Rumours are fun! Let’s look at some.
Thankfully, this will be an Oiler-centric, with a few other notes from around the league. Let’s jump right in!
The Oilers probably won’t do anything big:
According to Frank Seravalli of DailyFaceoff, he doesn’t see the Oilers making any big splashes heading into next week’s trade deadline.
“I’m hard pressed to believe at this point that the #LetsGoOilers are going to be super active and pull off something big. Just the way I see it at the moment.” @frank_seravalli on #DailyFaceoff
— Oiler Alert (@OilerAlert) February 9, 2023
This is obviously unfortunate, as the Oilers still have holes that could be filled, but the cap space just isn’t there to make moves. Any impact players that the Oilers wish to add, will require “money in, money out” according to general manager Ken Holland.
Does this include players like Vladislav Gavrikov, Nick Bjugstad, and several other players that Edmonton has been linked to? It’s impossible to know, but it doesn’t seem likely. Especially with the emergence of fan-favourite defenceman Vincent Desharnais (the Oilers are 8-0-1 with him in the lineup.)
It’d be nice to add a forward such as Jonathan Toews, but that always seemed like a stretch considering Edmonton’s cap situation.
Could Jesse Puljujärvi be waived?
The Athletic’s Daniel Nugent-Bowman recently interviewed Ken Holland in this article. In the interview, he notes that with Kailer Yamamoto coming two players (both of which will be forwards) will be moved. The general manager goes on to note that it’ll likely be through waivers. While Puljujärvi isn’t mentioned by name, he would be the most logical option, as his salary of $3 million is similar to Yamamoto’s $3.1 million.
Puljujärvi has been a trade candidate for a while now, and it’s apparent that both the team and the player need a fresh start. While the Oilers wouldn’t get anything in return for Puljujärvi, Yamamoto has been the more effective player despite battling injury.
Other notes:
- On the last rumour roundup, it was noted how Arizona Coyotes defenceman, Jakob Chychurn, removed all mention of the Arizona Coyotes in his Instagram bio. However, according to this article, those changes occurred at the end of the 2021-22 season. There’s still a possibility that he will be traded, but it doesn’t seem imminent.
- Per Frank Seravalli, the St. Louis Blues traded Vladimir Tarasenko (and more) to the Rangers. The Rangers confirmed the trade, which also sees defender Niko Mikkola, who had been on Edmonton’s radar…
OFFICIAL: #NYR have acquired F Vladimir Tarasenko and D Niko Mikkola in exchange for a conditional first-round pick in the 2023 NHL Draft, a conditional fourth-round pick in the 2024 NHL Draft, Sammy Blais and Hunter Skinner.
Full details ⤵️https://t.co/HF8rg4uq40
— New York Rangers (@NYRangers) February 9, 2023
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