Oilers: Three Potential Players To Trade For From The Blue Jackets
The Edmonton Oilers are going to need to think outside the box to put this team on the next level. While it is great to have stars like Connor McDavid win awards year in and year out, the Stanley Cup is the trophy fans and the team alike would like to see in the city of Edmonton.
Today, I wanted to highlight a few potential moves the team could make with the Columbus Blue Jackets. Rather than dive into who the team should give up in these deals, I want to just highlight a few players that could definitely help the team in the future.
Seth Jones will not be on this list.
Seth Jones could definitely help the Edmonton Oilers, but I do not think he is someone the team should trade for. I like what the Oilers have going on defense right now, and for the most part, defenseman usually ask for more money than they should have so when Jones’ contract is up soon it could cost the Oilers a lot if they did choose to trade for him.
The Blue Jackets are an interesting team to target on the trade market. When the draft is underway a player or two from this list could very well be traded away and I hope it is to the Oilers. Columbus is in rebuild mode as they try and fix their team for the future, so maybe a first-round pick or something along those lines would entice Columbus to give up a few players.
Let’s jump in with three players the Oilers should potentially trade for:
1. Patrik Laine
Originally I was not going to include Laine on this list, but the more and more I thought about it I said why not? Edmonton can literally play anyone with McDavid but why not give him a sniper who is looking for a bounce-back year with a new team.
Laine is a few years removed from scoring 44 goals with the Winnipeg Jets. It might take a lot to trade for him, but I also wouldn’t be opposed to giving Laine an offer sheet this summer as he is a restricted free agent.
If the Oilers can sign Laine for four or five seasons at seven million I believe that would be a win for the team. It would give the Oilers a solid winger who can have more upside than Ryan Nugent Hopkins and it would give McDavid a winger who will always be ready to shoot the puck.
Adding another star player like Laine might be a stretch for the team, but when looking at the season Laine just had one would imagine his stock is not at an all-time high. Now would be the time to take a chance on the former second overall pick that he can bounce back.
2. Jack Roslovic
Jack Roslovic is a former first-round pick that was a part of the deal that brought Patrik Laine to the Columbus Blue Jackets. At just 24 years old he is someone that would be a great addition to the team’s bottom six.
Roslovic is a center that has never really had that much success in the faceoff dot, still, he can take them. You can never have too many centers on your team. The right-handed shot would be a great fit for a line with someone like Ryan McLeod or anyone else the team adds this summer.
Plus at just 1.8 million for this coming season, the Oilers wouldn’t be adding too much cap space to the team.
3. A Goalie
The last player on this list is not a specific player. It is either of the two goalies. Columbus has two young goalies both capable of being starters in their own right. I think it comes down to pinpointing which of the two they see themselves moving forward with.
Elvis Merzlikins and Joonas Korpisalo both had stretches of great play this past season, but only one can be the starting goalie next season. Both are 27 years old and are signed through the end of the 2021-22 season. So they are going to have to pick one of the two guys.
Edmonton was comfortable with Mike Smith this past season, but he is not getting any younger, and the future needs to be planned for especially if this team wants to contend for the next handful of seasons.
I am a fan of bringing back Mike Smith next season, but I still think having a goalie around for the future wouldn’t hurt either.