A solution to the Jack Campbell problem
By Phil Gretzky
From where I sit the Edmonton Oilers also have two more roster issues to take care of, albeit more minor at this point. You’ve probably seen this quote from an interview the Bison King did with a reporter in his native Finland by now where he believes that he’s lost his confidence and that perhaps he doesn’t belong in the NHL.
It might be best to give JP a fresh start before his contract is up so we can get something for him. His attitude is improved from his first tour of duty here at least so that’s something but if the Bison King doesn’t turn his game around before season’s end I highly doubt the Edmonton Oilers will re-sign him and since these comments have become public I highly doubt he’d get a contract from another NHL team either.
That being said he does have some upside and perhaps a fresh start is what he needs to get his confidence back. If a team were to trade for him today they would get a pro-rated 32.9% discount on his contract, which works out to $987,804. Subtract that from his $3 million and you get $2,012,196. Puljujarvi is only signed for this year so if it doesn’t work out you just let him walk. Relatively cheap contract for a player with top six upside who also has size and can hit.
And then there’s Tyler Benson, who was put on waivers for the purpose of re-assignment to Bakersfield yesterday and no one claimed him. He was drafted by the Edmonton Oilers second overall in 2016 but hasn’t been able to permanently crack the lineup, although he has played 38 games in the NHL for the Oilers, only putting up 1-2-3 and 18 PIMs during that time.
However, Benson’s defensive game has gotten better during that time so he has that going for him. It appeared he would crack the lineup this season, but he got injured during training camp and by the time he had healed and was ready to come back there Klim Kostin had already taken his spot, and doesn’t appear to be losing it anytime soon.
Benson looks to be buried behind Kostin at this point and it’s only going to get worse in the coming years as guys like Xavier Bourgault, Reid Schaefer, and Raphael Lavoie mature and get spots on the team. Benson’s two way contract is also up after this season, so again no harm no foul and if he doesn’t work out you just let him walk, and you can even stash him in the minors if you want with no cap repercussions.
My theory is you could package both these players together and see if you can get some cheap scoring help. This would get a player and a prospect the fresh start they needed plus get the Oilers cheap scoring help, maybe even save some cap space in the process.
Who could they be traded for?
Well for starters you’ve got 32 year old Nick Bjugstad in Arizona. He’s their second line center right now and Arizona is nowhere near playoff contention. He’s a 30 year old veteran of 564 NHL games and has put up 10 points in 24 games – he also plays RW too. Only $900K against the cap for this year and then he’s a UFA. Also +6 on a bad team.
A more pedestrian choice would be Tyson Jost from Buffalo. He’s a failed first round pick of Colorado from 2016 that Buffalo claimed off waivers recently. He’s 24 years old and between the Wild and Sabres he has 1-3-4 in 20 games. Here’s the thing that makes him interesting though – he’s from St. Albert so the Oilers are his hometown team.
Would he be excited to play for his hometown team and thus be motivated to do well? Likely. It would only cost the Edmonton Oilers $2 million (not pro-rated) and then Jost is an RFA next year, but of course if he doesn’t work out you just don’t give him a QO and he becomes a UFA. He’s the Sabre’s third line C right now.
Would a division rival in Anaheim trade us Derek Grant in exchange for JP and Benson? Maybe, but probably not since we’re a division rival. An NHL veteran for only $1.5 million this season, though.
The biggest name I can come up with, though, would be a second tour of duty for Andreas Athanasiou. He didn’t do so great for us the first time but his career has had a renaissance in Chicago, where he’s playing on the top line with Kane and Toews. He’s put up nine points in 25 games for the Hawks, which is not too shabby.
He appears to have more confidence now and could easily take JP’s spot on the third line and perhaps even push his way onto the second if he plays his cards right. With one more year at $3 million, the Edmonton Oilers wouldn’t save any cap space as AA and JP both have identical $3 million cap hits. Max Domi is likely a non-starter for them, so this is the next best choice. If AA works out we could give him, say, $2.5 million for four years, see if he’s open to that. He plays both wings. If he doesn’t work out he just walks just like the first time.
What do you think? Could we package Benson and JP for cheap scoring help, and if so who do you think it could be? Leave a comment and let’s get the conversation started.