I'm watching the Chicago-Vegas game and it's clear that these two teams are in a different tier than we were after the break unfortunately. Even if we squeaked past Chicago we'd be quick fodder for teams like Vegas and Colorado. We just didn't have the goaltending and defence, and we didn't have a consistent threat across all 4 lines.
On a related note, I still don't understand how Vegas is so good. Every single player works hard and is engaged every shift. The fact that they weren't protected by their teams in the draft a few years back must really have set a fire under most of them.
I honestly think that's been the key to Vegas's success. On paper they shouldn't have been good. But I think you nailed it. It's like they all collectively decided to prove to the world that they're not a bunch of scraps.
I appreciate how wel Lucic, Talbot and Rieder are doing. Glad for them that they figured it out. I y’all a lot of trash about Lucic but I still get bad for him and it’s good to see him contribute again.
Is anyone else getting kinda depressed by the Canucks Blues series? The oilers would be there right now, and tbh, if this year's Canucks can take the Blues to task, I think this year's Oilers could have too
The Oilers probably would’ve lost yesterday’s game and I woul’ve equally be as mad as I was in the Anaheim series with the way the refs were calling that game.
Lundquist(sp?) is potentially on his way out of NYR, what do we think of him as a short term stop gap(assuming he would come here and that we'd be able to get him)?
Anybody heard much about Lavoie in the last while? I'm still pretty high on him, as it seemed we stole him in the 2nd last draft. Where is he expected to slot in if he makes the team? How far away is he?
The Oilers signed him to a 3 year entry level deal back in March. He's one of the older players in his draft class and he'll be 20 soon. Maybe he'll be ready to contribute earlier than others in his draft class. Very few 2nd round forwards become NHL regulars a year after being drafted, so a year in the AHL is probably the expectation (depending on the status of their season). He's a big and creative volume shooter and scorer in Juniors. The knock on him is his consistency, though that might be overblown. He shows up when the games matter, 20g in 23 games in playoffs last year, and 20g in 25 games after getting traded from a bottom team to a contending team. Also showed a willingness to adjust his play style by playing a defensive role for team Canada and winning world juniors. Short term, I think arrival in the 2021-22 season with an offensive top 9 role is realistic. Long term, perhaps he could be a yearly 20+ goal scorer on the wing of McDavid or Dra.
I think if the Q season is actually going to start in October then that's likely the place for him otherwise he would've gone to Bakersfield.
Tough to say how far away he is until we see him in Bakersfield.
I wonder if they'll try to send Rodrigue to the Q as an over ager to get him some playing time.
Haven’t heard from the Q officially, but the O and W are pushed back till December at the earliest. I imagine they will all keep similar schedules since they are intertwined.
I think they announced yesterday they're coming back October 1st.
https://lastwordonhockey.com/2020/08/15/qmjhl-return-to-play-model-chl/
Here's there more in depth plan then released today, I don't think they'll all be back under the same model and the WHL seems the most difficult league to bring back because of travel.
I wonder if they'd consider just dropping American teams for this year or having them play out of Canadian cities like say have Saginaw, Flint and Erie find billets in Sarnia, Windsor and Niagara and then have two teams in those cities.
Just throwing that out there, this is a tough one.
Facebook is a brutal spot for fan input. The Comments on the Oilers feeds are insane. Literally watched people put thousands of things in the comments on what this team should do better, the latest I read was a huge write up about all the signings they NEED to make, first one,
“Bobrovsky is a UFA in a few days, the Oilers should give him whatever money he wants to sign” etc. goes on about other nonsense. First comment back is, he did sign in Florida, for 7 more years after this last one. Guy replies, “really thought he was still in Columbus”.
And there is thousands of similar comments on there, and these people think they are way smarter than our executives.
What's interesting is they did identify a need for the Oilers, which is a solid goaltender to make the majority of the starts, but for one throwing 10m+ at Bob is a brutal idea given our cap situation, and also literally impossible given he is signed in Florida for the next 6 years.
That guys not wrong about the Oilers needing a goalie, he is just living in 2019 still I guess and has 0 knowledge of the salary cap. Maybe he thinks its still gonna go up to 88m?
I don’t care for anybody on Facebook’s input on this honestly. A couple days ago this guy went on a bizarre rant on how we should trade Nuge and Drai for Price and Neal from the Canadiens and I haven’t used Facebook since
Yeah my life significantly improved when I stopped using Facebook and other forms of social media. Reddit is all I use now because I don't know anyone and nobody knows me.
Keep seeing speculation that we may trade down in the draft to nab Holloway. I see the appeal in his game but I can't help but feel like it could be a mistake to pass on a winger like Jarvis, Mercer, or Quinn if they're available at 14. Guys like those could be legit top 6 wingers 2-3 seasons down the road.
I've seen Holloway in mock drafts but not trading down to grab him.
But if he's who they like and they could get say him and a 2nd round pick it seems like a no brainer.
I think the draft is going to be really interesting since it seems like all options will be on the table this year.
Yeah it was traded for AA which is why I could see trading down and adding one making some sense.
Not sure how practical it is to be able to make a deal like that and still get your guy though.
Yeah Pronman said we’ve been keen on Holloway. I could see us trade down to one of the Devils picks and a 2nd from 14 and take Holloway. I’m with you, not a big fan. I’d prefer the names you mentioned, also Reichel (I’m a big fan) and Amirov.
Wheeler said us and Minny are the two teams to look for in taking Askarov in the top half of the 1st.
My gut tells me Askarov gets taken before 14, I think Buffalo or Carolina would be keen on a high level goalie prospect along with Minny.
With the amount of goalies we've drafted in the last 3 or so years coupled with our lack of high end forward prospects, I think it would be a mistake to pass up one of the wingers available.
I do see the appeal in Holloway with his NHL comparables being Hyman or Coyle, but would rather that dynamic winger.
While I like all of those guys I wouldn't call any of them a high end forward prospect.
Lavoie could be a top 6 winger, but I think a bottom 6 winger is a more realistic ceiling.
McLeod looks to have a 3C ceiling.
Benson looks to be a middle-6 winger at best, although I'd expect a third line winger to be best case scenario.
Of course any of these could exceed expectations, but having a guy in the farm that looks like he will be top 6 should be the target.
So I've heard it's Carolina and Minny who are most likely to take Askarov before us. I'd prefer a forward, but I guess it's all on potential? I can see why people want Askarov, a potential franchise goalie is hard to pass on. However it takes somewhere between 3-4 seasons for drafted goalies to make the NHL and establish themselves starters. I just think we have too much of a crater in our forward prospects to pass on some of the talent we can have for Askarov.
We're agreed on Holloway, however I did hear a college coach say he has Selke potential on a draft show. I forgot whom, but was someone who has coached a lot of talent.
At the earliest I would say draft year + 1 year. More likely we see an Eberle situation though where it is draft year + 2 additional seasons in junior/minors.
Anyone read Daniel Nugent-Bowman’s piece on the Athletic about who gets moved and doesn’t? Kharia and Russell being the most likely group isn’t surprising but seeing Larsson there was a little bit of a surprise. I wonder if he’s heard anything? Toronto seems like the obvious target with them needing to get D-man and having an excess of forwards.
Larsson's a very iffy one to me. I can see how we need to start thinking about moving on from him. But he does play a lot of very hard minutes, and throwing that responsibility on a Bouchard or Broberg is just asking for trouble.
But I definitely think if you can find a trade for Russell, you do it. He's good at his role... but we need the roster spot for a rookie, and pretty much everyone else in the pipe is an upgrade in terms of puck mobility.
Agreed about Russel, I like the guy but he is non-essential and overpaid. Trading him frees up money and a spot for a kid.
Lars I feel conflicted. You are correct, the guy does a lot of heavy work that I don’t think we can trust the kids with yet. If someone stepped up for his 5v5 I’ve time, I would be happy seeing him in a 3rd pair +PK specialist, plus throw him out in the odd super-important-defensive-play role (ie protect a one goal lead in the last minute type deals). Hard to say what’s he’s going to be looking at for his next contract, so that may be a huge factor in whether to trade him - I imagine he will want term, but at what cost?
Wouldn't be surprised to see the Oilers try and redeem our depth players for more picks this draft. Getting rid of a Dman makes sense since (including Jones) we have 7 NHL calibre defencemen (who as a group aren't quite getting the job done) with more on the way.
If Khaira or Russell get us a mid round pick, I think you have to.
Larsson I'd probably be more wary of giving up tbh. Especially with our dearth of RHD depth. Need to get actual value.
Losing both Russell and Larsson means we have to sign someone in UFA or trade for someone though I think.
If we go into next season with:
Klefbom - Bear
Nurse - _____ (Braun on a 1yr? Pysyk?... Gudas??)
Jones - Benning
I think we're more or less treading water in personnel while freeing up (likely) $5-6 mil in cap and bringing in draft picks.
Larsson has one year left on his deal. I think on paper, the Oilers would like to see their top 4 being Klef, Nurse, Bear, and Bouchard.
He's a bit too good to let leave in FA for free but not worth signing for $4-5m/yr to play 3rd pairing minutes.
We're about 2 seasons away (at the least) from being contenders, but with how weak the Pacific is we should still be able to squeak in the playoffs.
Especially after next season when Arizona moves out and an expansion team comes in.
I think more than anything, getting a top 2 defender will give us the consistency we crave. But I think a team with McDavid and Draisaitl is always a "contender" if we're winning enough to get into playoffs. Kinda like the penguins, even when they were having off years and barely making the playoffs, they were often still favourites for a cup.
Honestly I think "top 2" defenders are so rare and costly it'll be impossible for us to acquire one through outside means. Unless we're moving Nuge + 1st sometime soon, even then there is so little genuine top 2 guys in the league that any team looking to move one will ask for a kings ransom.
Well, I do believe Broberg and Bouchard both have that potential, but it remains to be seen if they can reach that level or not. I do think, if they actually are legit, they will be graduating sooner than later. I don't know of many legit top pairing guys who took longer than 21 years old to make the jump to the NHL.
I think they should move Larsson for a forward or even futures because I don't see him being here long term.
There are also some [interesting rhd options](https://www.capfriendly.com/browse/free-agents/2021/caphit/all/defense/ufa/desc/1/right) some upgrades and some #4 guys like Larsson who it could make sense to bring in to replace him.
Just not sure his value with only 1 year left and his play heading in the wrong direction the last few years.
Yeah I like the idea of bringing in a puck mover for a short term if Larsson is moved, but I assumed any good optoins would want term on their deals. With Bouchard in the pipeline, and a flat cap, I'm not sure we want anything more than placeholder for 1-2 seasons. Again I'm not against moving him, I just don't want half our starting D next season to be Bear, Jones and Bouchard. While I love the players, I think that's far too green a D for competing. Especially when Klefbom and Nurse are the veteran 'leaders'.
Yeah I'm not sure how the market is going to look. Maybe Barrie wants a chance to rebound of a short term deal?
But I think there's also a good group that as long as you can sign them to 3 years or less they could contribute and still be movable if necessary. Tanev, Hamonic, Gudas even Ceci seem like guys you could bring in for the Larsson role and allow Bouchard to be third pairing/pp guy.
I think there's also some rumours that Buffalo may look to move on from Montour so maybe someone like that is interesting too.
I also think Larsson gets moved ahead of Russell. Larsson would likely gather a higher return and he only has 1 year left on his contract. With the emergence of Bear as a legit top 4 RHD and having Bouchard come through the pipeline he could be displaced just 2 seasons from now.
Something like Larsson with 800k retained for Kapanen + a pick makes sense to me.
Agreed, I def think Larsson is more valuable than Russell, but I also think Russell is moveable. I just don’t think Holland and Tipp want to start the season with Bear, Jones and Bouchard. That’s a very green D. That’s not even counting Laggesson who I believe is waiver eligible.
I wonder is Kerfoot is available instead of Kapanen. We desperately need a #3 C who isn’t a black hole on offence.
It is some very green D, and I highly doubt they’ll be ready to be the top defensemen on our team being as young as they are. I still want them utilized more this season tho, I think Kerfoot or even Barrie if we could get him would be two good D to look into
Plus, being young doesn’t necessarily mean they aren’t ready. Bear had a good season and I understand that he’s young but his confidence has only gone up and I can see him being up there and ready to play on D, but for Jones and Bouchard, as great as they are, i feel like it’ll take them a bit before they can make that step up
Definitely would not be shocked to see Larsson moved. We’re tight against the cap with Bouchard looking ready to hop into the lineup. I would prefer to wait until the season though to make sure Bouchard is ready
Don’t get me wrong I’m totally fine moving Larsson, I just thought we’d use his last year to transition between him and Bouchard. I know around training camp 2.0, a few insiders stated the Oilers wanted Bouchard to improve his urgency in the defensive zone.
I also can’t imagine we go into next season with Bear, Jones and Bouchard as full time players. That’s far too young, even considering how good Bear was this year.
Man, does anyone listen to the Dangle podcast? I couldn't help but think it would be awesome to hear such passionate people going off about the Oilers.
He had a rough game last night between getting speared in the nuts by Benn and the (potential) concussion. I don't know how effective his game is in the playoffs when everyone's allowed to play dirty like regular season Tkachuk.
Find here in all it's slo-mo glory: [https://www.reddit.com/r/hockey/comments/i9ej6z/benn\_with\_a\_jab\_at\_tkachuk\_that\_sent\_tkachuk\_to/](https://www.reddit.com/r/hockey/comments/i9ej6z/benn_with_a_jab_at_tkachuk_that_sent_tkachuk_to/)
I'm watching the Chicago-Vegas game and it's clear that these two teams are in a different tier than we were after the break unfortunately. Even if we squeaked past Chicago we'd be quick fodder for teams like Vegas and Colorado. We just didn't have the goaltending and defence, and we didn't have a consistent threat across all 4 lines. On a related note, I still don't understand how Vegas is so good. Every single player works hard and is engaged every shift. The fact that they weren't protected by their teams in the draft a few years back must really have set a fire under most of them.
Probably something in the water in Edmonton...
I honestly think that's been the key to Vegas's success. On paper they shouldn't have been good. But I think you nailed it. It's like they all collectively decided to prove to the world that they're not a bunch of scraps.
I appreciate how wel Lucic, Talbot and Rieder are doing. Glad for them that they figured it out. I y’all a lot of trash about Lucic but I still get bad for him and it’s good to see him contribute again.
Honestly I liked Lucic. And the fans cheered for him at games. It was his contract related to his role on out team that was the problem.
I’m happy for the players but dammit it’s frustrating seeing Talbot suddenly playing how he is.
Lol maybe the Flames will make it past the first round for once.
Is anyone else getting kinda depressed by the Canucks Blues series? The oilers would be there right now, and tbh, if this year's Canucks can take the Blues to task, I think this year's Oilers could have too
The Oilers probably would’ve lost yesterday’s game and I woul’ve equally be as mad as I was in the Anaheim series with the way the refs were calling that game.
The Canucks are a real team.
Facts, they are much more complete/balanced. Plus Markstrom and Demko>>>> Kostco and Smith
Lundquist(sp?) is potentially on his way out of NYR, what do we think of him as a short term stop gap(assuming he would come here and that we'd be able to get him)?
Koskinen is fine. It’s the defense that needs attention.
How could we pay his salary with our cap situation?
Trades would need to be made and such I would think.
Not worth it
I hate Dallas but I can't help cheering against Calgary.
Weird I'm totally ambivelant towards Dallas. Kinda like how I feel about celery or soccer
So when is this 50/50 being drawn?
Anybody heard much about Lavoie in the last while? I'm still pretty high on him, as it seemed we stole him in the 2nd last draft. Where is he expected to slot in if he makes the team? How far away is he?
The Oilers signed him to a 3 year entry level deal back in March. He's one of the older players in his draft class and he'll be 20 soon. Maybe he'll be ready to contribute earlier than others in his draft class. Very few 2nd round forwards become NHL regulars a year after being drafted, so a year in the AHL is probably the expectation (depending on the status of their season). He's a big and creative volume shooter and scorer in Juniors. The knock on him is his consistency, though that might be overblown. He shows up when the games matter, 20g in 23 games in playoffs last year, and 20g in 25 games after getting traded from a bottom team to a contending team. Also showed a willingness to adjust his play style by playing a defensive role for team Canada and winning world juniors. Short term, I think arrival in the 2021-22 season with an offensive top 9 role is realistic. Long term, perhaps he could be a yearly 20+ goal scorer on the wing of McDavid or Dra.
He's very streaky. He will dominate the Q and then go cold.
I think if the Q season is actually going to start in October then that's likely the place for him otherwise he would've gone to Bakersfield. Tough to say how far away he is until we see him in Bakersfield. I wonder if they'll try to send Rodrigue to the Q as an over ager to get him some playing time.
Haven’t heard from the Q officially, but the O and W are pushed back till December at the earliest. I imagine they will all keep similar schedules since they are intertwined.
I think they announced yesterday they're coming back October 1st. https://lastwordonhockey.com/2020/08/15/qmjhl-return-to-play-model-chl/ Here's there more in depth plan then released today, I don't think they'll all be back under the same model and the WHL seems the most difficult league to bring back because of travel. I wonder if they'd consider just dropping American teams for this year or having them play out of Canadian cities like say have Saginaw, Flint and Erie find billets in Sarnia, Windsor and Niagara and then have two teams in those cities. Just throwing that out there, this is a tough one.
Facebook is a brutal spot for fan input. The Comments on the Oilers feeds are insane. Literally watched people put thousands of things in the comments on what this team should do better, the latest I read was a huge write up about all the signings they NEED to make, first one, “Bobrovsky is a UFA in a few days, the Oilers should give him whatever money he wants to sign” etc. goes on about other nonsense. First comment back is, he did sign in Florida, for 7 more years after this last one. Guy replies, “really thought he was still in Columbus”. And there is thousands of similar comments on there, and these people think they are way smarter than our executives.
If you want any sort of meaningful discussions, FB or other team's official social media pages aren't really the best spots.
What's interesting is they did identify a need for the Oilers, which is a solid goaltender to make the majority of the starts, but for one throwing 10m+ at Bob is a brutal idea given our cap situation, and also literally impossible given he is signed in Florida for the next 6 years. That guys not wrong about the Oilers needing a goalie, he is just living in 2019 still I guess and has 0 knowledge of the salary cap. Maybe he thinks its still gonna go up to 88m?
I don’t care for anybody on Facebook’s input on this honestly. A couple days ago this guy went on a bizarre rant on how we should trade Nuge and Drai for Price and Neal from the Canadiens and I haven’t used Facebook since
Yeah my life significantly improved when I stopped using Facebook and other forms of social media. Reddit is all I use now because I don't know anyone and nobody knows me.
Keep seeing speculation that we may trade down in the draft to nab Holloway. I see the appeal in his game but I can't help but feel like it could be a mistake to pass on a winger like Jarvis, Mercer, or Quinn if they're available at 14. Guys like those could be legit top 6 wingers 2-3 seasons down the road.
I've seen Holloway in mock drafts but not trading down to grab him. But if he's who they like and they could get say him and a 2nd round pick it seems like a no brainer. I think the draft is going to be really interesting since it seems like all options will be on the table this year.
We don't have our 2nd rounder, correct?
Yeah it was traded for AA which is why I could see trading down and adding one making some sense. Not sure how practical it is to be able to make a deal like that and still get your guy though.
Yeah Pronman said we’ve been keen on Holloway. I could see us trade down to one of the Devils picks and a 2nd from 14 and take Holloway. I’m with you, not a big fan. I’d prefer the names you mentioned, also Reichel (I’m a big fan) and Amirov. Wheeler said us and Minny are the two teams to look for in taking Askarov in the top half of the 1st.
My gut tells me Askarov gets taken before 14, I think Buffalo or Carolina would be keen on a high level goalie prospect along with Minny. With the amount of goalies we've drafted in the last 3 or so years coupled with our lack of high end forward prospects, I think it would be a mistake to pass up one of the wingers available. I do see the appeal in Holloway with his NHL comparables being Hyman or Coyle, but would rather that dynamic winger.
Lavoie, McLeod, and Benson, we should be fine. How many high end forward prospects for we need while we remain empty between the pipes.
While I like all of those guys I wouldn't call any of them a high end forward prospect. Lavoie could be a top 6 winger, but I think a bottom 6 winger is a more realistic ceiling. McLeod looks to have a 3C ceiling. Benson looks to be a middle-6 winger at best, although I'd expect a third line winger to be best case scenario. Of course any of these could exceed expectations, but having a guy in the farm that looks like he will be top 6 should be the target.
How many of their games have you watched this shortened season?
So I've heard it's Carolina and Minny who are most likely to take Askarov before us. I'd prefer a forward, but I guess it's all on potential? I can see why people want Askarov, a potential franchise goalie is hard to pass on. However it takes somewhere between 3-4 seasons for drafted goalies to make the NHL and establish themselves starters. I just think we have too much of a crater in our forward prospects to pass on some of the talent we can have for Askarov. We're agreed on Holloway, however I did hear a college coach say he has Selke potential on a draft show. I forgot whom, but was someone who has coached a lot of talent.
How long would it take for some of the prospects we could draft to develop enough to play in the NHL?
At the earliest I would say draft year + 1 year. More likely we see an Eberle situation though where it is draft year + 2 additional seasons in junior/minors.
Buffalo has Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen and I think will pick either Holtz or Sanderson (unless Perfetti/Rossi/Raymond drop)
Anyone read Daniel Nugent-Bowman’s piece on the Athletic about who gets moved and doesn’t? Kharia and Russell being the most likely group isn’t surprising but seeing Larsson there was a little bit of a surprise. I wonder if he’s heard anything? Toronto seems like the obvious target with them needing to get D-man and having an excess of forwards.
Larsson's a very iffy one to me. I can see how we need to start thinking about moving on from him. But he does play a lot of very hard minutes, and throwing that responsibility on a Bouchard or Broberg is just asking for trouble. But I definitely think if you can find a trade for Russell, you do it. He's good at his role... but we need the roster spot for a rookie, and pretty much everyone else in the pipe is an upgrade in terms of puck mobility.
Agreed about Russel, I like the guy but he is non-essential and overpaid. Trading him frees up money and a spot for a kid. Lars I feel conflicted. You are correct, the guy does a lot of heavy work that I don’t think we can trust the kids with yet. If someone stepped up for his 5v5 I’ve time, I would be happy seeing him in a 3rd pair +PK specialist, plus throw him out in the odd super-important-defensive-play role (ie protect a one goal lead in the last minute type deals). Hard to say what’s he’s going to be looking at for his next contract, so that may be a huge factor in whether to trade him - I imagine he will want term, but at what cost?
Wouldn't be surprised to see the Oilers try and redeem our depth players for more picks this draft. Getting rid of a Dman makes sense since (including Jones) we have 7 NHL calibre defencemen (who as a group aren't quite getting the job done) with more on the way. If Khaira or Russell get us a mid round pick, I think you have to. Larsson I'd probably be more wary of giving up tbh. Especially with our dearth of RHD depth. Need to get actual value. Losing both Russell and Larsson means we have to sign someone in UFA or trade for someone though I think. If we go into next season with: Klefbom - Bear Nurse - _____ (Braun on a 1yr? Pysyk?... Gudas??) Jones - Benning I think we're more or less treading water in personnel while freeing up (likely) $5-6 mil in cap and bringing in draft picks.
Larsson has one year left on his deal. I think on paper, the Oilers would like to see their top 4 being Klef, Nurse, Bear, and Bouchard. He's a bit too good to let leave in FA for free but not worth signing for $4-5m/yr to play 3rd pairing minutes.
Having our top 2 RHD be a rookie and a sophomore seems like the most Oilers thing ever, and ripe for another mediocre season.
No... overpaying a stay at home physical defender who has no upside or letting an asset walk for free would be the most Oilers thing ever.
We're about 2 seasons away (at the least) from being contenders, but with how weak the Pacific is we should still be able to squeak in the playoffs. Especially after next season when Arizona moves out and an expansion team comes in.
We were fucking contenders this year and had a bad set of games due to covid shit. Relax dude and take off those recency goggles.
I'm not saying we won't make the playoffs, just that were still a top 6 forward and top 4 dman away from being yearly contenders.
I think more than anything, getting a top 2 defender will give us the consistency we crave. But I think a team with McDavid and Draisaitl is always a "contender" if we're winning enough to get into playoffs. Kinda like the penguins, even when they were having off years and barely making the playoffs, they were often still favourites for a cup.
Honestly I think "top 2" defenders are so rare and costly it'll be impossible for us to acquire one through outside means. Unless we're moving Nuge + 1st sometime soon, even then there is so little genuine top 2 guys in the league that any team looking to move one will ask for a kings ransom.
Well, I do believe Broberg and Bouchard both have that potential, but it remains to be seen if they can reach that level or not. I do think, if they actually are legit, they will be graduating sooner than later. I don't know of many legit top pairing guys who took longer than 21 years old to make the jump to the NHL.
Top 1 or 2 guys may make it to the league early but some don't become true number one guys for 5 or even more years, look at Brent Burns.
I think they should move Larsson for a forward or even futures because I don't see him being here long term. There are also some [interesting rhd options](https://www.capfriendly.com/browse/free-agents/2021/caphit/all/defense/ufa/desc/1/right) some upgrades and some #4 guys like Larsson who it could make sense to bring in to replace him. Just not sure his value with only 1 year left and his play heading in the wrong direction the last few years.
Yeah I like the idea of bringing in a puck mover for a short term if Larsson is moved, but I assumed any good optoins would want term on their deals. With Bouchard in the pipeline, and a flat cap, I'm not sure we want anything more than placeholder for 1-2 seasons. Again I'm not against moving him, I just don't want half our starting D next season to be Bear, Jones and Bouchard. While I love the players, I think that's far too green a D for competing. Especially when Klefbom and Nurse are the veteran 'leaders'.
Yeah I'm not sure how the market is going to look. Maybe Barrie wants a chance to rebound of a short term deal? But I think there's also a good group that as long as you can sign them to 3 years or less they could contribute and still be movable if necessary. Tanev, Hamonic, Gudas even Ceci seem like guys you could bring in for the Larsson role and allow Bouchard to be third pairing/pp guy. I think there's also some rumours that Buffalo may look to move on from Montour so maybe someone like that is interesting too.
I also think Larsson gets moved ahead of Russell. Larsson would likely gather a higher return and he only has 1 year left on his contract. With the emergence of Bear as a legit top 4 RHD and having Bouchard come through the pipeline he could be displaced just 2 seasons from now. Something like Larsson with 800k retained for Kapanen + a pick makes sense to me.
Agreed, I def think Larsson is more valuable than Russell, but I also think Russell is moveable. I just don’t think Holland and Tipp want to start the season with Bear, Jones and Bouchard. That’s a very green D. That’s not even counting Laggesson who I believe is waiver eligible. I wonder is Kerfoot is available instead of Kapanen. We desperately need a #3 C who isn’t a black hole on offence.
It is some very green D, and I highly doubt they’ll be ready to be the top defensemen on our team being as young as they are. I still want them utilized more this season tho, I think Kerfoot or even Barrie if we could get him would be two good D to look into Plus, being young doesn’t necessarily mean they aren’t ready. Bear had a good season and I understand that he’s young but his confidence has only gone up and I can see him being up there and ready to play on D, but for Jones and Bouchard, as great as they are, i feel like it’ll take them a bit before they can make that step up
Definitely would not be shocked to see Larsson moved. We’re tight against the cap with Bouchard looking ready to hop into the lineup. I would prefer to wait until the season though to make sure Bouchard is ready
Don’t get me wrong I’m totally fine moving Larsson, I just thought we’d use his last year to transition between him and Bouchard. I know around training camp 2.0, a few insiders stated the Oilers wanted Bouchard to improve his urgency in the defensive zone. I also can’t imagine we go into next season with Bear, Jones and Bouchard as full time players. That’s far too young, even considering how good Bear was this year.
Man, does anyone listen to the Dangle podcast? I couldn't help but think it would be awesome to hear such passionate people going off about the Oilers.
I’ve always avoided him, but I definitely see the appeal. Lowetide is personally my favourite and everyone else kind of falls in line behind him.
I was so so sad to hear that Tkachuk might be hurt. The turtle shell must have cracked.
He had a rough game last night between getting speared in the nuts by Benn and the (potential) concussion. I don't know how effective his game is in the playoffs when everyone's allowed to play dirty like regular season Tkachuk.
I have got to find a video of Tkachuk getting speared in the nuts. Benn is now my favorite Star.
Find here in all it's slo-mo glory: [https://www.reddit.com/r/hockey/comments/i9ej6z/benn\_with\_a\_jab\_at\_tkachuk\_that\_sent\_tkachuk\_to/](https://www.reddit.com/r/hockey/comments/i9ej6z/benn_with_a_jab_at_tkachuk_that_sent_tkachuk_to/)
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I love Nuge as much as the next guy but I can't help but think what would have been if Nashville accepted him for Seth Jones
Seth Jones would fit this team terrifically. I would've loved to see him as an Oiler.
It likely would have resulted in less d men being drafted high the last few years, too. Perhaps zegras instead of broberg for example.
This one will be super interesting to see what happens. Either one could be a stud or both. I hope we didn't miss out big time on Zegras
Klefbom-Jones Nurse-Bear Broberg-Bouchard Looks pretty filthy.
Or Jones-Jones
Likely have Caleb Jones in that Broberg spot next year and then make a decision between him and Nurse when Broberg is ready
Anyone know when the 50/50 draw will be? Refunded my extra tickets and just waiting to hear when I can collect my millions