Weekly Rumours – Are the Rangers a fit for Puljujarvi?
4 years ago
One day, I will get to put together a rumours blog and not feel like I have to mention @Jesse Puljujarvi. Today is not that day.
Ken Holland is heading over to Europe for the Karjala Cup and that has sparked up some added conversation around the Oilers and Jesse Puljujarvi. Of course, Puljujarvi also needs a new contract by December 1st or else he will be forced to sit out the entire NHL season.
This week, we had both Chris Johnson and Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet say that talk around Puljujarvi is heating up and both mentioned that the New York Rangers have shown interest in the former fourth overall pick.
The Rangers make a lot of sense and there are a few names that I could see the Oilers targetting. @Lias Andersson was the seventh overall pick back in 2017 and he was recently healthy scratched for the Rangers. His numbers at both the NHL and AHL level are not good. He has just 11 goals in 61 AHL games and three goals in 61 NHL games. The Rangers would probably move him for Puljujarvi but I have a feeling Edmonton might want more.
@Brett Howden is a 21-year-old centre who was a late first-round pick back in 2016 and has posted slightly better numbers than Andersson at the NHL level with 23 points in 66 games last season. He’s also got some size as well coming in at 6’2.
I’m not sure how much either would help the Oilers too much this year. I would still love to see them go get @Pavel Buchnevich but I don’t think that’s realistic.
As for other teams that might be interested, I’m not 100% sure. As of late, we haven’t heard about anyone other than the Rangers. We know the Hurricanes, Bruins, and Lightning have had interest in the past but it’s unclear if they’re still shopping.
Friedman also mentioned in his most recent ‘31 Thoughts’ that Edmonton was in on Russian free agent Konstantin Okulov. Okulov is a 24-year-old forward who currently has 14 points in 23 games with CSKA Moscow in the KHL.
Friedman added that while Edmonton has interest, the Montreal Canadiens are considered the favourites.
Aside from Puljujarvi talk, I’m going to continue monitoring which forwards are currently on the market. As long as the Oilers remain in a playoff spot, there’s a very real possibility that they are buyers at the trade deadline.
I don’t think they’ll be going ‘big game hunting’ but I could see Holland looking around for a scoring winger. Why wouldn’t he?
@Tyler Toffoli is going to be available at some point this season and I think he’d be a good fit. The 27-year-old is coming off a poor 2018/19 campaign and hasn’t been shooting the lights out this season either with three goals in 14 games.
I think the Oilers should have interest but I’d be worried that his acquisition cost could be high since he’s a household name with some good NHL seasons on his resume. The fact he plays for a divisional rival also makes it less likely that the Oilers could actually acquire him.
For Toffoli, I could see both the Bruins and Hurricanes being in on him. Boston reportedly showed interest in him last season and Carolina is willing to swap out a defenseman for a forward. Just looking at LA’s depth chart, they could use a defenseman.
One potential fit for the Oilers currently sits in Toronto. @Nic Petan is currently in the AHL and has five points in just two games. He is too good for the AHL but can’t seem to crack the Leafs lineup. He’d likely only cost a pick considering the Leafs cap situation. Might be a fit for an Oilers team that could use some skill in their bottom six.
Even if it’s not Petan, the Leafs might be forced to move someone soon. The Oilers should be calling.
At the same time, you could argue that the Oilers would be better off staying out of the trade market until they find a player who could possibly slide into their top six. I just don’t see how they can head into the last few months of the season with a gaping hole in their top six. No knock on Sam Gagner, but I don’t think he should be considered the answer. In fact, I don’t think there is an answer in the Oilers organization right now. I think they need outside help to boost their scoring.
One final note for this week’s blog and it comes out of Chicago where Hawks reporter Jimmy Greenfield says that now is the time for the team to move on from @Erik Gustafsson.
The 27-year-old defenseman was an Oilers draft pick (4th round in 2012) and after struggling to establish himself for a few years in North America, he exploded last season with 60 points. This year, he has not been good. He has just four assists on the year and was recently healthy scratched in favour of rookie Adam Boqvist.
He’s a left-shot so I don’t see the Oilers as a fit but it’s a situation that I will be keeping an eye on. Was last year just a fluke for Gustafsson? Or does another team feel like he can be a productive powerplay option?
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