Tag Archives: Wayne Simmonds

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

Edmonton Oilers Rumors: New Names to Add to the Mill PLUS Who’s Safe in Edmonton?

Last night I was contacted by more than one source to tell me that Jesse Puljujarvi is SAFE and wouldn’t be traded. That message is obviously contrary to what insiders like Elliotte Friedman, Ryan Rishaug, and Chris Johnston are saying but I have a theory on that. It also dovetails with what Kurt Leavins said yesterday on Twitter,

I feel like the Edmonton Oilers fanbase is one of the most active in the NHL and that it drives a lot of numbers for TSN’s and Sportsnet’s hockey coverage. I have no proof of course but with the way that the media is crawling all over Peter Chiarelli right now, it makes sense on their end to exasperate the perceived situation for profit.

Case in point: Craig Button saying Evan Bouchard ISN’T one of the top-50 prospects not playing in the NHL right now.

That’s a giant line of bullshit! He was in love with Bouchard before the draft and was saying if he was a better skater, he might be challenging Dahlin for 1st overall. To put a guy like Gabe Vilardi ahead of Bouchard is disingenuous. I mean, a scout worth his salt would never rate Vilardi ahead of Bouchard at this point. Generally, you want a player who’s going to actually play hockey in the future to be on a list like that, no? I wonder if Button is a bit salty that Bouchard had a tough World Juniors?

Getting back to Puljujarvi, Oilers management feels that they need to do right by this player and are willing to do what it takes to see things through with him. The same goes for Kailer Yamamoto. Peter Chiarelli is VERY hesitant to deal these players because he sees the potential in these players and Edmonton needs value contracts going forward. Pulju might not be producing at a Patrik Laine-like rate and that might result in his next contract being more affordable or “cheap” for lack of a better description. So him struggling to produce points might actually be a blessing in disguise because when he breaks out, and he will, the Oilers will be underpaying him.

A new season means a new design! Click the image above to get the new Pulju shirt!

I’m just going to put the other things I was told in point form here to get this post moving a bit faster for you,

  • New Name: Oilers like Miles Wood out of NJ
  • Keith (Gretzky) is a big part of the negotiations, Peter is manning the controls, but Bob (Nicholson) has final say.
  • On Josh Ho-Sang: He’s a good young player. Just has to get his game together. If we get him, I wonder what Hitch can do for him?
  • On Michael Ferland: Oilers are talking to Car about him. They like him. No offer made but they’re chatting.
  • Oilers are also talking to Pitts about Brassard
  • Nuge isn’t being moved. Klef, Nurse. None of them.
  • They’re also not moving the 1st round pick for a UFA rental. That is out of the question.
  • On Wayne Simmonds: At this point is an absolute no. Philly wants a goaltender or top 6 roster player, a 1st pick AND a top blue chip prospect. Edm isn’t going down that road
  • On Cam Talbot: I don’t believe they’re moving Cam Talbot at this time unless a knock your socks off offer comes along that involves a goalie coming back.
  • On Tyler Toffolli: They’re not talking with LA. Not trading within their own division.
  • That first pick, unless it’s a productive player WITH term (3 4 years) the 1st will not be moved.
  • On Rishaug’s “Young developing player”: That young developing player would be a guy in Bakersfield. It will not be a guy like Yamo or Pulju. Have to stay patient with those two blue chippers.
  • They’re shopping Spooner and Benning. Trying to find a partner to dance with. Tough market for those fellas.
  • They’re not moving Milan Lucic either.
  • On Jordan Eberle: There is also some chat garnering around about bringing in Eberle. Now whether that’s now or offseason, I’d suggest off-season. Eberle would come over at $3M-$4M per on a 2 or 3-year deal is my guess.

 

So there you have it! It looks like Chiarelli is ready to die on the sword to save the core of this team despite what the owner wants. I can respect that and I might be in the minority here, but I don’t want him to do anything big. The teams around Edmonton in the playoff race are struggling and despite the Oilers poor recent record, they’re still in the thick of this. This is exactly the right time for some shooting percentages to return to the mean and Oscar Klefbom’s return is right around the corner.

Friedman mentioned Mats Zuccarello out of New York and I could see him being a nice add to the team. I wouldn’t pay top dollar for him as he’s struggled all year but if the Rangers would take Spooner back (hahaha, as if) or maybe Matt Benning, Edmonton might actually be able to afford him? What about a Rieder for Zuccarello trade? Ethan Bear and Ostap Safin?

If I had to guess, I wonder if Edmonton will try to acquire a really good right-handed face-off man for the 3rd line. It’s been a weakness of the team for some time and it really hurts them late in tight games I feel. Glendening out of Detroit comes to mind for me.

If not that piece then a veteran winger to give the Oilers the option to send Yamamoto back to Bakersfield. The aforementioned Zuccarello fits that description.

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

Click the pic and grab a 16-bit McDavid tee!
The Vegas Golden Misfits are going to the Stanley Cup Final in 2018!!! Love ’em or hate ’em it’s an amazing story and this is one punk rocker’s way of giving tribute! Click the pic above and get yours today!
Elias Pettersson’s nickname is “Alien”. Here’s a shirt to celebrate it! Click the image to buy one!
Click the image above and get this sweet Leon’s parody shirt!
Armchair GM, Beer League Hero, Edmonton Oilers, NHL, Rumors, Trades

Edmonton Oilers Rumors: Friedman/Rishaug Comment on Oilers Trade Options

Yesterday was a busy day for Edmonton Oilers rumors. Between Elliotte Friedman and Ryan Rishaug, Oilers Twitter was en Fuego with proposals! Couple that with a 7-2 shellacking of the Buffalo Sabres and it was an emotionally confusing time.

I got a message from two of my sources last night with regards to some potential moves the Oilers are looking at as well. Those will follow the Friedman and Rishaug segments.

We’ll try to make this a brief post to save you some time.

**Preface: Use your own judgment here. I’m only a guy who happens to know some people within, or very close to, a professional hockey organization. I’m not an insider per se, but I hear things and I’ve been given permission to pass them on to you. All of this could come true or none of it could. It’s more likely the latter because things change all of the time. My advice, treat this like water cooler banter and don’t take it too seriously. It’s all entertainment at the end of the day anyhow, right?**

Let’s start with Elliotte Friedman. He was on the NHL network and was asked about what’s going on with the Oilers, he had this to say,

I think a lot of these are business-driven decisions. The Oilers ticket season renewals are going out soon. They’re in the third year of the new arena and a number of their suites are three-year leases, so they’re up again and when you have decisions like this that you need to make about selling tickets, about selling suites, the idea of stepping back and missing the playoffs, I don’t think ownership is that interested in.

So I think they are looking for more scoring. They let it be known that Ryan Spooner is available. I think people know that Puljujarvi could be available. There was a report today that they’ve made their first round draft pick available and one of their goalies, Talbot or Koskinen available.

That says to me that that’s a team that is desperate to make the playoffs this year and they’re going to go out and  see if they can find someone to play with McDavid. 

Some reports on Twitter came up not long after this aired that said Friedman was saying Puljujarvi IS available. In that interview, he only said he “could” be available. This dovetails with what he said in the Jan. 2nd edition of 31 Thoughts when he wrote: “Jesse Puljujarvi’s future is uncertain”

What this says to me is that Puljujarvi’s name is coming up in talks and the Oilers are listening but there’s no urgency to move him per se.

Every team listens to offers on every player they have. It’s that simple and the reason for that is you never know when a GM is going to ring you up and offer you Taylor Hall, right?

I think you know my stance on Pulju, you don’t deal a 20-year-old who hasn’t quite panned out after you’ve screwed up his development path. You double down and do your best to put that player on the path to success and do what you can. 20-years-old is far too young to give up on a player in my opinion. Besides, he’s up for contract renewal this summer and he’s a good candidate for a value deal as he’s just about to turn the corner as a full-time NHLer.

If the Oilers deal him now, they’ll regret it. Just like they did with all the other kids they pilfered off. We’re not talking about Nail Yakupov here. We’re talking about a young man who spends extra time after practise to work on his game and has done nothing but listen to the instructions of his coach(es) since joining as a fresh 18-year-old.

Chiarelli has to stand firm here and throw his support behind Jesse.

That tweet had Oilers twitter running around with its head cut off. I don’t know why though. The assumed players (Talbot and Puljujarvi) have been in the rumor mill for over a year.

Rishaug also had this to say on Jason Gregor’s show yesterday afternoon,

I think they’re trying really hard and they’re looking for something that makes sense but when you’re talking about a first round pick, you’re talking about Jesse Puljujarvi, well you have to bring players back that you can control. You can’t do that for rentals possibly.

So those are hard deals to find and then you’ve got the money issue that all those players come with probably pretty good price tags.

So it’s not easy to do, if it was, they’d have done it already. And on top of it all, you’ve got a general manager who has misfired pretty badly recently. It’ll be interesting IF or WHAT he can pull off here but I know they are definitely trying and scouring all corners right now. 

Leave it to Rishaug to name Puljujarvi but not Talbot or Koskinen.

Moving on, the messages I got from my sources were thus,

Oilers are in talks to get Ho-Sang from the Isles… Sounds like it might be Pulju going the other way. I hope not. I like Yamo and Pulju but I think one of them goes. 

Chiarelli won’t go for Simmonds. Price is too high.

The Oilers need a winger for Connor and Ho-Sang isn’t that guy.

That was from Source A.

God forbid Chiarelli deal Jesse Puljujarvi to the Islanders straight across for Josh Ho-Sang. I will hop on board the #FireChiarelli bandwagon so fast it’ll feel like I was there the whole time.

Now if it’s Yamamoto on the other hand, I would be okay with that.

More realistically, the Oilers should just be sending over a prospect or one of their extra defensemen. Say, Matt Benning, Brandon Manning, or Kevin Gravel. Ryan Spooner would probably be most ideal.

F*ck those guys! Click the link and grab one of these beauty shirts!

Ho-Sang has 24 points in 27 games for the Islanders farm team in Bridgeport. Amazingly, only two of those 24 points are goals. I’m not sure I’ve seen that before.

He’s far too good for the AHL but what I’m worried about is another Ryan Spooner debacle. I simply don’t see Ho-Sang as the kind of player Ken Hitchcock is going to play a lot and two points in ten games playing good minutes for the Islanders doesn’t illicit optimism.

On the other hand, this is how the Islanders have controlled the shot share when Ho-Sang has been on the ice for them this season,

He only had the one goal and one assist in 10 games, but the Islanders had 60 percent of the shots on goal with Ho-Sang on the ice, along with 53.7 percent of the scoring chances and 57.6 percent of the high-danger chances, as measured by Natural Stat Trick. (source)

That is from The Athletic, if you need a subscription, click HERE.

What you can’t take away from the Islanders troubled winger is his high skill level. He’s very good with the puck but coaches like Ken Hitchcock, Barry Trotz, and the likes, can’t accept his effort on the other side of the puck.

But you have to ask yourself, is this the kind of trade that is going to get the Oilers over the hump and clear their path to the playoffs?

Source B had this to say,

I know Cam has been discussed but I have no direct knowledge of the team offering or being interested in trading Puljujarvi. 

My feeling is that Mikko Koskinen is going to get four or five starts here before the 10-day break and that will determine if the Oilers keep him or Cam Talbot leading up to the trade deadline.

The Oilers can go a couple of different routes leading up to the trade deadline at the end of February here.

  • Option #1: Deal away large contracts with picks and prospects and set themselves up for a clean slate going into the next season.
  • Option #2: Deal away large contracts with picks and prospects and set themselves up for a good run at the playoffs.

The first option obviously means that Chiarelli would at some point be relieved of his duties as GM of the team. The second option would be the ultimate gamble but the payoff could be the largest.

I’m betting that Darryl Katz is tired of being the laughing stock of the NHL and he’d prefer to go with option #2 but man is that a waste if it fails. Not only that but the league, the media, and the fans of every team (including your own) continue to laugh heartily at the joke that is the Edmonton Oilers.

There is an option #3 and that is to leave things as they are and ride this roster to whatever place in the standings that may come. If the recent uptick in secondary scoring continues to climb, there’s a real chance that no trades would need to be made.

What do you think? Which option would you take? Let us know in the comments below!

The Vegas Golden Misfits are going to the Stanley Cup Final in 2018!!! Love ’em or hate ’em it’s an amazing story and this is one punk rocker’s way of giving tribute! Click the pic above and get yours today!
Elias Pettersson’s nickname is “Alien”. Here’s a shirt to celebrate it! Click the image to buy one!
Armchair GM, Beer League Hero, Edmonton Oilers, NHL, Rumors

Edmonton Oilers Rumors: Fresh Rumors for the New Year!

What a game last night! What have I been saying for nearly two weeks now? The Oilers aren’t getting scoring from the secondary because they aren’t going to the net and they aren’t shooting. What happens vs. Anaheim? They get shots on net and there are players there to clean up the garbage and against a potential Hart Trophy candidate in John Gibson no less.

The boys saved Chia’s ass last night 🙂

Would like to see them limit the other team’s shots on goal mind you. They’re not going to get goaltending like this every night and Anaheim is the 2nd worst scoring team in the league right now. With all of that depth and talent, it’s a shock their GM is even employed.

I’m still upset with Lucic even though he made a great play on Draisaitl’s goal by wallpapering Montour in order to get to the puck first so that he could make the play out front.

Speaking of that goal. The whole thing where he walks past Montour to give him a piece of his mind for the high stick, get’s punched in the head, headlocked, and receives 4 minutes in penalties for it… That was BS but it isn’t what caught my eye.

What I noticed was Montour not even thinking twice about throwing a punch at Lucic. That tells me he’s not feared anymore. Even little Leipsic in LA was giving it back to him.

It might just be time for Milan to hang them up OR he could go on one last tour of destruction. Either way, he’s not fooling anybody on the ice anymore.

I’m not even going to talk about the garbage with the reffing.

That’s a lie, I will for a second here.

Has anybody considered that maybe the league WANTS hitting taken out of the game? So they allow this BS to go on because they’re playing the long game? Take hitting out, no more headshots, no more concussions from hits, no more lawsuits. Plus faster play, more goals, more excitement… Bla bla bla… It’s all dumb because it’s all a lie.

I know for a fact there are some markets in the US that go to hockey games to see if a fight breaks out. I watched minor league hockey in Huntsville, AL (where Talbot played and Woodcroft coached) and the fans there couldn’t have cared less what was going on on the ice until there was a fight. THEN everyone stood up and cheered.

The NHL is looking after itself here. No doubt. I for one hope a new league forms one day that is a call-back to the great days of hockey.

Click the pic and grab a 16-bit McDavid tee!

Anyways, on to the rumors…

I’ve got a hunch that the Oilers have a plan to ice a more veteran-laden lineup for 2019-20. Letting the kids run the show has not worked one bit and that goes back to the days of H.O.P.E (Hall, Omark, Paajarvi, Eberle)… I’ll tie this together at the end to show you.

Bob Stauffer has been talking a lot about the weak draft coming up and how fans would feel if the Oilers used their first rounder in this year’s draft (lottery protected of course) to upgrade the roster.

So on Twitter the other day I threw out a hypothetical trade with the Flyers,

That proposal was only slightly hypothetical and after that performance against Anaheim, I’d be hard-pressed to trade Talbot but I believe the Oilers are interested in bringing Wayne Simmonds to play alongside Connor McDavid. Hitchcock likes having big bodies who are good along the boards and can play net-front, right? Yes, Simmonds is a UFA at season’s end and he’ll be 31 next season but he can still skate, score (on pace for 24 goals this year), and get dirty (53 PIMs).

I’m guessing the Flyers are having a tough time re-signing him and their desperation for a starting goalie is growing stronger by the loss. I am not sure how much money the Oilers would offer him to stay, perhaps just a bit more than he’s making now which is $3.975 million.

What would you offer him? $5.5 million for four years? Three years? How could the Oilers learn from the Milan Lucic debacle but still get their kind of man without developing him from within.

You probably noticed a former 2nd overall pick and 4th overall pick in that trade too. I’m not exactly sure what’s going on with Patrick in Philly. He’s not progressing as quickly as they’d like I suppose and he’s been injured quite a bit, but he’s a name I tossed out there to my source and I was told he’d very likely be the ask if Jesse Puljujarvi was included in the deal.

NOOOOOOO!!! DO. NOT. TRADE. PULJUJARVI!

I will not be a very happy Oilers fan if Pulju gets dealt, that much can be said.

A new season means a new design! Click the image above to get the new Pulju shirt!

 

Another name that is making the rounds is that of former Edmonton Oilers, Jordan Eberle!

Bob Stauffer brought him up on Friday during his show and I was asked how I felt about the Oilers potentially bringing him in by my source. To me, that says this is a serious consideration from the organization. To add to that, Jordan isn’t having a great time in Long Island since joining the club and I guess his significant other feels the same. They’re looking to go to a smaller market after this year and what better small market than Edmonton, right?

What would you pay Eberle now? He’s on pace for 14 goals right now and those are not numbers worthy of a $6 million player. Would you give him three years at $4 million per? I think I might.

Two other names that have popped up are Charles Hudon of the Montreal Canadiens and Daniel Carr of the Vegas Golden Knights.

Hudon has three goals and one assist in 23 games this year. That’s a stark contrast to what he produced last season (ten goals and 20 assists). He’s on an expiring contract worth 650k and he’ll be an RFA at the end of the year.

Whereas Carr is dominating the AHL right now (15g 20a in 24 gp). He makes 750k this season and is a UFA this summer.

The interesting thing about Carr and Hudon is that they have a history together ripping it up for Montreal’s farm teams in Hamilton and St. John’s from 2014-15 to 2016-17. They’re both high energy players, they’re quick and they play an honest game.

Bonus: Carr is a local lad. Born in Sherwood Park, he played midget in Leduc and junior for the St. Albert Steel.

I imagine Edmonton might try to peddle Matt Benning to Montreal for Hudon and wait to sign Carr in the off-season. \

I’ve also heard Colton Sceviour is a target the Oilers have been watching this year. He makes $1.2 million for two more years after this.

Grab this sweet Nintendo parody shirt! Click the image above!

Tying It All Together

Here’s a potential snapshot of what the Oilers roster COULD look like next year if everything were to go to plan.

Draisaitl-McDavid-Simmonds
XXX (Lee)-RNH-Eberle
Hudon–Patrick-Yamamoto
Sceviour-Khaira-Kassian
Brodziak-Carr/Tanev

I have the Oilers buying out Spooner. It would cost them $1.3 million for two seasons to do that. The alternative is playing him beside RNH and Ebs… Can’t see it though.

Rattie, Gambardella, Rieder are all let go or signed to two-way deals.

There are some tasty UFAs that could hit the market this summer for that LW spot that include Jeff Skinner, Anders Lee, Ryan Dzingel, and Michael Ferland but at what cost? Lee would be awfully nice to have there for $6.5 million or so…

As for that extra forward spot, I think a player like Brandon Tanev would fit in there perfectly. His tenaciousness and work ethic would be very welcome on this team. Similar to Carr in my mind.

There’s also the question of Alex Chiasson. Would the Oilers walk away from his career-high in goals or re-sign him and for how much? I have him gone in my scenario though.

Klefbom-Larsson
Nurse-Russell
Jones-Gravel
Bouchard

Brandon Manning is either bought out as well (916k in year one, 666k in year two) or sent to the minors and I think his cap hit would only be a shade over a million dollars then. I’ve also got Petrovic walking but I feel like they’d prefer to retain him over Manning.

I’m of the belief that the Oilers won’t trade Russell. We’re seeing just how valuable he is to the players on this team. The emergence of Caleb Jones is making me wonder if the team might reconsider trading for a PP QB like Justin Faulk or Tyson Barrie now…

Kevin Gravel has played his way to a new contract in my opinion. He’s been very good when deployed in the correct slot and I hope they keep him.

As for Evan Bouchard, he’ll be too old for the OHL next season. My prediction is that he makes the team out of camp due to him having the best shot and the best passing ability. What concerns me is that his defensive reads and skating aren’t up to par and maybe two months in Bakersfield would do him a lot of good learning under the tutelage of Dave Manson.

Koskinen
XXX (Francouz)

I would see if Pavel Francouz would sign on the cheap here and form the KHL duo. Do you think Mikko Koskinen would sign for $4M?

Now when I said “if everything goes to plan”, that means the following,

  • Lucic is moved with 50% retained and no players come back to Edmonton. (Better case scenario is he retires and forfeits the pay.)
  • Andrej Sekera never plays another game for the Oilers again and it’s off to Ference island for him. That’d be a headache come day 1 of the season each remaining year on his deal though as the Oilers would only be able to dig into his IR cushion after that date.
  • New signings and re-signings take haircuts on their deals.

I’m not getting too in-depth here. I think there are some problems cap-wise with my roster above but I just wanted to give a brief overview of what the Oilers roster COULD look like if the hockey gords shined the good light on Edmonton for an off-season.

What do you think? Let me know in the comments section!

PS: Hi Darcy! How’s the wood? Need any shirts done up?

Elias Pettersson’s nickname is “Alien”. Here’s a shirt to celebrate it! Click the image to buy one!

 

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

Edmonton Oilers Rumors: Only One Oiler on Frank Seravalli’s First TSN Trade Bait Board of the Season

I know, it’s kind of shocking to only see one member of the Edmonton Oilers on TSN’s Trade Bait Board. Well, it’s not RNH, it’s not Oscar Klefbom, nor is it Jesse Puljujarvi. This season, the first Oiler up on Frank Seravalli’s Trade Bait Board is…

Zack Kassian!

He along with 14 other players highlight the board and will be amongst the rumors all season long until of course they are dealt.

Click the pic and grab this hilarious t-shirt!

Let’s take some time and comment on each of the players briefly in relation to the possibility of the Oilers picking them up.

  1. William Nylander (TOR) – Can’t see it. No way no how. Forget what his old man did when Kevin Lowe was GM. Nylander is looking to get PAID and the Oilers are going to have enough trouble paying their own players after this season unless they make some moves.
  2. Kevin Hayes (NYR) – The Rangers pivot would tempt Peter Chiarelli I’m sure due to his size but in my opinion, he doesn’t produce enough for how much he’s being paid. I wasn’t impressed with his performance earlier in the year when the Oilers beat his Rangers either.
  3. Mats Zuccarello (NYR) – I like Zuccarello as a complimentary piece for the Oilers but only as a rental. I think the cost to acquire him would be dear and not worth it in the long run. He’s very much what I hope Kailer Yamamoto turns into because I feel they play a similar style.
  4. Alec Martinez (LAK) – This is definitely a player I could see the Oilers getting in on. He’s a RHD who has championship experience and has played in a defensive system his entire career. I think he’d compliment Darnell Nurse on the 2nd pair fairly well and he’s only making $4M a year for this season and next.
  5. Gustav Nyquist (DET) – He’ll be cashing in this summer but if there was any way he could be had on the long-term for $4M, he’d definitely be worth it. Not flashy by any means but he’s consistent and when paired with a good centre, effective.
  6. Tanner Pearson (LAK) – I’m not a huge fan of Pearson and I can’t really put my thumb on it as to why. He seems to be a pretty consistent 35-45pt guy and the Oilers could definitely use that. Maybe he’s not flashy or physical enough to my taste.
  7. Sergei Bobrovsky (CBJ) – Nope. No goalies be coming Edmonton’s way. Especially when this one is looking for Carey Price money.
  8. Brett Pesce (CAR) – I really can’t see Carolina messing with their team chemistry with how they’re playing to start the year. That said, would you trade Jesse Puljujarvi for Pesce? The defense would be set for the next 5 years in that scenario.
  9. Tyler Myers (WPG) – I think Chiarelli would love to get his hands on another big man but Myers is going to be getting Chara-like money this summer and why would the Jets even look at moving him in-season? They’re more of a Cup contender with him than without him.
  10. Artemi Panarin (CLB) – If Panarin didn’t have his heart set on playing for a coast team then I’d say Edmonton should go for him. Every time he plays the Oilers he sets them ablaze. He’s so good but alas, it’s not to be in this fairy tale.
  11. Vlad Namestnikov (NYR) – This $4M Russian was 2 points away from 50 last season spent mostly with the Lightning of Tampa Bay but after being dealt in the Ryan McDonagh trade, he only managed 4 pts in 19 games… Enigmatic I think is the word that describes him best. The Rangers have put him on the block so he’ll more than likely join his third team in less than a calendar year and not often is that a sign of good things to come for a player in that scenario.
  12. Charles Hudon (MTL) – I like this guy. A lot. He also fits the description of the Peter Chiarelli Special. A player who isn’t gaining traction with his current club, is cheap and is an RFA at season’s end. Hudon, to me, is a player who I’d describe as skilled sandpaper. He can play it any way you want to and that’s the kind of Swiss Army Knife Todd McLellan loves to deploy IF he has it.
  13. Zack Kassian (EDM) – I don’t think the case needs to be made for keeping or trading him. It’s been done to death in the last week. I like him but if the Oilers could get from out of his contract and maybe use that space to upgrade the roster, I’m all for it.
  14. Kyle Clifford (LA) – I’ve always had time for a guy like Kyle Clifford. He’s very much in the Matt Hendricks mold and I really value those kinds of players. I think he plays an honest brand of hockey but he’s not dirty. He knows where to draw the line. He’s a tad cheaper than Kassian but definitely slower than him too.
  15. Wayne Simmonds (PHI) – Remember when there was a deal on the table that had Jordan Eberle being traded for Simmonds? Ah… Those were the days. The Flyers’ winger is on the back 9 of his career and I’m for certain that Edmonton wouldn’t be getting the Wayne Simmonds we remember if they traded for him. He’s also a UFA this summer and I could see him getting a healthy raise.

What are your thoughts? Do any of those players interest you and what would you be willing to pay to get them?

Before you head out, I encourage you to hit up our interim Teepublic shop and pick up a shirt or two during our HALLOWEEN SALE!!! EVERYTHING UP TO 30% OFF!!!

Click the images below and buy one today! There are many more designs to be had!

Click the image above and get this sweet Leon’s parody shirt!
A new season means a new design! Click the image above to get the new Pulju shirt!
Grab this sweet Nintendo parody shirt! Click the image above!
CHECK UPSTAIRS w/ Color! Click the pic to see this design and more!
Armchair GM, Beer League Hero, Edmonton Oilers, NHL, Rumors, Trades

The Latest Oilers Trade Rumors Leading Up to Tonight’s Draft

Click the pic above to check out our merch!

The day has finally come everyone. The day where every faction of the Edmonton Oilers fanbase can come together as one glorious fanbase and… Treat it like any other day in the Oilogosphere by arguing about what moves Peter Chiarelli made or didn’t make… SMH…

Anyways, it’s draft day, one of MY favorite times of the year as a hockey fan. I don’t know about you but it has actually combined two of my favorite times into one, the trade deadline and the draft. As a person who enjoys the Oilers as a form of entertainment and not as an extension of my personal self-worth, reading rumor blogs and following insiders leading up to this day is about as good as it gets.

I’ll post twice today before the draft. This one will be re: rumors going into the draft and the next one will be an Oilers mock draft using the ISS hockey scouting service’s draft list.

I should tell you that I’ll be joining Mike from Oilers.live, Sean from theoilknight.com, and The Dirtbag for a LIVE podcast during the first round of the draft later today. If that interests you, you can head over to Mike’s website and there’ll be a link you can click to listen to us hosers flap our gums about the Oilers.

THE AVAIL

Peter Chiarelli held his pre-draft avail yesterday and told us nothing that we didn’t already know. The 10th overall is in play for the right player. If it isn’t used they’ll use it on the BPA (best player available). He’s not talking about Milan Lucic’s trade request. Eric Gryba was bought out because they didn’t think he’d play for the Oilers and they wanted to give him an opportunity to seek employment elsewhere.

Am I missing anything?

Anybody in any hockey-mad community knows that it’s a small one and that acts such as this one with Chiarelli and Gryba don’t go unnoticed. Other players will see this and remember it. I think it’s a positive light on Chiarelli. They weighed the options and decided to do it. If Chiarelli gets fired for 600k spent over two years, he never really had the job to begin with.

Bob Stauffer said that the Oilers should have between 46 and 48 spots filled on the 50-man roster when all is said and done. So that leaves a few spots for trades, waiver claims, and NCAA free agents when the time comes.

RUMORS GOING INTO TONIGHT’S DRAFT

The MSM insiders have been talking Oilers since the day the regular season ended but more recently this is what they’ve been saying.

  • Rishaug said that there are teams inquiring about Nuge’s services.
  • Friedman has said that the Oilers are in on Parayko.
  • McKenzie says the Oilers first rounder is definitely in play.
  • LeBrun has talked about Lucic’s availability.
  • Matheson has tossed out Julius Honka’s name on multiple occasions.
  • Dreger did some Rishaug-ing of his own connecting Hanifin and the Oilers.
  • Stauffer has a been throwing Ryan Ellis’ name out for a good two weeks.

The amateur insiders have also been filling websites with words about possible moves the Oilers will be making

  • Eklund has the Oilers talking to both the Senators about Karlsson and the Flyers about Simmonds.
  • Marshall has 6 teams in on the Oilers first rounder (NSH, CAR, CGY, COL, MIN, NYR).
  • Treenas Oil has popped up with tweets about the Oilers and Habs on more than one occasion. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins being the piece of interest for Montreal obviously.

So make of it what you will. It’s called silly season for a reason. It’s obvious that Peter Chiarelli is on the hunt for that defenseman that will help on the PP. With names like Krug, Ellis, Ristolainen, Hamilton, Barrie, Faulk, etc. coming up over and over in my Twitter TL. My only hope is that whatever they do, don’t trade Puljujarvi, Nuge, Drai, or the 10th overall. Deal next year’s picks, Yamamoto, Bear, Jones, or whoever but this year’s draft crop for the Oilers is very important in my opinion.

I’d be very comfortable with them trading Kailer Yamamoto though. I feel that Puljujarvi has the higher ceiling and if the Oilers would like to move a blue-chip piece to get better right now, Yamamoto is the guy they should move.

The wingers that have been discussed as trade targets for the Oilers (Pacioretty, Simmonds, Skinner, etc) are all players that are one season from UFA. Do you think that the Oilers would be willing to sacrifice the long-term future of the club to acquire one of those players?

Peter Chiarelli HAS to walk the tight rope carefully this year. I’m pretty nervous to be honest. I don’t want them to cut into the core of the offense to improve the D. I’d rather they move on from Klefbom if they’re going to use a young player.

I do wonder however if they’d be willing to trade Klefbom and the 10th overall to move up. That would free up cap room and roster space and allow them to pick a player (anyone rated that high will do for me but I’d like Quinn Hughes) they covet. Maybe Arizona cuts that deal.

UPDATE: The Beer League Heroes YouTube Channel is now OVER 1000 SUBSCRIBERS! it took a while but we did it! Thanks to those that have subscribed and if you haven’t, go check it out now! link

CHECK UPSTAIRS w/ Color! Click the pic to see this design and more!
Pick up this sweet tee and let the whole world know how much you love hockey’s favorite cheat!
Click the image and head over to our Teepublic shop to grab some sweet BLH merch.