Three things I’m looking for this week
4 years ago
I love the offseason. Everything from rumours, to breaking down trades, to projecting what could happen next season. I enjoy all of it and I’d assume that if you’re glued to websites like this in the month of June, you love it just as much as I do.
This week is also one of the most entertaining of the summer. We have insiders reporting that this could be one of the busiest offseasons in recent memory when it comes to trades, names like Matt Duchene and Artemi Panarin are set to hit free agency, and of course, the Draft is coming up on Friday.
This is also a crucial stretch for the Oilers organization. GM Ken Holland will have his sights set on improving this team over the next few weeks and I personally think he could be more active on the trade market than most believe.
It could be a busy week around here so I thought I would share the three things I’m expecting to happen as the offseason truly begins.
ACQUIRE A FORWARD
Dec 16, 2018; Winnipeg, Manitoba, CAN; Winnipeg Jets forward Nikolaj Ehlers (27) is congratulated by his team mates on his goal against the Tampa Bay Lightning during the third period at Bell MTS Place. Mandatory Credit: Terrence Lee-USA TODAY Sports
This is a must. The Oilers need to find a young scoring forward to inject into their top six. The price might be a little higher than some expect, but the Oilers have some assets they can use.
Some high-end candidates include Nik Ehlers and Jason Zucker, while I could also see them taking a chance on a younger winger like Pavel Buchnevich, who had 21 goals in 64 games this season and is reportedly available out of New York.
If they want to go the free agent route to get a scoring winger or two, then maybe Holland will use some trade assets to get a third line centre who can inject some offence into the lineup. For that, I’m looking at JG Pageau out of Ottawa (likely with salary retained) or maybe even Cedric Paquette out of Tampa Bay, who is a pending RFA and considering the cap troubles ahead for the Lightning, he might shake loose.
Still, if Ken Holland is going to use an asset Jesse Puljujarvi, Ethan Bear, or an early round draft pick, it should definitely be for a young, scoring winger.
TRADE A DEFENSEMAN
I think the Oilers will move out more than one defenseman by this time next week. Ken Holland needs to clear out some salary and the easiest way to do that will be to find a trading partner for one of Andrej Sekera or Kris Russell. Personally, I think it might be easier to deal off Russell since his cap hit is a little less and I think there are a handful of teams out there that will really overvalue his shot blocking ability.
It is worth noting that Russell currently has a full no-movement clause that will change to a 10-team no-trade clause on July 1st. The Oilers could simply ask for that list a few days early, but it does complicate things a little.
I also think they’ll ship out a young defenseman. On the right side, they could dangle Matt Benning, who has a $1.9 million cap hit, or Ethan Bear, who might have value to a team looking for a nearly NHL ready defenseman on an ELC. They also have Evan Bouchard, but I don’t believe they’ll even consider moving him.
On the left side, they have Caleb Jones, William Lagesson, and Dmitri Samorukov in their system. Samorukov saw his stock rise over the last ten months and I think they should be really hesitant to move on from him. William Lagesson might not have very much value considering his age and lack of NHL experience.
Then there’s Caleb Jones, who has NHL experience and had a good year in the AHL. I’d be hesitant to move him, but the Oilers have Klefbom, Nurse, and Sekera on the left side right now. I wouldn’t be shopping Jones, but I wouldn’t say he’s untouchable in negotiations.
Still, I think the best piece for the Oilers to try move is Ethan Bear. They have Benning at the NHL level and Bouchard isn’t far away, so they can afford to lose a piece on the right side.
DRAFT A FORWARD
This may seem like a really obvious take, but there is lots of talk surrounding Philip Broberg, who is a very polarizing prospect. I understand that drafting based on position is rarely a good idea, but the Oilers have lots of defensemen sitting in their system but they have a clear need for scoring forwards and they don’t really have any prospects that I would consider high-end forwards.
If I want to get a little bit more specific, I think they will take a forward from the USNDP. I don’t believe Dylan Cozens or Kirby Dach will be on the board when the Oilers walk to the stage, so while I would like one of those two WHL players, I don’t think that’s even an option
Ken Holland also lived right around the USNDP main facility in Detroit, so there’s no doubt that he’s very familiar with that group of players. I think the Oilers will make a choice between centreman Trevor Zegras and winger Cole Caufield, who had 72 goals in 64 games this past season
After the second overall pick, the draft is wide open and honestly, there’s a chance that both of those guys go before the Oilers even step up to pick. In Craig Buttons final mock draft, he had the Oilers taking Philip Broberg and he even had Cole Caufield and Trevor Zegras going before eight overall
It’s really anyone’s guess, but I really do think the Oilers will draft a forward and I think that’s the right choice.
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