Edmonton Oilers Talk: 2021 Mock Draft, Eberle, and Schmidt!

Coming from an Edmonton Oilers point of view, BLH provides you with excerpts from the latest NHL news, rumors, and speculation from all of the internet’s best sites including Spector’s Hockey, The Fourth Period, NHL Trade Talk, The Hockey Writers, Sportsnet, The Athletic, TSN and more!

From The Oil Knight

Edmonton Oilers Mock Draft

1st Round – Sebastian Cossa – 6’7″ 203lb – Edmonton Oil Kings (WHL)

He’s a 6’6″ butterfly goalie who has terrific athleticism, good fundamentals and a quick glove. His movement both post to post and up and down are very impressive, and he’s almost always square to the shooter. He’s an imposing figure in net & a terrific athlete. He doesn’t challenge the shooters by coming out of his crease as much as a lot of goalies do, but that’s clearly by design as he doesn’t lack confidence.

3rd-4th Round – Manix Landry (C) – 5’11” 178lb – Gatineau Olympiques (QMJHL)

Landry checks pretty much all the boxes for a prospect. He’s versatile, he’s a leader (team captain at age 17), he can play in all situations. But his real strengths are his skating & work ethic. It’s tough to find a prospect who competes as hard as he does on every shift and in all 3 zones. He creates a ton of turnovers with his relentless puck pursuit & fabulous skating. His strides are nearly flawless and his acceleration is elite. He also protects the puck extremely well and isn’t afraid to battle along the boards or take a hit to make a play. The kid is a gamer.

3rd-4th Round – Trevor Wong – (C) – 5’9″ 154lb – Kelowna Rockets (WHL)

Wong has elite offensive instincts. The only real knock I have on Wong is he needs to shoot more. Sometimes he over-passed the puck when he had a chance to shoot. He only averaged just over 2 shots a game (Logan Stankoven was 5 shots/game) which is shame because he can absolutely rip the puck he wants to. His speed & motor are his real assets though. He is so dangerous in transition and just flies through the neutral zone. He puts a lot of pressure on defensemen with his speed & aggressive forecheck. He’s not afraid to go hard to the net despite his diminutive stature, and in many ways reminds me of Kailer Yamamoto (who is almost the identical size).

5th-6th Round – Bryce Montgomery (RHD) – 6’4″ 209lb – London Knights (OHL)

Montgomery is a very toolsy prospect. His real strengths are his mobility and hockey sense. He has great range for such a big man and makes a lot of good decisions with the puck. Has a knack for making the smart but subtle plays. Shows real good poise. He’s also a hard worker on and off the ice. He’s physical, he outmuscles opponents, and he stands up for his teammates. Defensively, Montgomery plays the position very well. His closes gaps quickly and is good clearing the front of the net. He makes a good first pass but can also skate it out if he has to. There’s a lot to like about the kid. His shot & puck skills appear to be improving so if his hands ultimately catch up to his head – watch out. Ton of upside with this kid as a potential physical, puck rushing d-man.

6th Round & 7th Round – Martin Rysavy (F), Valtteri Koskela (LD), Stuart Rolofs (LW), Connor Trenholm (C)

BLH’s Thoughts: I’m on board with almost every pick Sean makes here. I think he addresses size, skill, and compete with those selections. Personally, I don’t think Cossa or Wallstedt will be around at #19th overall, but I love the suggestion regardless.

Reckon the Oilers would draft solely out of the CHL in the early-to-mid rounds?

I’d add my own selections but I’ve done f*ck all with regards to draft prep this year and most likely as I did in school, I’ll cram everything in last second.

From Spector’s Hockey

UPDATES ON THE ISLANDERS, RANGERS AND RED WINGS

NEW YORK POST: Larry Brooks recently proposed the Islanders need to land a reliable scoring winger for Mathew Barzal’s line. He believes they need someone “more dynamic and reliable than (Jordan) Eberle,” who has two years remaining on his contract worth an annual average value of $5 million. They could leave him exposed in the upcoming expansion draft but there’s no certainty the Seattle Kraken will take him.

BLH’s Thoughts: Man, they’re really lacing into Eberle in New York, eh? I watched every game of the Islanders/Lightning series and I didn’t think he was THAT bad. I mean, he wasn’t completely invisible but you’d think after all these years he’d have learned to stop dusting that f*cking puck off before he shoots… Man, how many more goals could he have scored had he learned to shoot off the pass?

Now, if you’re wondering about an Oilers reunion, I highly doubt it. That ship has sailed no matter how much you want it to come back and the Oilers believe very much in Puljujarvi and Yamamoto.

From NHLRumors.com

Canucks have made Schmidt available

David Pagnotta: Have been told that Vancouver Canucks defenseman Nate Schmidt is available. Things haven’t worked out for him in Vancouver.

Schmidt has three years left on his deal at a $5.9 million cap hit and has a 10-team no-trade list.

BLH’s Thoughts: I like this dman a lot, just not at that price point. $6M/yr for a 2nd pair defender like Schmidt is too much. Bring ‘er down to $4M-ish and I’m much happier (obviously).

Is Schmidt the one pushing to get out of Vancouver? I feel like if the Canucks could give him another year to fit into their system, he’d be better for it. Without eating some serious salary, I have a hard time seeing how Jim Benning moves this contract easily and painlessly.