Oilers Rumours & News: Nov 21, 2022

The Oilers are doing well right now, coming off a win against the Vegas Golden Knights, but still are rumoured to be quite active around the league seeing what they can get their hands on for help defensively, and seeing if they can find a temporary replacement for Evander Kane.

Vladislav Gavrikov Connected To Oilers

David Pagnotta, an analyst on the NHL Network and Editor-In-Chief of The Fourth Period, states that Blue Jackets Defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov is garnering some interest around the league, with the Oilers being one of the teams he listed as potential fits.

Gavrikov, 26, is a 6’3, 221 pound left shot blueliner with two goals and two assists through 17 games with the struggling Columbus Blue Jackets this season. He has one year left on his contract at $2.8M AAV, and will likely cost teams a bottom six forward and a draft pick.

The Oilers are decent on the left side, so bringing in Gavrikov wouldn’t be a terrible idea, but it wouldn’t exactly be ideal. Darnell Nurse and Brett Kulak are both playing on the left side and haven’t done anything to show they shouldn’t still be in top four roles. Gavrikov playing on the third pairing adds some depth and definitely would improve the team on the back end, but it would likely mean giving up one of Jesse Puljujarvi or Kailer Yamamoto to the Jackets.

Vladimir Tarasenko’s Name Thrown Around

Most NHL fans know who Vladimir Taranseko is, and for a couple seasons he was viewed as one of the best players in the world. Fast forward a few more seasons and he is still seen as a very skilled top six forward with an insanely high hockey IQ in the offensive zone while being sound defensively. The only issue that arises, are his injuries.

Taransenko was mentioned by TSN’s Mike Johnson as a potential fit for the Edmonton Oilers if they look for an Evander Kane replacement. This isn’t the first time the Oilers have been connected to Vladdy and his name has been linked to many teams before, with nothing following through.

Tarasenko won’t be as cheap of an acquisition. A trade with St. Louis likely costs the Oilers one of Puljujarvi/Yamamoto, a First Round Pick and a prospect (insert Xavier Bourgault or Philip Broberg here).

Yamamoto Injury Update

Kailer Yamamoto still isn’t back in the lineup, and is still considered day-to-day by the team. It is unsure when he will return to the lineup, but the team is presumably being cautious. It’s early in the season, so making sure everyone is healthy for a playoff run is the goal. No reason to take any chances this early on.

Yamamoto, 24, has three assists through 13 games with the Oilers this season. He hasn’t played since November 8th against the Tampa Bay Lightning.