Edmonton Oilers: Question of Who to Trade Sparks Catch-22

There’s an ultimate riddle that asks, “Two people are hanging off the edge of a cliff, and you can only save one. Which one do you let go?” Right now, the Edmonton Oilers find themselves in that same predicament, where they have to let go of some pieces in order to upgrade and get the defenseman that will surely upgrade and improve their struggling defensive corps.

Their “two people” are split: the “core” members or the fourth-overall draft pick, which would likely be Matthew Tkachuk or Pierre-Luc Dubois. So, the question rings in Peter Chiarelli’s ears: which one do you let go?

Right now, a huge cloud of uncertainty swarms when the question rises of who to trade if you want to upgrade the defensive corps. What Edmonton lacks is a right-handed defenseman, and unfortunately, they are similar to an endangered species in the National Hockey League. That means that if the Oilers want to acquire a strong, top-pairing right shot, they’ll need to pay up. Big time.

Let’s go over the pieces that Edmonton has to offer. From the true core, there’s only three players: Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Jordan Eberle and Taylor Hall. Sure, there’s Benoit Pouliot and Nail Yakupov (likely gone anyway because of his trade request), but they won’t get back a number one defenseman. So, the pieces that would are Nugent-Hopkins, Eberle or Hall. Then, there’s the fourth-overall pick, which has apparently went up high in demand and has garnered a lot of phone calls to Chiarelli’s office thanks to Tkachuk’s excellent Memorial Cup performance.

Trading Core Players

First off, there’s trouble that comes with trading away the core. No matter which one would go, it would leave a huge hole. Let’s look at Eberle, who is a popular option among fans to be traded for an asset. Our staff writer Kurt Leavins pointed out (in less than 140 characters) why dealing away Eberle isn’t exactly easy.

So, that’s a probelm right there. Not only does Edmonton lack on the right side when it comes to defense, but they lack outstanding right wingers. Besides Eberle, there is Nail Yakupov, who likely goes this summer, Zack Kassian (still trying to get back into NHL-ready shape, and even then isn’t a goal-scorer) and Iiro Pakarinen (a clutch winger but is more suited toward the bottom-six.

This is a huge problem, and while there are plenty of right wingers for the Oilers to look at come free agency, there isn’t a goal-scorer like Eberle on the right side.

Next is Ryan Nugent-Hopkins. Sure, he’s an incredibly enticing trade chip, but he is an outstanding centre. The problem lays with the fact that with Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl on the rise, Nuge is the odd man out. However, he provides depth and great ability; his only flaw (the most tragic one) is that he is constantly injured. Baby Nuge is fragile.

However, lose him and you leave a hole at centre. What is there beyond two players that can give a strong performance when they are summoned to step up to the plate? There aren’t plenty of great free agent centres available (unless Edmonton suddenly went all in for Steven Stamkos), so this is a problem.

But what about Taylor Hall? Trading him would be a terrible idea as well. First off, Hall is one of the best scorers to enter the league since 2011. He puts up strong numbers and led the Oilers in goals, assists, points and average time on the ice this season. Hall always gives effort, and is a passionate player. Sometimes it proves to be a con, as he wears his heart on his sleeve, but he cares about the game and he cares about his team.

The only problem that rises with Hall is that he is streaky at times, and can go long periods without production. There are also instances in which he doesn’t step up, however, most of the time, he gives his all on the ice.

Draft Pick

Trading the pick could be trading away the next great future left winger. Though Edmonton is stacked on that side, they could truly benefit from someone like Tkachuk, a big, physical winger who crashes the net and creates scoring chances with every offensive push. Even thinking about him on a line with McDavid makes our hearts race.

Bob Stauffer said at this point, he doesn’t expect the Oilers to move the pick at this point. So, what does Edmonton do?

Next: Edmonton Oilers: Nikitin Reportedly Heading to the KHL

Final Point

No matter what Chiarelli does, it’s a Catch-22 situation in Edmonton. He’s damned if he does and damned if he doesn’t. There will likely be a huge hole in the Oilers roster when the time comes to make a deal; he just has to think of a great way to fill it.