Top 3 players the Oilers should trade this offseason

4 of 4

With the start of the NHL season a month and a half away, and the offseason free agency and trade market quieting down, hockey fans are still anticipating if their teams are still planning to make a move. Even after witnessing a good free agency offseason from general manager Ken Holland and his team, Edmonton Oilers fans are still looking for more.

Is this it? Are we done adding or is there a free agent signing or trade we can make to make this team even better? These are some of the questions we ask ourselves daily. This the perks of being a fan in a hockey town, we are never satisfied no matter how well the management does during free agency and trade market. We always want more, and we always want it now and quickly.

Edmonton Oilers Future

Looking at the Edmonton roster after some free agent signings, the team is much better now than the one that went to the Western Conference Finals last season. The signing of goaltender Jack Campbell creates stability on the net, and coupled with the signing that brought back forward Evander Kane and defenseman Brett Kulak, the Oilers are ready to run it back this season.

As much excitement those free agent signings created, there are still questions left to be answered this offseason. One of the questions is whether or not the team is still planning to trade some of their players. With NHL preseason less than a month away, here are the top 3 Edmonton Oilers players that should be traded.

Dec 18, 2021; Seattle, Washington, USA; Edmonton Oilers left wing Warren Foegele (37) is congratulated by teammates, including defenseman Tyson Barrie (22), defenseman Evan Bouchard (75), and defenseman Slater Koekkoek (20) after scoring a goal against the Seattle Kraken at Climate Pledge Arena. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Brashear-USA TODAY Sports /

LD Slater Koekkoek

A player the Oilers should trade this offseason is defenseman Slater Koekkoek. Not because we have a hard time spelling and pronouncing his last name, it is the fact that the Oilers need to find a way to get their young defenseman a chance to see what they got at the NHL level.

Koekkoek only managed to get 4 points last season and has been up and down the minors and majors for the most part of last season. It will be a waste if Slater stays in the minors for most of this season, the Oilers much rather trade him to allow their younger defenseman to emerge and develop with the team. Although Koekkoek is still relatively young at age 28, he is a good trading piece to a team in need of defense depth, and also, he will be an unrestricted free agent next year which will not scare other teams. Edmonton can add Koekkoek to a package trade with another player or draft picks to allow the team to see what young defensemen Philip Broberg and Dmitri Samorukov can do.

By opting to trade Slater Koekkoek, the Edmonton Oilers will free up $925,000 this season, it might not be much, but that’s money that the Oilers can add to be able to re-sign defenseman Evan Bouchard who will be a restricted free agent next year.

Edmonton Oilers Tyson Barrie #22 Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports /

RD Tyson Barrie

The idea of trading a defenseman will sound absurd, let alone a right-hand shooting defenseman, however, with Tyson Barrie, the Oilers need to find a way to somehow do it. Barrie’s cap hit for the next 2 years is at $4.5 million, and as much production the Oilers get from him, half of his points are coming from the power play.

Currently sitting as the Oilers’ 3rd pairing defenseman, Barrie’s cap hit is a burden for the Oilers, especially when the team has up-and-coming defenseman Evan Bouchard who will be a restricted free agent next season, and possesses the same skill set as Barrie. Trading Barrie not only creates more opportunities for Bouchard to excel but also gives the Oilers some cap relief to enable them to make more improvements in the line-up. A Barrie trade will also enable the Oilers to bring up young defensemen, Philip Broberg and Dmitri Samorukov and see what they got.

This trade will be harder to make for the Oilers due to the cap hit. It will need some Ken Holland maneuvering of draft picks to be able to entice some teams to take Barrie’s contract. However, the team cannot wait longer until next season to move him, as I mentioned above, they have Bouchard’s extension looming.

Oct 16, 2021; Edmonton, Alberta, CAN; Edmonton Oilers forward Derek Ryan (10) celebrates after a first period goal against the Calgary Flames at Rogers Place. Mandatory Credit: Perry Nelson-USA TODAY Sports /

C Derek Ryan

Another Oilers player that should be traded this offseason is center Derek Ryan. A fourth-line center, Ryan only managed to get 12 points for the Oilers last season. To further continue our topic of allowing younger players to emerge for this team, trading Ryan, will allow the Oilers to do just that.

By trading a player like Ryan, who has a cap hit of $1.25 million this season, the Oilers will have a chance to analyze better what young players like Dylan Holloway, Brad Malone, and Seth Griffith can do. Also, Ryan does not carry a big enough cap hit that any other team might shy away from trading for. If Ken Holland and his brass can find a way to trade Ryan in a package for another player or draft pick, this will create an opportunity for the younger guns to show what they are made up.

The Oilers might also just keep Ryan for this season and let him walk away next offseason as he is an unrestricted free agent. However, doing so will create a log jam for the forward position for the team, and will restrict the younger players from trying to move up on the depth chart.

Next. Why is what Bill Daly said perfect news for the Edmonton Oilers?. dark

Home / Editorials