Oilers Trading for Travis Hamonic

Missing out on Dougie Hamilton might’ve been a blessing in disguise. We found out today that New York Islanders defenceman Travis Hamonic is homesick and would like to return to the west. Hurray! This might be the break that Peter Chiarelli was waiting for! A two-way no.2 defenceman who is right-handed is available?

Confirming report from @FriedgeHNIC, Travis Hamonic requested a trade prior to the start of the season. #Isles trying to accommodate.

— Arthur Staple (@StapeNewsday) November 18, 2015

Peter Chiarelli and Isles GM Garth Snow have a prior trading relationship. It was Chiarelli who dealt Boychuk to the Isles and also the Griffin Reinhart trade was masterminded by these two gentlemen. So there’s no reason to believe that the Oilers have the worst odds of grabbing Hamonic from the Islanders. I have to think they have a much better chance at getting the young defenceman out of Brooklyn.

My belief Oilers and Isles have had talks as far back as September on Hamonic. A defenceman who can play now is likely needed in return.

— Ryan Rishaug (@TSNRyanRishaug) November 18, 2015

Of course they’ve been talking. The only reason we’re hearing about Hamonic is because the Islanders are having issues getting the package they want in return and need to drum up more interest and they want to put pressure on the other teams to up the anti. I mean just go to Twitter and type Hamonic in the search bar. Oilers fans are shitting the bed with the news that their long lost and potentially piece of the pie is available, especially after losing out on Doug Hamilton.

Hamonic loves the Isles. This is personal. Wpg, Edmtn, Cgy and Van all preferred. Might expand to other west cities. Tough on Isles….

— Darren Dreger (@DarrenDreger) November 18, 2015

I’m not sure the Flames and Canucks have the pieces to grab Hamonic. I really believe that it’s between the Oilers and the Jets. Winnipeg has a ridiculous pool of prospects (Kyle Connor, Josh Morrisey, Eric Comrie, and Nic Petan) and some defenders that could step right in and replace Hamonic immediately, meaning Jacob Trouba and Dustin Byfuglien. The other thing working in Winnipeg’s favor is they’re just recently stated they’re looking to shake things up.

Travis Hamonic – The Player

Defense — shoots R
Born Aug 16 1990 (25 years old) — St. Malo, MAN
Height 6.02 — Weight 205 [188 cm/93 kg]

The Oilers are lacking high-end defensemen that can move the puck effectively. Oscar Klefbom is arguably the best passer on the team, Schultz being another. Hamonic blows Kbom out of the water according to Ryan Stimson’s Passing Charts. Check out the comparison below.

I also like to look at @mimicohero’s HERO charts to determine a player’s value. Let’s look at Travis Hamonic’s!

So we have a player that is moving into the prime of his career as a top pairing defender but not quite an elite one. He’s not being considered for Team Canada at the upcoming World Cup but I don’t really see that as a con. There’s only a few spots on that team and it’s basically the cream of the crop that get picked.

But on the Edmonton Oilers, he’s automatically the best blueliner hands down.

As for the dollar end of things, Elliotte Friedman said this about it:

There’s a ton to like about this player. He’s a right-hand shot, top-pairing defenceman with four years remaining on a good-value contract. The average annual amount is $3.857 million, although the actual dollars will be $4.875 million beginning in 2016-17.

I have to agree with him. The money is good and it’s what Justin Schultz will be looking for when his contract is up at the end of the year. It’s also one of the reasons why I believe Schultz should be part of any deal going forward.

Garth Snow wants an equitable player in return. Given status of Hamonic tough deal to make.

— Darren Dreger (@DarrenDreger) November 18, 2015

For all of you expecting the Oilers to deal Mark Fayne or Andrew Ference, Anton Lander, or Eric Gryba, it isn’t happening. As bad as he looks on the ice, the Oilers need veteran dmen more than rookies. According the Stephen Burtch, Fayne is the Oilers best defensive dman according to the fancy stats. So take that for what you will. Ference can’t be moved w/o permission, Anton Lander is not bringing the team anything of Value and Gryba is a recent acquisition by the current GM. He’s likely to stay.

If I were the Oilers GM I would be looking at expanding the deal slightly. We know that Kyle Okposo is set to he a free agent this summer and one would have to consider that he’ll be looking for around $6 million per year. I wonder aloud if Jordan Eberle, Justin Schultz, and this years 1st round pick unprotected would be enough to entice Garth Snow into pulling the trigger? Puck Daddy’s Josh Cooper touches on Hamonic and Okposo here.

There’s Ryan Strome to consider as well. He’s sitting in Bridgeport (AHL) when he should be playing in the NHL… Not sure what the deal is there but could he be a guy that’s tossed into the mix.

Garth Snow doesn’t want prospects as he has one of the best looking groups of up and coming players in the league and a deal like this would allow the Isles to continue on their current trajectory without having to toss a rookie in a tough spot. Also, Eberle and Tavares… Are you kidding me? Remember the World Juniors when Eberle scored that last second goal to tie the game versus the Russians? Who was his center? Johhny T baby!

Forgive me but I can’t remember who said it, but I distinctly remember hearing this week on one of the Oilers radio shows, either Oilers Now or Lowetide, that the Oilers are likely to go after Milan Lucic his summer or a player like him. Kyle Okposo is pretty similar to Lucic and he provides that element the team is sorely lacking and has been lacking for a very long time. Who’s the last good power forward to play for Edmonton? Bill Guerin? Jason Arnott? Don’t say Pancakes Penner…

The only counter to my proposal is the deals made for Johnny Boychuk (draft picks) and Doug Hamilton (draft picks). Both players arguably are equal if not better than Hamonic.

Thanks for reading! Let me know in the comments below what deal you’d be willing to make to get Travis Hamonic for your team!

Take Care!