues value him more like a second-pair guy.”
Another key area of need for the Oilers this off-season is adding a veteran to the left side of their blueline as a contingency plan for Oscar Klefbom, who may or may not be able to play come 2021-22.
Vince Dunn isn’t exactly the cagey veteran that, say, Duncan Keith is, but he’s a quality player with quite a bit of experience for his age. Dunn turns 25 years old in October and he logged 15:10 per night over 20 games in St. Louis’ Stanley Cup run back in 2019.
Dunn is coming off of a campaign in which he scored 20 points in 43 games and found himself as a health scratch multiple times last season. There’s loads of untapped potential there as Dun is just two years removed from a 35-point season on St. Louis’ blueline.
No. 23: @Warren Foegele
“Scoop: It’s probably no great shock that Foegele is hungry for more opportunity and ice time. It’s also probably no great shock that Carolina may not be in the position to give him more. Foegele is a capable player who competes, brings a shovel and is ready to dig in.”
Due to their load of quality depth, the Carolina Hurricanes have a difficult Expansion Draft situation ahead of them. Warren Foegele is one of those solid players who they very likely won’t be able to protect from the Seattle Kraken.
He’s a left winger with excellent wheels who kills penalties, which is a skill set that we all know that Dave Tippett loves. Foegele scored 10 goals and 20 points in 53 games in 2021 and 13 goals and 30 points in 68 games in 2019-20, pretty good production for somebody playing in a checking role with heavy defensive zone starts.
A speedy, versatile winger who can score while also playing a sound defensive game is exactly the type of player the Oilers could use in order to make their forward group deeper.
Recent articles from Cam Lewis
