With the trade deadline on March 21st, the Edmonton Oilers have less than a week to improve their team. One player that I think Edmonton should push to bring in is Brandon Hagel. The Chicago Blackhawks winger is a depth scorer the Oilers love to add to their roster. He is also currently #11 on TSN’s Trade Bait List, so he is available.
Brandon Hagel Stats
| Scor | Scor | Scor | Goal | Goal | Goal | Goal | Assi | Assi | Assi | Shot | Shot | Shot | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Age | Tm | GP | G | A | PTS | +/- | PIM | EV | PP | SH | GW | EV | PP | SH | S | S% | TSA |
| 2019-20 | 21 | CHI | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0.0 | 5 |
| 2020-21 | 22 | CHI | 52 | 9 | 15 | 24 | -7 | 11 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 11 | 3 | 1 | 91 | 9.9 | 144 |
| 2021-22 | 23 | CHI | 54 | 20 | 16 | 36 | -14 | 23 | 16 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 13 | 2 | 1 | 91 | 22.0 | 171 |
| Career | 3 yrs | 107 | 29 | 31 | 60 | -21 | 34 | 25 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 24 | 5 | 2 | 186 | 15.6 | 320 |
Provided by Hockey-Reference.com:
Generated 3/15/2022.
Brandon Hagel is on a 30 goal pace this season while playing left wing on the second line for a struggling Chicago Blackhawk team. He also still has 2 years left on his contract with a cap hit of $1.5 million. I think if he was added to this lineup when it is healthy he could put a bit of extra pressure on the top six players to succeed and would give Nugent-Hopkins a scoring winger on the third line.
His 20 goals already this season would put him 3rd on the Edmonton Oilers in goals behind only, McDavid and Draisaitl. His goal total may come down a bit as he would be likely be playing third line minutes. Although this could help him score more as he would be playing against lesser skilled players and defensemen.
Projected Edmonton Oilers Lines With Brandon Hagel
KANE-MCDAVID-PULJUJARVI
MCLEOD-DRAISAITL-HYMAN
HAGEL-NUGENT-HOPKINS-YAMAMOTO
FOEGLE-RYAN-KASSIAN
I believe that if the Oilers were to add Hagel they would spread the skill around a bit more. The lines I projected, I think, can rival any team in the NHL. The problem with the Oilers now is the fact the there is a large drop in skill from the top 2 lines to the bottom 2.
Bringing in Evander Kane earlier this season helped this issue. When he came in Nugent-Hopkins was able to move to the third line. If the Oilers can add one more skilled forward, they would have 3 lines that have the potential to score at any time.
What’s the cost?
With Brandon Hagel’s contract having another 2 years on it after this year and with the cap hit it carried, he is going to be an expensive add. The good news is with his low cap hit you don’t have to send another high cost play the other way. Chicago is rebuilding so they are going to want prospects and picks. If I am the Oilers I would be okay with that.
It is pretty steep price to pay for Hagel, but his is on pace to scored 30 goals. That in combination with him being under team control for many years in the future makes giving up a 1st rounder make sense from an Edmonton Oilers point of view. Getting Toronto’s 3rd is just to add a little bit coming back to Edmonton on top of Hagel. Kyle Turris is so the cap hit is the same, but with Hagel’s cap hit being so low it isn’t completely necessary.
This trade would provide the Edmonton Oilers with some depth at a good cost for many years to come. If I am Ken Holland and Hagel is available I am picking up the phone and seeing if I can get a deal done.