Monthly Archives: February 2018

Armchair GM, Beer League Hero, Edmonton Oilers, NHL, Podcast, Rumors, Trades

Tampa Bay and Boston Seemingly at the Front of the Line for Pat Maroon

The rumors are going to be coming in hard and heavy for the next couple of weeks until the trade deadline passes and Pat Maroon’s name will be the name de jour until he’s gone.

You know it’s funny, on Twitter I read someone said that if a team like Tampa Bay is looking into Oscar Klefbom, that should be a sign that the Oilers should be keeping him. Does that apply to Pat Maroon too? If a good team is looking at one of your players, regardless of who it is, is that a sign you should be keeping him? Would it be different if Klefbom was on an expiring contract?

Anyways, over the weekend, Elliotte Friedman said that he wouldn’t be surprised if Tampa was in on Maroon and Joe Haggerty has named Boston as a team interested in adding Maroon.

Doesn’t surprise me that playoff-bound teams are looking to add size to their roster because that’s what good teams do.

But who should the Oilers target from Tampa and Boston in return for their Big Rig. I’ve got a few names in mind but it’ll all depend on how desperate Don Sweeney and Steve Yzerman are to get the power forward out of Edmonton. Personally, I don’t think they need to do a helluva lot to their rosters as they stand right now but Maroon has shown in the past that in a new environment, he performs well.

I imagine that TB and BOS won’t want to part with what I want them to in a deal for Pat Maroon. But here are the players that I’d like to see Chiarelli acquire in a deal for the Oilers big LWer.

Tampa Bay 

  • Anthony Cirelli (C) – Leads Tampa’s AHL squad in scoring. Highly competitive+versatile.
  • Boris Katchouk (LW) – Pro shot sniper playing for OHL best Sault St. Marie.
  • Taylor Raddysh (RW) – Team Canada’s power forward scoring machine at the WJHCs.
  • Alex Lipanov (C) – Played pivot on Andrei Svechnikov’s line in Barrie Now in Sudbury. Very skilled.
  • Brett Howden (C) – Good 2-way centre with an eye for the net. Plays in Moose Jaw.

I don’t lean towards any of those forwards more than another. I like all 5. If we’re going for skill alone, probably Lipanov. If you want scoring wingers then you go with Katchouk and Raddysh. The solid 2-way centres would be Cirelli and Howden. All five of these guys are 6-feet or over if size means something to you.

These kinds of players would really do wonders for the Oilers AHL team and I think at this point and with this kind of deal, it wouldn’t hurt to keep adding to that cupboard. That said, the Oilers can grab all the talented forwards in the world but if they can’t develop them it means nothing. And one thing I do question is the coaching staff in Bakersfield and their methods in developing the forwards down there.

Boston

  • Danton Heinen (LW) – Probably not happening but he’d be my no.1 target.
  • Zach Senyshyn (RW) – Major scorer at JR level and is taking some time to learn the pro game in his rookie AHL season. Has speed and a shot though.
  • Jakob Forsbacka-Karlsson (C) – Projecting to be a shut-down centre in the NHL.
  • Alexander Khoklachev – (RW) – Was over a point-per-game player at the AHL level, is nearly the same in the KHL this season. He’s a player who produces where he goes.

With Boston, you know that Chiarelli and Gretzky are going to have the reports on each of these players.

Khoklachev is an interesting name here. I feel like he might’ve had a bit of the Linus Omark syndrome in Boston. Very talented player but has trouble seeing eye-to-eye with coaches. Some might say that he didn’t take advantage of his opportunities, I say that 9 pro games isn’t much time to take said advantage of.

Senyshyn is another name I’ve heard Bob Stauffer toss out there in the past. He’s bigger, around 6’3″ but he’s having a tough time finding his wheelhouse at the AHL level. There’s a lot of potential in him but you have to worry if he’s another Micheal Dal Colle.

In the end, even if the Oilers do trade Maroon and all they get back is a 3rd rounder, I think that’s fine too. We’d obviously want a good young JR/AHL prospect in return but there’s a certain level of reality that we have to face too.

On the other hand, Peter Chiarelli is quite good at making the small deal…

Thoughts?

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Armchair GM, Beer League Hero, Edmonton Oilers, NHL, Rumors, Trades

Klef Getting Bombed Out of Edmonton?

One more game left in California… The Oilers haven’t done enough to get the bounces to go their way the way they’ve gone for their opposition. Can you imagine how different the games would’ve gone had that goal not gone off of Sekera’s skate last night or if one of Nurse or Lucic would’ve hit the twine instead of the post vs. LA?

The mood would be a shit tonne better in the Oilogosphere that’s for sure.

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And with that I guess it’s time to start commenting on the trade rumors popping up. Here are a few from Twitter:

Let’s start with Oscar.

Klefbom has an outstanding contract and is aged perfectly for this team. He’s been playing with a bum shoulder since the playoffs last year and from what I’ve gathered, PC is listening to offers on him in hopes of picking up a LWer for Connor.

Is that guy Mike Hoffman?

Unless it is, I can’t subscribe to this notion. The Oilers have paid a lot in terms of money and time to bring Klef this far along and to give up on him after all he’s sacrificed for the team would be shameful. The Oilers need more good dmen, not less.

If we’re talking about moving a LHD, then let’s see if Sekera is willing to waive his NTC.

Maroon

Patty is a player I’ve grown to love and it sounds like Edmonton is a city that Maroon has grown to love as well and negotiations have started with regards to him re-signing with the team.

Now, I don’t have too many issues with this BUT if the Oilers employ heavy wingers down the left side, won’t teams target that? And I want Maroon signed for under $3M per year and sans the NTC/NMC.

Otherwise we should thank him for his services and move on in finding a LW for McDavid.

Elk Point’s Native Son

Mark Letestu is as good as gone, so we shouldn’t be surprised if his performances get better closer to the deadline. I like Letestu and I think he’ll make a fine coach someday. He tells it how it is and doesn’t mess about.

The return I’ve heard could be as high as a 2nd rounder. Beauty if that’s the case!

I think that Jujhar Khaira will slide into his role seamlessly too but what about Ryan Strome? Could you handle Strome as the team’s 4C and PK specialist for $2-$2.5M per year for 2 more years?

RNH

I know for a fact that if there’s one thing that Peter Chiarelli and Todd McLellan agree on, it’s keeping Nuge. Now deploying him, Connor, and Leon… That’s another story.

But it’s really imperative that they Oilers stick with this 3-headed dragon down the middle and make the wings their only problem. A strong spine will eventually lead you to success.

The Draft

It’s now time to start looking forward to the 2018 NHL Draft in Dallas. Head on over to OilersLivePodcast.com and listen to the latest pod that Mike has up there to hear myself, and Sean (@theoilknight) talk about this year’s top ten. Also, below is the latest BLH YouTube video with our top-ten! Please Subscribe!

Armchair GM, Beer League Hero, Edmonton Oilers, NHL, Prospects, Rumors, Trades

How Will the Oilers Deal with the Seattle Expansion? PLUS Trade Rumors and Proposals

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This morning I was discussing a hypothetical trade with some of my followers on Twitter (@beerleagueheroe) and one person brought up that the Oilers will need to think about the returns they get this year and how they might pertain to the Seattle expansion draft. I thought it was an interesting thing to go over, so I want to do that briefly and then go over some trade rumors real and proposed by myself.

SEATTLE

We’ve been told that the expansion draft rules will be the same for the Seattle franchise as they were for Vegas. Below I’ve copied and pasted right from NHL.com said expansion rules.

Protected Lists
* Clubs will have two options for players they wish to protect in the Expansion Draft:

a) Seven forwards, three defensemen and one goaltender

b) Eight skaters (forwards/defensemen) and one goaltender

* All players who have currently effective and continuing “No Movement” clauses at the time of the Expansion Draft (and who to decline to waive such clauses) must be protected (and will be counted toward their club’s applicable protection limits).

* All first- and second-year professionals, as well as all unsigned draft choices, will be exempt from selection (and will not be counted toward their club’s applicable protection limits).

Player Exposure Requirements

* All Clubs must meet the following minimum requirements regarding players exposed for selection in the Expansion Draft:

i) One defenseman who is a) under contract in 2017-18 and b) played in 40 or more NHL games the prior season OR played in 70 or more NHL games in the prior two seasons.

ii) Two forwards who are a) under contract in 2017-18 and b) played in 40 or more NHL games the prior season OR played in 70 or more NHL games in the prior two seasons.

iii) One goaltender who is under contract in 2017-18 or will be a restricted free agent at the expiration of his current contract immediately prior to 2017-18. If the club elects to make a restricted free agent goaltender available in order to meet this requirement, that goaltender must have received his qualifying offer prior to the submission of the club’s protected list.

* Players with potential career-ending injuries who have missed more than the previous 60 consecutive games (or who otherwise have been confirmed to have a career-threatening injury) may not be used to satisfy a club’s player exposure requirements, unless approval is received from the NHL. Such players also may be deemed exempt from selection by the League.

POTENTIAL OILERS ROSTER IN 2020

LW C RW LD RD G
Lucic McDavid Pulju Nurse Larsson no
Caggiula Draisaitl Yamamoto Klefbom Sekera tendy
Khaira RNH Strome Russell Benning past ’19
(open) (open) (open Davidson

Red=NMC/NTC, Blue=RFA signing this yr, Green=Expansion exempt

Please let me know if I’ve left someone out!

I’m just assuming that all of, or most of, the RFAs will be re-signed up to at least 2020. But the Oilers will have to have at least 1 goalie to expose. So keep an eye on what happens with Cam Talbot in the next summer or two.

I didn’t include any farm kids because I’m not sure if any of them will get 40 games combined in the next two seasons to force them to become expansion eligible.

Zack Kassian’s deal runs out the summer of the proposed expansion draft, so he’d still technically be part of the roster and could be left unprotected like Derek Engelland was for Vegas.

So if we’re hypothesizing here with the two protection lists, what would yours look like?

  • A) Lucic, McDavid, Draisaitl, Puljujarvi, RNH, Khaira, Strome, Nurse, Sekera, Russell, Goalie A?
  • B) Lucic, McDavid, Draisaitl, Puljujarvi, Nurse, Larsson, Sekera, Russell, Goalie

Either way, the Oilers are kinda hooped, no?

In option A, they’re forced to expose one of Klefbom, Nurse, Larsson, or Benning. In option B, they’re forced to expose Puljujarvi or RNH on fwd and one of Nurse, Klefbom, Larsson, or Benning on D.

Now, will there be a lockout again and with said lockout compliance buyouts? Which player with an NMC would be the best to let go strategically? Lucic, Sekera, or Russell? And who gets dealt first, RNH or one of the young D (Larsson/Klefbom)?

**EDIT** The NTC/NMC thing is a bit tricky. I didn’t read up on it before. But here’s the gist. NTCs don’t have to be protected but NMCs do. So Lucic’s no-movement clause switches to a no-trade clause (player submits list) a year after the supposed Seattle expansion draft. The Oilers are stuck with him unless there’s a lockout w/compliance buyouts. BUT Russell+Sekera’s NMCs switch to modified NTCs the season before the Seattle expansion draft. Therefore, they can be exposed. I hope I got that right! Sorry for the confusion! Read more here.**

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TRADE RUMORS/PROPOSALS

This section and the above are not connected, think of them as separate blogs. I don’t want to confuse anybody into thinking I’m writing about expansion and then trade proposals that would hurt the Oilers expansion draft strategy. I’m just shootin’ the shit here.

I guess Max Domi is on the block. That’s really interesting to me because I feel like he’s a pretty decent player having a tough go in the desert right now. It’s not like an analytics-leaning GM to deal a young player like this unless of course, it’s been suggested to him by an agent.

Max Domi is in the final year of his entry-level contract and will be an RFA this summer.

He has been in pretty sharp decline since his first season though.

  • 2014/15 – 54pts (81 gp + 18 goals)
  • 2015/16 – 38pts (59 gp +9 goals)
  • 2017/18 – 22pts (52 gp +3 goals) to date.

Domi and McDavid are pretty good buddies. Tie’s kid can skate and shoot and he’s as fearless as they come. Top that off with his willingness to correct the other team’s behaviour with his fists and I think we’ve got the kind of player who would thrive in Edmonton.

I wonder what the Coyotes are looking for here? Would they accept Ryan Strome and one of the Oilers’ D prospects not yet in Bakersfield? I know the narrative is a tad Hollywood but I’m thinking Jujhar Khaira is a better fit for 3C than Strome for the Oilers and the Elder Strome would slide right into Max’s 3C role in Arizona seamlessly. He’d also be one of the older forwards on the Coyotes upon arrival as well.

At the beginning of this blog I talked about a trade proposal I sent out on Twitter that got the conversation about expansion started. Here it is:

What if the Oilers had two offers on Patrick Maroon,

  • From Toronto: Josh Leivo + Nikita Soshnikov (Both RFAs this summer)
  • From St.Louis: Jordan Kyrou

Which one would YOU pick or would you hold off for something better?

So as it pertains to the expansion draft, maybe you take the World Junior and OHL scoring standout Jordan Kyrou since he’d be exempt or do you take the duo from Toronto because they offer skilled depth and the Oilers HAVE to make a better run for the playoffs next year and not even think about the Seattle expansion draft…

Tough call…

What do you think? Let us know in the comments below!

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