Weekly Rumours – New Edmonton Oilers Trade Targets!
1 year ago
There has been a lot of talk recently about who the Oilers may be losing off their roster from last season. Will Evander Kane be back? Will Mike Smith or Duncan Keith retire? Will Jesse Puljujarvi be traded? Will Brett Kulak be re-signed? Those are all very valid questions and how those situations play out will have a massive impact on how the Oilers roster looks in October.
Of course, as players leave the roster, they must be replaced and that’s where I want to start with today’s blog.
Recently on The Jeff Marek Show, Elliotte Friedman dropped this:
I could certainly see the Oilers going after Ville Husso in free agency, but I’ll admit that the idea of going into next season with a Husso and Skinner tandem would make me a little nervous. It could very well be a dynamic combination that sets up the Oilers very well for years to come. But in a year where the club has Stanley Cup aspirations, the idea of committing to a pair of goaltenders that have a combined 71 regular-season games under their belt would have me feeling a little uneasy at first.
I talked a little bit more about it in my most recent YouTube video:
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If the contract is solid then it should be fine, but it’s certainly a risk.
Husso is heading into a free-agent market that features the likes of Marc-Andre Fleury, Darcy Kuemper, and Jack Campbell. There are a few other higher-end names available. That along with the fact that Husso struggled in the playoffs could bring down his price a little.
The Oilers also continue to be connected to Russian free agent Andrei Kuzmenko. I wrote about Kuzmenko a few months ago and said this:
Kuzmenko is 26 years old and is coming off a season in which he posted 20 goals and 33 assists in 45 games for St. Petersburg in the KHL. That’s a point per game of 1.18.The year before Artemi Panarin made the jump to the NHL, he posted 26 goals and 36 assists in 54 games for St. Petersburg. He was also only 23 years old at the time. His points per game was 1.15.Kirill Kaprizov posted 33 goals and 29 assists in 57 games with CSKA Moscow the year before he came over to the NHL. That was also his age 22 season. His points per game was 1.09.So Kuzmenko actually has better numbers this year than the other two and both of them found pretty much immediate success in the NHL and are now considered star players. It’s worth noting that Kuzmenko’s point totals really jumped up this year and he never reached the 40-point mark in his other four full KHL seasons. He’s also older than both Kaprizov and Panarin were when they were playing in Russia.
The latest is that he met with the Oilers and Canucks already this week and will meet with two American teams as well. The Oilers are certainly a realistic option for the small, skilled winger. He will need a one-year entry-level contract and then will be a UFA next summer according to our friends at PuckPedia.
That situation will likely impact the futures of Kailer Yamamoto and Jesse Puljujarvi in my opinion. Will the Oilers want all three of those players in their top nine? Or will they move one and look for a more veteran replacement?
That brings me to Frank Seravalli’s latest Trade Targets board, which is up now at Daily Faceoff.
NEW TRADE TARGETS
Like I said last week, I don’t think Gibson is a great fit for the Oilers. Both his contract is substantial and the Ducks will want a lot in return for him. I can’t see Ken Holland doing that.
There are two other goalies on the list though: Mackenzie Blackwood and Semyon Varlamov. I think Varlamov would be a great fit for the Oilers. He’s experienced, consistently puts up solid numbers, and won’t cost nearly as much to acquire compared to Gibson. Now, the upside also isn’t there but Varlamov is more than capable of being a guy that starts 45-52 games for the Oilers next season, which should be what they’re looking for.
Would the Islanders be interested in Tyson Barrie? I could certainly see it. Varlamov has a NMC though and one wonders if he’d even consider coming to Edmonton at all.
While we’re on that topic, I would love to see Holland swing a deal for both Varlamov and defenseman Scott Mayfield. That’d be nice.
Blackwood is interesting because the Oilers would be buying low on a young option with plenty of potential. It’s a high-risk, high-reward situation. If they move a draft pick for Blackwood and he comes in and finds his rookie season form, then Holland will look like a genius and the Oilers would have their goaltending tandem set for the next five-plus years. If Blackwood comes over and either can’t stay healthy or struggles to find his game, then it could sink the Oiler’s season.
I wonder if that’s a risk Holland really wants to take.
Outside of those names, Alex DeBrincat still sat atop the list and that’s not surprising. It sounds like the Blackhawks are ready to cash in on his value. Obviously, you’d love to see the Oilers add a 40-goal scorer to their lineup, but I don’t see the former Eerie Otter as a good fit. He only has one more year on his deal and will be due a considerable raise next summer and that may not be something that the Oilers could afford.
Josh Anderson is low on the list, but he’s there. Frank doesn’t think the Canadiens are very open to the idea of moving him, saying “To date, the Habs have resisted the urge and likely some tempting offers, but you have to at least allow for the possibility that they get a ‘Godfather’ offer they cannot refuse.”
I wouldn’t move a first-round pick and a high-end prospect for Anderson and it feels like that’s the kind of offer it would take.
Other names on Frank’s list that intrigue me are Jesper Bratt (#10), Anthony Beavillier (#15), and Lawson Crouse (#17).
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